HMS Queen Elizabeth: ‘Embarrassment’ only eight F-35 fighter jets operating from Royal Navy’s £4bn aircraft carrier

The £4 billion aircraft carrier HMS Queen Elizabeth has been slammed as an “embarrassment” for only operating with eight F-35 fighter jets.

The nation’s flagship aircraft carrier is currently deployed on an operation, known as Operation Firedrake, patrolling the North Sea, Norwegian Sea and North Atlantic with NATO to provide a demonstration of UK strike power to the Kremlin.

The 920-ft long HMS Queen Elizabeth has the capacity to accommodate 36 stealth jets and to carry 24 such aircraft on operations.

However, the vessel is leading the international patrol with only eight fifth-generation fighters on board, meaning it will be two-thirds empty.

On the social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter, John Ganges said it was the “UK’s latest embarrassment” that the “sparkling new carrier HMS Queen Elizabeth which has the capacity to carry 36 stealth jets, has left port to patrol with fellow NATO ships, with just 8 fighters aboard.”

Pete Sandeman of navylookout.com also told NationalWorld the number of F-35 fighter jets onboard the aircraft carrier is “obviously disappointing” however he added that there are “several good reasons for this”.

Mr Sandeman said: “ More jets could go on the carrier right now if there was an emergency but this would disrupt the training pipeline for new pilots and engineers. The build-up to the 2025 deployment is being prioritised when 24 UK jets will embark on HMS Prince of Wales.

“Even if we have more aircraft, the problems with the UK military Flying Training System means only a limited number of new pilots are qualifying each year to begin training to fly the F-35.”

He added that the UK currently owns a total of 34 F-35s and will have 48 by 2024 and a second tranche of aircraft, to be delivered in the late 2020s. It will eventually bring the UK fleet up to a total of 73.

A Ministry of Defence spokesperson said the number of aircraft deployed on the carrier is “decided by a variety of operational factors including the anticipated threat, aircraft needed for the deployment task and the requirement to continue to train personnel at RAF Marham to expand the Lightning force.”

The spokesperson added: “This year UK F-35s have been exercising with NATO, US and European partners and have deployed once more on our aircraft carriers. We remain committed to growing the F-35 fleet with more to be delivered this year.”

HMS Queen Elizabeth sailed on 8 September to lead its first major carrier strike group deployment since 2021.

On 13 September one of the F-35B Lightning Jets was spotted at Newcastle Airport after it diverted away from the carrier.

It brought the total number of jets operating from HMS Queen Elizabeth down to seven.

A RAF spokesman confirmed to NationalWorld that the Lightning jet spotted at Newcastle Airport had a “technical issue” which led to a “precautionary diversion”.

Navy Lookout confirmed on X that the jet took off from Newcastle Airport on Saturday (16 September) to return to HMS Queen Elizabeth.