Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask His Majesty's Government how many (1) F-35A, and (2) F-35B, Lightning stealth jets have been ordered; and what is the delivery schedule of those planes.

Answered by Lord Coaker - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)

48 F-35B aircraft have been ordered and delivered. Future orders of F-38A and F-35B, and their delivery schedules are subject to the publication of the Defence Investment Plan.

Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask His Majesty's Government how many (1) fixed-wing, and (2) rotary-wing, aircraft are in service with the Royal Air Force; and how many of those are (a) in maintenance for a period longer than three months, (b) on extended life, and (c) scheduled for decommissioning.

Answered by Lord Coaker - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)

There are 485 fixed-wing aircraft In-Service with the Royal Air Force. Of these 86 are in maintenance for longer than three months and 27 are in fleet management storage.

There are 86 rotary-wing aircraft In-Service with the Royal Air Force. Of these 17 are in maintenance for longer than three months. None are in fleet management storage.

It is part of standard fleet management across all fleets for aircraft to undertake detailed depth maintenance inspections under scheduled timelines. These extensive aircraft strip-down checks ensure safety and continuing airworthiness and often take a period greater than three months to complete.

Aircraft scheduled for decommissioning are no longer considered to be In-Service.

Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask His Majesty's Government what is the build schedule and estimated initial operating capacity of the Type 31 frigate.

Answered by Lord Coaker - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)

The first Type 31 frigate, HMS Venturer, is scheduled to be ready for operations by the end of the decade.

The Type 31 programme is progressing to deliver five capable and versatile new frigates for the Royal Navy. HMS Active, the second ship in the class, floated-off on 21 March 2026 and will now undergo further outfit work before test and commissioning takes place. Steel has also been cut on HMS Bulldog, the fourth vessel in the class.

Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask His Majesty's Government whether the current munitions stockpile level is lower than that as of 1 January 2024; and if so, what is the timescale for the replenishment of munitions stockpiles to that level.

Answered by Lord Coaker - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)

Details regarding Defence's munitions stockpile are classified, and it would therefore be inappropriate to provide further commentary.

As part of our commitment under the Strategic Defence Review, we committed £1.5 billion through the Strategic Defence Review to transitioning production of key munitions to an "always on" model and are progressing plans to establish six new munitions and energetics factories in the UK, taking our total munitions spend this parliament to £6 billion. The Ministry of Defence continues to work closely with industry, allies, and partners to ensure that munitions stockpiles remain sufficient to meet the demands of current and future operations.

Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask His Majesty's Government how many ships are currently in service with the Royal Navy; and how many of those are (1) in maintenance, (2) on extended life, and (3) scheduled for decommissioning.

Answered by Lord Coaker - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)

To avoid compromising operational security, the Ministry of Defence does not routinely disclose elements of the Fleet's long-term schedule and readiness profiles.

The Royal Navy continues to meet its operational objectives and to work closely with the Government to ensure our maritime environment remains safe amid a changing threat environment.

Currently the Royal Navy has 52 Surface Ships in service, at varying states of Operational availability and readiness. The RFA has 9. It is important to see availability as a constant cycle as ships move through maintenance, training, and deployment and recovery phases, with around 50% of the fleet at high readiness or above at any one time.