HMS Anson’s milestone stay in Australia cut short during AUKUS deployment
HMS Anson arrived at HMAS Stirling in February. (Photo: Crown Copyright)
The Astute-class submarine’s visit to Australia was the first time maintenance activity on a UK Royal Navy nuclear submarine had been carried out in the country.
The UK Royal Navy’s nuclear-powered attack submarine HMS Anson has cut short its landmark visit to Western Australia, with its whereabouts currently unknown amid speculation the departure may be linked to events in the Middle East.
The Astute-class vessel had arrived in western Australia on 23 February to support AUKUS, the trilateral security partnership between Australia, the UK and the US aimed at developing a new class of nuclear-powered attack submarines and sharing advanced military technologies. Australian personnel had been working alongside UK engineers to carry out maintenance on the vessel since its arrival at the Royal Australian Navy base HMAS Stirling.
The submarine’s visit was intended to support
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