BRITAIN’S flagship aircraft carrier HMS Queen Elizabeth has been pulled off a Nato drill due to a faulty propellor shaft.
She was due to set sail from Portsmouth today to take part in Exercise Steadfast Defender in northern Europe, the biggest Nato exercise since the end of the Cold War.
Red-faced Navy officials said HMS Prince of Wales will take her place — but it is not clear when she will sail.
Fleet Commander Vice Admiral Andrew Burns said: “Routine pre-sailing checks yesterday identified an issue with a coupling on HMS Queen Elizabeth’s starboard propeller shaft.
“As such, the ship will not sail on Sunday.
“HMS Prince of Wales will take her place.”
Last month, The Sun revealed a report that claimed Royal Navy recruitment was so bad that defence bosses were decommissioning two warships.
HMS Westminster, recently refurbished at huge taxpayer expense, and HMS Argyll will be taken out of action this year, with crews sent to work on a yet-to-arrive new fleet of frigates.
Although the Government wants to cut the size of the Armed Forces, recruitment is still below target.
In 2023, intake at the Navy and Marines fell 22.1 per cent on the year before, while the RAF’s fell by 17 per cent and the Army’s by 15 per cent.
The Navy currently has 26,330 personnel.
The Ministry of Defence has ordered eight Type 26 frigates, which will be the Navy’s most advanced submarine-hunting warships to date.
