A Royal Navy submariner who sent Britain’s Trident nuclear submarine base into lockdown after allegedly staging a bomb hoax ‘prank’ has been arrested.
The sailor – believed to be a Petty Officer on HMS Vanguard – reportedly triggered a major emergency response after calling a bomb warning to the 15,900-tonne sub’s control room.
It sparked a huge security response at HMNB Clyde, where Britain’s nuclear doomsday boats are based – with the headquarters being placed into lockdown.
A bomb squad was reportedly scrambled to the naval establishment in Faslane, Scotland, following the alleged prank.
Speaking to The Sun, an anonymous source said: ‘The suspect was working in the rear of the boat, in the engineering control room, and allegedly called up front to the main control room and claimed there was a bomb on board.
‘It’s not clear if he lost the plot or if it was a stupid prank that went horribly wrong. The person who took the call believed it was credible and triggered a full emergency response.
‘They did a quick draw and the base piped orders to the Royal Marines to guard the jetty and the submarine hatches to make sure no one could come on or off.’
A Royal Navy spokesman said: ‘We can confirm that a member of the Royal Navy is under investigation by the Defence Serious Crime Command for a bomb hoax.’
The sailor – believed to be a Petty Officer on HMS Vanguard (pictured) – reportedly triggered an emergency response after calling a bomb warning to the 16,000-tonne sub’s control room
The submarines are armed with Britain’s Trident nuclear missiles (file image of one of the missiles being launched during a test)
HMS Vanguard re-entered Britain’s nuclear deterrence fleet last year following a seven-year refit of the £4billion boat.
However, the 492ft vessel’s upgrade – meant to only take three years – was delayed for a further four due to the Covid-19 pandemic and other factors.
The hi-tech boat is one of four Vanguard submarines carrying Britain’s nuclear doomsday weapons.
Each of the craft can carry up to 16 Trident ballistic missiles that can hold multiple nuclear warheads each, capable of levelling a major city.
As part of the Royal Navy’s continuous at-sea deterrent, the submarines prowl the waters across the globe for months on secret missions.
One is always at sea at anyone time, ready to deploy its nuclear warheads, if ordered to do so by the Prime Minister.
However, HMS Vanguard hit the headlines last January when it was chosen to carry out Britain’s first nuclear missiles test in eight years.
The Trident missile, launched from the boat, misfired and crashed back into the ocean, in what the MoD brushed aside as an ‘anomaly’.
The failure led to questions over the UK’s ability to deploy its nuclear arsenal.
