HMS Queen Elizabeth, the flagship of the Royal Navy, had to withdraw from its position as the leader of the largest NATO exercise since the Cold War at the eleventh hour, as indicated by the Royal Navy.

Regular pre-sailing inspections revealed a problem with a coupling on the starboard propeller shaft of the 65,000-ton warship, preventing it from setting sail on Sunday.

Routine pre-sailing checks yesterday identified an issue with a coupling on @HMSQNLZ starboard propeller shaft. As such, the ship will not sail on Sunday.@HMSPWLS will take her place on NATO duties and will set sail for Exercise Steadfast Defender as soon as possible. pic.twitter.com/ImAeTU80vi

— Royal Navy (@RoyalNavy) February 3, 2024

The vessel was slated to take part in an upcoming NATO exercise but had to be substituted by another UK aircraft carrier, the HMS Prince of Wales.

Not an isolated incident 

Despite holding the position of the UK Royal Navy's Fleet Flagship, HMS Queen Elizabeth has encountered a string of embarrassing incidents since its commissioning in 2017.

In 2019, a mechanical problem left the warship without propulsion for several days, and it subsequently experienced flooding, as reported by The News in Portsmouth.

The ship had to anchor off Britannia Royal Naval College for a day to undergo necessary repairs, according to The News.

In 2021, a F-35B fighter from the carrier crashed in the Mediterranean.

This warship, with the capacity to carry 60 aircraft, stands as the largest ever constructed in the UK, with a cost of £3.1 billion or $3.9 billion.

Scheduled to depart from the Portsmouth naval base today, HMS Queen Elizabeth was set to play a central role in "Steadfast Defender", described as the "largest military exercise in Europe since the Cold War" by NATO's Strategic Warfare Development Command.

The plan involved HMS Queen Elizabeth leading a carrier strike group, comprising eight ships, including vessels from the United States, Spain, and Denmark. This maritime exercise was intended to take place in Norwegian waters and the High North, as outlined by the UK Defense Journal.

The comprehensive drill would entail the deployment of 20,000 UK military personnel across Scandinavia and Northern Europe, as reported by the Royal Navy. The British contingent was part of a broader participation, with 90,000 troops from all 31 NATO allies involved in the exercise.

In 2022, HMS Prince of Wales, standing in for HMS Queen Elizabeth, also encountered technical problems with its starboard propeller shaft. This incident prompted the need for extra inspections on the flagship.

Diminished majesty: Current state of the Royal Navy

The abrupt cancellation of HMS Queen Elizabeth's tour at the last minute due to a malfunction is the latest in a series of mishaps involving Royal Navy ships.

In January, two British warships involved in maintaining maritime security in the Gulf collided at a port in Bahrain.

The collision occurred during the docking of HMS Chiddingfold and HMS Bangor.

According to officials and analysts, the Navy is grappling with a diminished and aging fleet, a growing scarcity of personnel, and escalating wear and tear due to increased operational demands, as detailed by the Financial Times.

Facing mounting staff shortages, the Navy has been adjusting entry criteria for recruits in an effort to strengthen its personnel. Notably, recruits are no longer required to have completed high school or obtained a GED.

On this note, the UK lower house committee revealed on Sunday that the country's armed forces are unprepared for a potential extensive war due to military personnel shortages, recruitment and retention issues, and growing security challenges.

The committee released a report, stating, "The Government will never achieve warfighting or strategic readiness without a thriving industrial base and without an offer that can attract, develop, and sustain enough service personnel skilled to meet the increasing and evolving military challenges that we as a nation face. These reforms need to work and at pace." 

The army has been partaking in heightened military operations and experiencing "unrelenting pressure" that has downsized retention and recruitment, causing a discrepancy encapsulated by more people leaving the service than those joining it. 

The report then made recommendations suggesting that the UK invest more in military ability expenditure or shift its priorities based on what its army force can provide. 

UK deploys its military forces in the Middle East!

In this context, it is vital to mention the UK's participation in several military operations that could have taken a toll on its army. 

The UK is a significant part of the US-led maritime coalition, Operation Prosperity Guardian, which has militarized the Red Sea in an attempt to protect "Israel" and deter the Yemeni Armed Forces, but in vain. The UK has also been leading a series of attacks on Yemen.

Moreover, according to Declassified UK, an investigation showed that the UK military has flown 50 espionage operations over Gaza since the beginning of December to help "Israel".

The information-collecting missions are carried out by Shadow R1 surveillance aircraft that take off from Britain's controversial Akrotiri air station in Cyprus.

Britain maintains two "Sovereign Base Areas" on Cyprus, Dhekelia in the east and Akrotiri in the west, which are enormous, highly covert military and intelligence complexes covering 3% of the island's geographical area and historically used for UK bombing missions in the Middle East and its complicity in the war on Gaza.

In early December, the UK's Defense Ministry announced it would start conducting surveillance flights over Gaza, occupied Palestine, and the Eastern Mediterranean, claiming that operations aim to locate sites of captives held by the Palestinian Resistance.

One week after October 7, the UK government announced that it had increased its military presence in the Middle East by deploying two Royal Navy ships, spy hardware, and an additional 1,000 personnel “to support Israel, reinforce regional stability and prevent escalation."

Read more: British warships lack 'necessary capabilities' to hit Yemenis: Reports