HMS Queen Elizabeth (R08)

HMS Queen Elizabeth will be the lead ship of the Queen Elizabeth-class of aircraft carrier, and is scheduled to commence sea trials in 2017 and flight trials in 2018. She will be the second Royal Navy vessel to bear the name HMS Queen Elizabeth. The cost of the two ships in this class is approximately £7,000,000,000, much higher than initial estimates.

Queen Elizabeth and her sister ship, HMS Prince of Wales (R09), will be the largest warships ever built for the Royal Navy. They are intended to be multi-purpose carriers that can be adapted to complete multiple roles. Capable of carrying forty aircraft such as the F-35 Lightning II, Chinook or Merlin helicopters, they will provide a major capability upgrade from the preceding Invincible-class carriers. Both ships of the class will be based at HMNB Portsmouth.

Design and construction
On 25 July 2007 the then Defence Secretary Des Browne, announced the £3.8bn order for the two new carriers. On 11 December 2008, Defence Secretary John Hutton announced that the two ships would enter service one or two years later than the originally planned dates of 2014 and 2016. The in-service date was further extended to 2020 in The Strategic Defence and Security Review 2010.

Construction of Queen Elizabeth began in 2009. Her assembly is taking place in the Firth of Forth at Rosyth Royal Dockyard. She will be built from nine blocks built in six UK shipyards; BAE Systems Surface Ships in Glasgow, Babcock at Appledore, Babcock at Rosyth, A&P Tyne in Hebburn, BAE at Portsmouth and Cammell Laird (flight decks) at Birkenhead. Two of the lower main blocks, together weighing more than 6,000 tonnes and forming part of the base of the ship, were assembled and joined into one piece on 30 June 2011. On 16 August 2011, the 8,000-tonne Lower Block 03 of Queen Elizabeth left BAE Systems Surface Ships' Govan shipyard in Glasgow on a large ocean-going barge. Travelling 600 mi around the northern coast of Scotland, the block arrived at Rosyth on the evening of 20 August 2011. On the 28 October 2012 an 11,000-tonne section of the carrier began a lengthy journey around the south coast of England (to avoid bad weather) from the shipbuilding hall at Govan, to the Rosyth dockyard; it arrived on 21 November. Her forward island was built at BAE Portsmouth and attached on 14 March 2013; the aft island was attached in June 2013. Queen Elizabeth is 80% complete internally and her launch is scheduled for mid-2014. She will then be fitted out and handed over to the Royal Navy in "early 2017". Sea trials in 2017 will be followed by the first F-35 operations in 2018 and an "operational military capability" in 2020.

Aircraft
The Queen Elizabeth class are expected to be capable of carrying forty aircraft, a maximum of thirty-six F-35s and four helicopters. The 2010 SDSR anticipated the routine deployment of twelve F-35Bs, but a typical warload will be 24 F-35Bs and some helicopters. These could be a Maritime Force Protection package of nine anti-submarine Merlin HM2 and four or five Merlin Crowsnest for airborne early warning; alternatively a Littoral Manoeuvre package could include a mix of RAF Chinooks, Army Apaches, Merlin HC4 and Wildcat HM2. six landing spots are planned, but the deck could be marked out for the operation of ten medium helicopters at once, allowing the lift of a company of 250 troops. The hangars are designed for CH-47 Chinook operations without blade folding and the V-22 Osprey tiltrotor, whilst the aircraft lifts can accommodate two Chinooks with unfolded blades.

Weapons systems
Defensive weapons will include the Phalanx Close-In Weapons System for anti-aircraft and anti-missile defence; also 30mm Automated Small Calibre Guns and Miniguns for use against fast attack craft.

Highly Mechanised Weapon Handling System (HMWHS)
Incorporated into the first two blocks is a sophisticated handling and deployment system for air weapons, with the aim of achieving a sortie generation rate which is about six times faster than any previous Royal Navy aircraft carrier. The system will require only 50 people and could be operated with as few as 12 in an emergency; it is estimated that 160 would be needed to produce the same efficiency with conventional equipment. The system will move munitions on pallets by means of remotely controlled electric vehicles and lifts.