THE £6 BILLION FLOATING FORTRESS
HMS Queen Elizabeth – the Royal Navy’s largest and most powerful
ever warship – is due to set sail for its maiden sea voyage today.
The £6billion vessel, which is the size of three football pitches meaning
it can carry 1,600 crew members and 36 fighter jets, will depart the
Rosyth dockyard in Fife.
SWNS:SOUTH WEST NEWS SERVICE
The 65,000-tonne carrier is the first of two new super-aircraft carriers built at the yard and will sail into the North Sea for about six weeks of trials - subject to weather conditions.
But first the 920ft ship will have to first get out to sea by squeezing through an exit with just 14in clearance either side and 20in of water under the keel.
It's expected 11 tugs will be needed to manoeuvre her out and she will have to wait until high tide to depart.
The carrier must then wait for the tide to lower to pass under the Firth's famous bridges, including the landmark rail bridge - with just over six feet to spare.
Commanding officer Captain Jerry Kyd said: "We have to be very careful, but you practise it and drill it and rehearse it to make sure we could do it safely in a timely fashion because the tide waits for no man."
But Navy bosses expect HMS Queen Elizabeth to be shadowed on her maiden voyage by Russian spy submarines.
It is reported in the Sunday Times that subs will attempt to record the unique sound it makes underwater.
HMS Queen Elizabeth Factfile
- Weight - 65,000 tonnes
- Length - 280 metres
- Width - 70 metres
- Top speed - upwards of 25 knots
- Crew - 1,600 when fully operational
- Flight deck - at 70 metres wide and 280 metres long it’s the size of three football pitches
- Food - stores enough to feed crew for 45 days
- Construction - made up of 17million parts
- Pipes - stretch for 364,000 metres
- Length of design period - 28million hours
- Name - it's the second Navy ship to be named Queen Elizabeth
This is known as its acoustic signature.
Spy planes such as the Tupolev Tu-214R spy planes could take off from Baltic bases with a mission to map the new British aircraft carrier's "radar cross-section", or how it is identified on radar.
A Royal Navy frigate or destroyer is expected to escort HMS Queen Elizabeth, while shore-based helicopters look out for submarines, the Telegraph reports.
Cdr Mark Deller, commander air, told the newspaper: “We will go where it’s best to go and not where it’s best for a Soviet nuclear to go, so the reality is we can probably look after ourselves as long as our escort is in the right place at the right time.
"You don’t have to hang around and endure it, you can move away and go somewhere else.”
HMS Queen Elizabeth is the Navy's first aircraft carrier since HMS Ark Royal was scrapped in 2010 and sailors and engineers have been working hard to get it ready.
The huge warship's construction along with its sister ship HMS Prince Of Wales is the most expensive in navy history costing £6.2billion.
Once fully operational the ships - 280 metres in length and with a top speed above 25 knots - will be the centrepiece of Britain’s maritime capability.
The aircraft carrier is home to a 700-strong ship’s company who for the past few weeks have been getting to grips with the giant vessel before it takes to the seas.
They've spent hours carrying out safety drills for fires, flooding and personnel overboard, while more than 650 doors and hatches have been checked to ensure they are watertight.
The carrier will keep 45 days worth of food in its stores and the entire ship's company of 700 can be served a meal within 90 minutes - or 45 minutes when at action station.
Each aircraft carrier will provide the armed forces with a four-acre military operating base, which can be deployed worldwide.
Both vessels will be versatile enough to be used for operations ranging from high intensity war-fighting to providing humanitarian aid and disaster relief.
(Source : The Sun, UK)
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