Plans for £1.3bn nuclear submarine found in Cumbrian Wetherspoons toilets

28 April 2023, 22:09

Nuclear submarine plans for a £1.3billion Royal Navy vessel were found in a Wetherspoons pub toilet.

Classified files from onboard HMS Anson had been left in The Furness Railway in Barrow, Cumbria before they were recovered.

A source told The Sun newspaper: “It was lucky a Russian spy didn’t find them. The files showed the inner workings of the ­torpedo-loaded vessel."

Details of the vessel's hydraulics which control the non-nuclear torpedo hatches, steering and buoyancy were found in the boozer along with a Royal Navy lanyard from the new part of the UK's nuclear defence.

The pub is close to BAE Systems shipyard where the vessels are built.

The sub was launched in February 2023 and is based a HM Naval Base in Scotland - where it has been armed with Spearfish torpedoes and Tomahawk missiles.

Read More: US to send nuclear ballistic submarines to Korean Peninsula

A attendee at the pub that evening said: “It was quite a lively night.

“The pub was full of people from the docks — military and civilian.

“I went into the toilet and the plans were lying on the floor of the cubicle with the lanyard.

“Anyone could have found them.“It was lucky it wasn’t some deep cover Russian spy.”

A Royal Navy spokesperson told The Sun the dossier were “generic training documents.”

They added: “However, we take all security matters extremely seriously and will investigate the circumstances of their discovery.”