UK's biggest warship limps back to port with leak

The United Kingdom's new 3.1-billion-pound ($3.89 billion) aircraft carrier, HMS Queen Elizabeth, has returned to the Royal Navy's base in Portsmouth for emergency repairs after reportedly springing a leak during sea trials.

A spokeswoman from Britain's defense ministry, which is known as the MoD, told the BBC the repairs to the nation's biggest-ever warship will address "a minor issue with an internal system" but the Telegraph newspaper said it understands that a high-pressure seawater pipe had burst in the forward area of the 65,000-ton warship, causing as much as 250 tons of saltwater to flood two compartments and a stairwell.

The paper said the incident, the third significant problem to befall the vessel, is believed to have buckled a stairwell, bent some bulkheads, and split deck-plates and an unnamed source told British Forces Broadcasting Service that the leak was not minor, but "was so deep, it put lives at risk" and flooded several decks.

However, Alistair Bunkall, defense correspondent at Sky News, said the MoD was disputing claims that a significant amount of water made its way into the vessel, saying: "They don't recognize that volume of water – 200 tons – although that is because they are now carrying out an investigation and what they don't want to do is be specific about it."

An MoD spokesperson confirmed: "An investigation into the cause is underway."

No one was injured as a result of the leak but some reports on social media claim three crew members had been at risk of drowning before water was pumped out of the 280-meter-long ship, which is slated to be a future Royal Navy flagship and to be in service for the next 50 years.

The warship will become fully operational in 2021 and ultimately have a crew of around 1,600. It will carry as many as 40 F35B stealth fighter aircraft that will be capable of taking off both vertically and by using the ship's "ski jump" runway.

The Queen Elizabeth, which has been nicknamed "Big Lizzie", was understood to have been conducting trials off the UK's southwest coast, where it was testing its rapid-fire guns and the use of the army's Apache helicopters.

The Queen Elizabeth left Portsmouth last month for five weeks of sea trials and her return to port came only a few days ahead of schedule.

Other problems that have hit the carrier recently include a shaft-seal leak and the accidental triggering of the sprinkler system in the ship's hangar.

Britain is building a sister ship for the Queen Elizabeth, the HMS Prince of Wales, which is scheduled to be launched next year. The vessels will be part of a new generation of aircraft carriers that the MoD hopes to equip with laser-beam weapons for use against drones and missiles.

Penny Mordaunt, the UK's defense secretary, said on Wednesday that the laser beams "have the potential to revolutionize the battlefield by offering powerful and cost-effective weapons systems to our armed forces".