Only two of the Navy’s leading battleships are currently operational with two-thirds of the vessels currently languishing in the repair yard, the Ministry of Defence (MoD) has admitted.
It comes as the size of the Navy’s surface fleet of destroyers and frigates reached a historic low despite increasing conflict across the globe.
Of the six state-of-the-art Type 45 destroyer ships currently in the Navy’s surface fleet, four are currently in the refit yard at Portsmouth. The ships are undergoing a programme of improvements.
One of the six, HMS Daring, has spent more time in the refit yard than at sea since it was commissioned 12 years ago.
And of the eight Type-23 frigates – smaller ships a class below the destroyers – only six are currently operational, according to the MoD.
Destroyers have been the pride of the fleet for more than a century, but the total number of destroyers and frigates now stands at 14, the lowest level since the destroyer programme began during the reign of Queen Victoria.
Only eight of the 14 battleships are ready for immediate deployment.
At the Navy’s peak in 1945, there were more than 800 destroyers and frigates in the surface fleet.
MPs have warned that the lack of available ships could leave Britain vulnerable to attack from sea and air in a time of global instability.
Mike Martin, the MP for Tunbridge Wells and a member of the defence select committee, told The Telegraph: “These reports of only two operational destroyers are extremely concerning. Destroyers provide air defence and with only two destroyers, we simply cannot defend London, let alone the United Kingdom.
“This is something that the defence select committee will be looking into in its first inquiry, which is about the UK’s contribution to European defence. Clearly, if we can’t defend our own homeland, we are not able to contribute to Nato’s defence of Europe.”
For London to be effectively defended from a ballistic missile attack of the type Russia launched against the Ukrainian city of Dnipro last month, a Type 45 destroyer would need to be permanently stationed on the Thames, Luke Akehurst, the Labour MP for North Durham, warned last month.
Earlier this month, Al Carns, the defence minister and a former marine, said that in its current state, the British Army would collapse within six months to a year if it were involved in a Ukraine-style ground war.
An MoD spokesman said: “The UK stands fully prepared to defend itself against any threat alongside our Nato allies.
“The Royal Navy, British Army and Royal Air Force are equipped with a range of advanced capabilities to provide a layered approach to air and missile defence – for example, Royal Navy Type 45 destroyers have successfully shot down a Houthi rebel ballistic missile and attack drones as part of efforts to protect shipping in the Red Sea.
“As the Defence Secretary [John Healey] recently announced, the UK will lead a new initiative with Nato allies to integrate and strengthen our collective air and missile defence.”
