58.With the Queen Elizabeth-class aircraft carriers shortly coming into service, generation of a carrier group will become a priority task for the Royal Navy. In 2017 the Public Accounts Committee was told that
a sovereign carrier group at the ‘maximum level’ of deployment would require two air defence destroyers and two ASW frigates, along with an attack submarine and attached support shipping.
115 Generating such a force for any length of time is likely to put considerable strain on the Royal Navy, given the current size of the Fleet.
116 The carriers are likely to be operating within larger allied groups in the future, but we disagree with the National Security Adviser that we should proceed on the basis this is inevitable.
117 Operating aircraft carriers without the sovereign ability to protect them is complacent at best and potentially dangerous at worst. The UK should be able to sustain this capacity without recourse to other states.
Taking the cited requirement into account, it appears that the Royal Navy will have more assets to 'defend the carriers adequately' than some realise although more would certainly prove valuable, particularly in any prolonged, wide-ranging conflict against a peer enemy. However, even without the assistance of the USA, our other NATO allies have an abundance of escorts, submarines and support vessels to bring to the party in most imaginable circumstances (it's why we have common practices and train together) and we are highly unlikely to go to war single-handed against any vastly superior force.
