Britain's £3.5billion warship HMS Prince of Wales is held up from sailing to Norway…because it's foggy

Published: 05:43 EDT, 9 November 2026 | Updated: 06:12 EDT, 9 November 2026 Heavy fog scuppered the arrival of Britain's biggest warship into Norway over the weekend.The captain of HMS Prince of Wales, a 'state-of-the-art' £3.5billion aircraft carrier, refused to sail the 65,000-tonne giant into the narrow fjord because it was too risky.The 920ft warship was on its way to a major security conference in the Norwegian capital of Oslo, set to be attended by naval top brass this week.The decision delayed the carrier's arrival by about 24 hours, with Norwegian armed forces' operational HQ in Bodø confirming: 'The captain thought there was too much fog.'A defence source told the Daily Mail the setback was an example of 'good seamanship' and that there was no 'operational imperative' to risk the British flagship.However, naval observers mocked the move, with one saying: 'We will go anywhere, except if it is a little misty.' Another added: 'Bloody Russians with their fog machines.'The warship, built specifically to carry the new F-35B stealth jet, was taking time out of her deployment to the Arctic and High North to attend the security event.She was escorted into the port city by HMS Dauntless, a £1billion missile defence destroyer, and Norwegian coastguards and police. Heavy fog delayed HMS Prince of Wales's trip into Oslo this week (the ship is pictured in July) The warship was sailing to the Norwegian capital (pictured) to take part in a security event A defence source told the Daily Mail the crew was 'trained' to steer through low visibility conditions and that the warship had enough kit to do so.But they added: 'Was there an operational imperative to go through a really narrow gap in really bad fog? No because they had time in hand to get to the event.'The commanding officer made a very sensible decision. Frankly, this is just good seamanship.'HMS Prince of Wales, which is one of two Queen Elizabeth-class aircraft carriers operated by the Royal Navy, has previously been blighted by technical gremlins.In May she needed repairs for a minor defect which delayed her departure to the United States to mark the country's 250th anniversary.But in August 2022 the £3.5billion warship suffered a catastrophic setback when a shaft coupling failed just two days after leaving Portsmouth for a trip to America.The damage cost an estimated £25million and left HMS Prince Wales out of action for almost a year while she was being fixed.The British flagship set sail for her deployment to the Arctic and North Atlantic last month, supported by HMS Dauntless, Merlin and Wildcat helicopters and an air group of embarked F-35B stealth jets from 617 Squadron.More than 1,200 personnel are taking part, joining Neptune Strike, a major Nato wargame involving 17 nations, 20 warships, 40 aircraft, and three naval task groups.In a rare show of force, HMS Prince of Wales's F-35Bs joined Norwegian Air Force land-based variants, F-35As, to escort a US B-52 bomber. HMS Prince of Wales and HMS Dauntless are pictured during their mission to the High North F-35 stealth jets from the UK and Norway accompany an American B-52 bomber Last week, the carrier also had to scramble its stealth jets to intercept a Russian Tu-195 Bear long-range bomber.HMS Prince of Wales is in Oslo as part of the 1st Sea Lord's International Sea Power Conference on Tuesday and the Atlantic Future Forum, a two-day event concluding on Thursday.Her sister ship, HMS Queen Elizabeth, arrived back Portsmouth on Thursday after a brief stint at sea.The Ministry of Defence has been approached for comment about the fog delay.