HMS Victory in Need of a Makeover
UK’s oldest naval ship still in commission, HMS Victory, is facing it’s last chance to survive.
According to Andrew Baines, curator at the National Museum of the Royal Navy and project director of HMS Victory, the vessel is slowly rotting because she is not adequately supported.
A £550,000 survey conducted aboard the ship showed its true state and revealed necessary repairs. MailOnline writes that the vessel’s keel has been dropping by half a centimetre a year due to water damage and the current dry dock cradle was putting stress on Victory’s hull.
The museum is already working on enhancing the vessel’s cradle with some 140 points of support. Other works that are planned to be conducted will have a goal of stabilizing the vessel and replacing old planking making her top deck watertight, as reported by Portsmouth News. Baines estimates the project would cost about £35m-£40m.
HMS Victory, originally made of oak, started its previous 50 year-long makeover project in 1955. She was first launched in 1765 and served as Admiral Lord Nelson’s flagship at the Battle of Trafalgar in 1805.
In March 2012 the National Museum of the Royal Navy took responsibility of the vessel which will celebrate her 250th anniversary in May this year.
[mappress mapid=”14860″]
Naval Today Staff, Image: hms-victory.com
List of related news articles
-
Posted: 5 days ago
Final River-class OPV joins Royal Navy
The final of five new offshore patrol vessels (OPVs) has formally joined the Royal Navy in last week...
Posted: 5 days ago -
Posted: 27 days ago
Royal Navy commissions 4th Batch 2 River-class OPV
On 17 December 2020, the Royal Navy commissioned HMS Tamar, the fourth new River-class patrol ship, ...
Posted: 27 days ago -
Posted: about 1 month ago
Study: US Navy will need more manned, unmanned vessels
Last week, the Department of the US Navy released the annual 30-year shipbuilding plan outlining a l...
Posted: about 1 month ago -
Posted: 4 months ago
Expressions of interest sought for Royal Navy's former mineh
The UK’s Defence Equipment Sales Authority (DESA) announced the potential sale of the Royal Na...
Posted: 4 months ago