THIS is the jaw-dropping moment a 167ft nuclear submarine towered over homes as the Royal Navy moved the ship through residential streets.
Incredible pictures show a "mega-unit" of the Royal Navy's new nuclear submarine being transported along Cumbrian streets wrapped in black plastic.
At more than 20m, the huge section of HMS Dreadnought is seen protected against the elements by what the Royal Navy describe as "what must be the world's largest black bin bag".
The nuclear-armed ballistic missile submarines are being constructed by BAE Systems at its Barrow-in-Furness shipyard as part of a £31billion programme.
The move occurred on September 21 but given the highly sensitive nature of the programme, the MOD have only today cleared the pictures.
A BAE Systems spokesperson comments: "The longest ever 'mega-unit' so far for Dreadnought Boat 1 has been moved down the road into BAE Systems Submarines' Devonshire Dock Hall (DDH) in Barrow-in-Furness.
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"At more than 20m, it was the longest submarine unit to move by road since the fore-end mega-unit moved to the DDH for the final Vanguard boat in the mid-1990s.
"This mega-unit will now take its place on the Dreadnought build line as we continue construction of the next generation of deterrent submarine.
"Three of the four Dreadnought submarines are currently under construction in Barrow and will deploy into the Royal Navy fleet in the early 2030s.
"BAE Systems' site on the edge of the Lake District is the home of UK submarine building."
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The Royal Navy add: "All will be assembled under cover in the dock hall – 260 metres long, 58 wide and 51 high, making it almost large enough to accommodate the Titanic – where the final two Astute-class submarines, HMS Agamemnon and Agincourt, are in the later stages of construction/completion, and where the 'mega unit' will take its place on the Dreadnought build line."
HMS Dreadnought is due to enter service in the early 2030s.
It comes after secret nuclear sub plans were found in a toilet cubicle at a Wetherspoons pub.
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