An old Vanguard class vessel carrying Trident nuclear missiles with 140 crew members on board experienced a massive malfunction that almost had a fatal ending. The ship’s depth gauge failed while it was on a route mission in the Atlantic, reports the Sun, citing its naval sources.
The sub was about to go on patrol when the dials noted its depth became non-operational, thereby indicating that it was heading towards its crush depth, when engineers spotted a second gauge and raised the alarm.
“That hadn’t happened. The sub wasn’t supposed to be there, and it was still diving. And if it had carried on going, it doesn’t really bear thinking about," a source told the newspaper.
The Royal Navy remained tight-lipped, saying that they don't comment on their operations, as submarines are being deployed globally, protecting UK national interests.
Vanguard ships fall under the class of nuclear-powered ballistic missile submarines (SSBNs). Currently, Britain has four of them in service with the navy, but only two are operational. Ever since 1969, the country has had at least one sub carrying nuclear missiles on continuous patrol.
Apparently, this is not the only failure the British Navy has experienced this year. In January, the Sun reported a nuclear security alert after a botched attempt to repair a Trident submarine using superglue.