Sub divided: Dismantling of HMS Swiftsure set to be completed by year's end

The full dismantling of HMS Swiftsure is still on track to be completed by the end of this year, Defence Readiness & Industry Minister Luke Pollard has confirmed.  

The decommissioned nuclear submarine is to become the first UK vessel to be fully dismantled as part of aworld-first recycling project.

Around 90% of the submarine's total weight is expected to be recovered, reused or conventionally recycled, with the high-quality recovered steel being redirected into components for future Royal Navy submarines.

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Responding to a parliamentary question, Mr Pollard highlighted the complexities of delivering a "first-of-class" submarine recycling project of this nature, including the technical, planning, regulatory and commercial challenges. 

He confirmed that his department is continuing to work with prime supplier Babcock and wider delivery partners to address these issues, adding that progress is being made.

"The increase in the project's whole life cost is primarily due to the maturation of infrastructure (alongside other costs), while the end date extended to October 2028 represents the formal closure of the project and is separate from the milestone to complete the recycling of Swiftsure by 2026," Mr Pollard explained.

The defuelling and recycling of retired nuclear submarines form part of Project Royal Oak, which was announced earlier this year within the Defence Investment Plan.

The £26bn investment will see work completed on 10 and 14 Dock at Devonport naval base, restarting legacy defueling operations that were halted in 2004.

Cold War espionage

At a cost of £37.1m, the lead ship of the Swiftsure-class of nuclear-powered fleet attack submarines was commissioned in 1973.

In 1977, with the Cold War in full swing, she slipped undetected into the heart of a large-scale Soviet Northern Fleet exercise in the Barents Sea, threading her way past multiple destroyers and frigates.

Locating a new, unique acoustic signature of the Russian aircraft carrier Kiev, the submarine approached meticulously.

According to reports, she hid underneath the carrier for several hours, raising her periscope just 10 feet from her adversary's hull. 

Swiftsure recorded valuable acoustic signatures and photographs of the vessel's hull and propellers before slipping away, returning to base completely undetected.

She was withdrawn from service in 1992 after cracks were discovered in her reactor and has been stored afloat at Rosyth dockyard ever since. 

Although the current state of progress is unclear, her fin was removed during the first stage of her dismantling.