Astute availability and the dry-dock bottleneck

When might an Astute-class submarine return to service, and what is preventing availability?

The tentative estimate is a couple of months. Insufficient dry-dock capacity is identified as the immediate obstacle.

The return estimate is tentative. Clarke argues that one functioning dock is available for the boats when about three are needed. A guest raises the small number of hulls, while Clarke maintains that adequate maintenance infrastructure should allow about two boats at sea. Additional floating docks have been proposed for decades. Docks reserved for the strategic deterrent cannot simply be reassigned. In this assessment, French and American capacity is full, while German submarine docks lack nuclear certification. Type 45 maintenance supplies a further example of the same infrastructure concern. The criticism also extends to neglected support facilities, including accommodation, army fuel tanks and RAF hangars.