Crossword Genius

Warship commander has queen to inspect them regularly (8)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

corvette

'warship' is the definition.
(corvette is a kind of warship)

'commander has queen to inspect them regularly' is the wordplay.
'commander' becomes 'co' (commanding officer).
'has' is a charade indicator (letters next to each other).
'queen' becomes 'r' (abbreviation for regina, e.g. in ER ).
'to inspect' becomes 'vet' (vetting is a kind of inspecting).
'regularly' indicates alternate letters (regularly take one letter, leave next etc.).
The alternating letters of 'them' are 'te'.
'co'+'r'+'vet'+'te'='CORVETTE'

(Other definitions for corvette that I've seen before include "Small escort ship" , "Light warship" , "Small naval escort vessel" , "Fighting ship" , "Warship smaller than a frigate" .)

I've seen this clue in The Times.
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