UK nuclear sub-missile launch fails as Trident misfires and 'pops' into the sea just meters away – with Shapps on board
A TRIDENT missile failed dramatically and crashed into the oceans from the British nuclear submarine that launched it, The Sun can reveal.
The second launch failure in a row – after a failure in 2016 – happened while Defense Secretary Grant Shapps was on board HMS Vanguard witness the test.
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The Department of Defense confirmed that an “anomaly occurred” during the January 30 exercise Floridabut the nuclear deterrent remains “effective.”
The nuclear submarine crew perfectly completed their doomsday exercise, and the Trident 2 missile was shot into the air by compression gas in the launch tube.
But the first stage boosters failed to ignite and the 58-ton rocket – equipped with dummy warheads – splashed into the ocean and sank.
A source said: “He left the submarine but he just popped next one to them.”
HMS Vanguard was below the surface and hovering at launch depth, but was not hit by the 44ft rocket as it plunged back into the Atlantic Ocean.
A frantic investigation immediately began to find out what had gone wrong and orders were placed to recover the top secret missile technology from the seabed at Port Canaveral, Florida.
It is the second failed test since 2016, when a trident fired from HMS Vengeance veered off course and self-destructed.
But despite the setback, officials insist they are confident the failure was “event specific”.
'An anomaly has occurred'
Crucially, it is clear that had the firing taken place during a real patrol mission and not under test conditions, it would have been successful.
No further details are being made public about what went wrong on “national security” grounds.
In a statement to The Sun, the Ministry of Defense said: “HMS Vanguard and her crew have been proven to be fully capable of operating the British Continuous At-Sea Deterrent and have passed all tests during a recent demonstration and shakedown operation (DASO) – a routine test to confirm that the submarine can be returned to service after in-depth maintenance work.
“The test has reaffirmed the effectiveness of the UK's nuclear deterrent, in which we have absolute confidence. An anomaly occurred during the test.
For national security reasons, we cannot provide any further information about this. However, we are confident that the anomaly was specific to the event and therefore there are no implications for the reliability of the wider Trident missile systems and supplies.
“Britain's nuclear deterrent remains safe, secure and effective.”
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Ministers are expected to brief MPs in the House of Commons today about the January 30 incident at the secure US naval port. First Sea Lord Admiral Sir Ben Key was also on board the submarine at the time.
Officials insist Trident remains one of the most reliable weapons systems in the world, having successfully conducted more than 190 tests involving Britain and the US.
Britain has fired 12 Trident 2 missiles since the weapons entered service with the Royal Navy in 1994. But the two most recent ones failed.
In June 2016, a Trident 2 blasted off from HMS Vengeance and the rocket boosters successfully ignited. But moments later it veered off course, reportedly towards the US, and automatically self-destructed.
Theresa May's government was later accused of covering up the failed launch parliament A vote would be taken on the renewal of Britain's nuclear deterrent.
AGEING FLEET
MPs overwhelmingly backed a plan to spend £40 billion on “improving the nuclear deterrent”.
It means the aging The fleet of Vanguard submarines will be replaced by successors to the Dreadnaught class in the 2030s.
The Trident, fired from HMS Vanguard, would fly 3,700 miles from the coast of Florida to an impact point in the mid-Atlantic between Brazil and West Africa.
The intended route was revealed as a warning to National Geo Spatial Intelligence Agency ships and aircraft.
The goal was 1,000 miles closer than that of the 2016 launch failure and less than half the Trident 2 rocket's reported range of 12,000 miles.
Trident 2 rockets are designed to rocket to the edge of space at a speed of 13,600 miles per hour before re-entering Earth's atmosphere with a devastating payload of up to twelve nuclear warheads.
They first came into service with the US Navy 34 years ago and four years later in the Royal Navy.
£17MILLION COSTS
Still, the missile's makers, Lockheed Martin, insist that the Trident 2s remain “the most advanced ballistic missiles in the world.”
It says they have successfully tested a “record” 191 times since 1989, most recently in September when the USS Louisiana, a nuclear-powered Ohio-class submarine, conducted a demonstration and shakedown operation in the Pacific Ocean.
British launches are rarer because each rocket costs more than £17 million. The last successful launch in the UK took place in October 2012, when HMS Vigilant fired the rocket after a refit and sea trials.
It comes amid a drumbeat of warnings that the world is heading towards World War III, with increasing nuclear saber-rattling, underscoring Trident's crucial role.
HIDDEN NUKE STRIKE BACK
Britain's nuclear deterrent is the last line of defense that could obliterate our enemies if they launch first.
The plan is based on a nuclear-armed submarine that is always at sea – hidden beneath the waves or the polar ice cap to survive a first strike on the British mainland and ready to fire back.
That requires a group of brave men and women to spend months at a time on top-secret underwater patrols, largely cut off from their loved ones back home.
Due to the secrecy surrounding the submarine's position, the crew is rarely, if ever, able to transmit messages that would reveal their position.
The crews of the Vanguard-class submarines can only receive short text messages, known as family grams, and they cannot send anything home.
They are not even told when a loved one dies because there is nothing they can do about it.
One of the few times the submarine breaks radio silence is when a crew member's life is in danger.
In the event of a nuclear conflict, each of the Navy's four Vanguard submarines can fire 16 Trident 2 missiles.
Each of the missiles is armed with multiple nuclear warheads.
The rockets rocket to the edge of space and navigate the stars at speeds of up to 13,600 miles per hour before re-entering Earth's atmosphere with devastating nuclear payloads.
A Navy source said each of the submarines has more explosive power than was dropped during the entire Second World War.
A Royal Navy nuclear-armed submarine has been on constant patrol since April 1969.
When the crews lose contact with the British government, they are tasked with scanning the airwaves for BBC Radio 4 as proof that Britain still exists.
Three days without the Today program is a sign of Armageddon and the captain may open the letter of last resort: a handwritten note from the Prime Minister with instructions on what to do next.
Despite last month's failure, the Ministry of Defense said HMS Vanguard and her 149 crew had proven “fully capable of carrying out the British Continuous At Sea Deterrent and had passed all tests”.
It continued: “The test has reaffirmed the effectiveness of the UK's nuclear deterrent, in which we have absolute confidence.”