Fury as UK warships and submarines fall to historic low - 'it's a disgrace!'

The number of the Royal Navy's warships and submarines ready for operations has sunk to what's been described as a historic low, prompting outrage. The Senior Service has been experiencing availability issues in its fleet in recent years amid growing Russian activity around the British coast.

Only 50% of the Navy's 63 ships are currently able to deploy, according to the Ministry of Defence (MoD). Only half of the advanced Type 45 destroyer fleet is available, while a quarter of Type 23 frigates are out of action, reports say. Former First Sea Lord, Lord West, said the number of operational warships is a "disgrace" and that the Navy is now "a bit of a joke".

He told The Sun: "The Ministry of Defence claims that three destroyers are operational but I suspect that only one of those ships is out there doing the business.

"The number of operational ships is a disgrace. We are so weak at the moment. No wonder President Trump laughs at us all in Europe. We used to have a bloody powerful Navy and that gave clout and fighting power.

"Now the Royal Navy is a bit of a joke - we haven't even got a full admiral in the Navy and that's extraordinary.

He went on to say the UK has "insufficient ships and submarines operating" and that the Government "is not grasping this problem."

Three out of six of the Navy's Type 45 destroyers are available for operations as it stands. The £1 billion warships are among the UK's most advanced, offering significant air defence and strike capabilities, however have suffered from availability issues.

The ships have been undergoing upgrades to their power system.

Six of the eight Type 23 frigates are currently available for operations, according to The Sun.

Sixteen of the Duke-class ships were originally built for the Navy, but several have been decommissioned in recent years.

The total number of destroyers and frigates (14) is said to be the lowest since Queen Victoria's reign.

Two new classes of warships - the Type 26 and Type 31 - are being built for the Royal Navy in Glasgow and Rosyth, respectively.

Meanwhile, just one of the five Astute-class nuclear-powered submarines is reportedly in use.

The Trident-armed Vanguard-class submarines have also suffered from issues surrounding maintenance in past years, leading to increasingly long deployments.

The Navy has reported a 30% increase in Russian vessels threatening British waters in 2024 and 2025.

It comes amid wider concerns over the state of the UK's Armed Forces as tensions with Russia continue to ramp up.

The size of the Army has shrunk to its smallest since the Napoleonic era in recent years as many experts warn significantly more troops are needed.

An MoD spokesperson told The Sun: "We are delivering the largest sustained increase in defence spending since the Cold War, with an extra £5b for defence this financial year alone.

"As part of that, we are delivering 13 cutting-edge, modern warships for our world class Royal Navy, and through the groundbreaking Atlantic Bastion programme, we are leading the transformation to a new hybrid navy, exploiting the power and potential of new technologies alongside the traditional capabilities of our ships.

"All Royal Navy vessels rotate through planned operating cycles, including routine maintenance, and we continue to operate in accordance with Defence requirements and priorities."