Royal Navy vs Belgian Navy

I was sympathetic to Admiral Sir Jonathon Band's appeal for extra cash for the Royal Navy if it is to be expected to fulfill the busy role the Government wants it to - and before anyone asks, no my work doesn't involve advising any shipbuilding companies.


However, the Admiral's suggestion that the RN risked turning into a force on the scale of the Belgian Navy was just a tad hyperbolic, as the numbers show:


Current RN fleet:


3 aircraft carriers
3 amphibious assult ships
8 destroyers
17 frigates
4 SSBN Trident-carrying submarines
9 SSN attack submarines
1 Antarctic Patrol ship
5 patrol vessels
5 survey vessels
15 minehunters


Current Belgian Navy fleet:

2 frigates
6 minehunters

er... that's it unless you count tugs, a yacht and this mighty vessel which used to patrol the Rhine and now does "public relations missions":



So we have some distance to go before catching up with Belgium.