Now America needs to “turn off” the leased Trident II D5 SLBM missiles on the HMS Vanguard, Victorious, Vigilant, and Vengeance, which maintain the UK’s Continuous At-Sea Deterrent (CASD)and close out the agreement indefinitely. The UK can keep the Holbrook Mk-4A warheads.

Around 30% to 40% of the Royal Navy’s major surface combatants (destroyers and frigates) are fully operational or immediately deployable at any given time due to maintenance, refits, and crew constraints. The Royal Navy operates roughly 13 to 15 major surface combatants on paper, consisting of 6 Type 45 destroyers and about 7 active Type 23 frigates.

Parliamentary scrutiny and defense reports indicate that accounting for deep maintenance, refits, and active rotations, only a handful of frigates (around 4 to 5) and typically just a single destroyer are fully operational and ready for immediate deployment simultaneously.

They need to simply admit they can only maintain a coastal littoral force and sell off the capital ships to shipbreakers in India to hack apart.

There is no longer any effective Royal Navy.

https://t.co/h4KLZRU9MS