The Ministry of Defence has moved to clarify the status of the Shipborne Rolling Vertical Landing system for the UK’s F-35B Lightning II jets, after a series of written questions from Conservative MP James Cartlidge.
The UK Defence Journal understands that the capability has been delayed rather than cancelled, despite wording in the 2024 to 25 defence accounts that triggered reports suggesting it had been abandoned.
Across three separate answers, Defence Minister Luke Pollard restated that the SRVL system remains in development and that equipment already installed on HMS Prince of Wales is unaffected. Pollard said the system underwent initial trials in 2023 and that a commercial partner is still examining the results. “The results of those trials continue to be analysed by a commercial partner, and when complete will enable the Ministry of Defence to make an accurate assessment of the benefits and cost of further developing the SRVL system for operational use,” he told Parliament.
SRVL is intended to allow the F-35B to recover aboard a carrier with a higher bring-back weight by combining a short rolling landing with the jet’s vertical lift system. Earlier concern centred on jets potentially needing to jettison ordnance or fuel before landing if the system were removed from the programme.
The confusion stemmed from an entry on page 140 of the MoD’s annual accounts describing a “SRVL upgrade cancellation” of about £300,000. Pollard said this referred only to the planned fitment of SRVL equipment to HMS Queen Elizabeth in 2025. “The SRVL upgrade cancellation listed on p.140 of the MoD Annual Report and Accounts 2024-25 refers only to the fitment of SRVL equipment to HMS Queen Elizabeth in 2025,” Pollard wrote. “There is no impact to the equipment already fitted to Prince of Wales, and the MOD retains the ability to fit such equipment to Queen Elizabeth when the outcome of trials in 2023 are fully understood.”
Pollard repeated that the decision reflected a resource judgement rather than a reversal of policy. “This represents a Defence Choice; weighing up costs and benefits to prioritise the MOD’s resources effectively,” he said when asked what the term meant. The clarification aligns with earlier statements on 25 November 2025, when ministers confirmed that SRVL “has not been cancelled” and that the schedule was being re-profiled to align with wider weapons-integration work.
What is SRVL?
Shipborne Rolling Vertical Landing, or SRVL, is a carrier landing method that lets jets touch down with greater weight by combining forward motion with vertical thrust. Instead of slowing to a hover, the aircraft keeps some speed on approach so its wings generate lift while the engine provides controlled thrust. This combination allows pilots to land safely without discarding fuel or weapons before reaching the deck.
The process occurs on an aircraft carrier at sea and blends elements of both vertical and conventional landings. The jet rolls onto the deck with forward momentum, uses wing lift to stay stable, and relies on vertical thrust to settle precisely. The technique is especially valuable for aircraft like the F-35B because it supports returning to the ship at higher all-up weights.
Blah blah blah, bull&^%£ etc and soforth-should read… We do not have the money right now. Please bear with us, and we try to confound, bullchit and bamboozle you all, with total garbage.
I still feel that during construction, the carriers should have had the angled deck built, regardless of the carrier being CATOBAR or STOVL. To my mind doing a SRVL on a through design is inherently risky, especially in crap weather and heavy seas. The RN invented the angled deck for a reason, to separate landings from parked aircraft.
But Stovl and Catobar are completely different layouts. The angled deck just wouldn’t be used because we don’t even need to do SVRL