A £325million Navy aircraft carrier had to turn back two days into a mission - after its fridge broke down.

HMS Illustrious, complete with hi-tech weaponry, was heading for the Indian Ocean with nearly 1,000 crew on board when it returned to port yesterday.

Staff had discovered a fault in the giant fridge so chiefs set a course for Portsmouth dockyard where refrigeration experts were waiting to start the £10,000 repair, reports The Sun.

Crew will remain on board the 20,600-ton ship until the 24-hour task is completed.

An Illustrious insider said: "On a ship that's just had a £110million refit you'd think the fridge would work.

"And that, if not, someone on board could fix it. But the captain decided we had to go back."

The vessel is due to join ships from America, Spain and France as part of a programme to promote peace.

A Navy spokesman said: "It made sense to go back rather than see if it breaks down east of the Suez Canal, when we'd have to fly people out."