Queen Elizabeth Class Aircraft Carriers - News and Discussion

[SKB]

Could the flightdeck be coated with extra sticky fly paper ?!

[Ron5]

Could the flightdeck be coated with extra sticky fly paper ?!

Well they did try flexible rubber in the dim distant .. worked fine.

[sea_eagle]

Just saw impressive picture of the USS Jackson on the first of 3 Full Ship Shock Trial Blast. Does the RN do anything similar for new ships and what about QE?

https://news.usni.org/2016/06/15/lcs_ja ... hock_trial

[Gabriele]

Just saw impressive picture of the USS Jackson on the first of 3 Full Ship Shock Trial Blast. Does the RN do anything similar for new ships and what about QE?

https://news.usni.org/2016/06/15/lcs_ja ... hock_trial

The UK has a special barge which is used to shock test specific equipment, for both surface ships and submarines. This i know for sure.

Full-ship tests of that kind, i don't know if they are still a thing for the Royal Navy. If they are, they don't get much spotlight.

[WhiteWhale]

Just saw impressive picture of the USS Jackson on the first of 3 Full Ship Shock Trial Blast. Does the RN do anything similar for new ships and what about QE?

https://news.usni.org/2016/06/15/lcs_ja ... hock_trial

We have a facility just off the Thames called the 'Richard Montgomery'.

[seaspear]

The Ford class I understand have undergone similar , it would be interesting to see the Queen Elizabeth class undergo similar

[swoop]

I think you'll find it is called a christening. "Naming ceremony" is just a politically correct term designed to include non-Christians and agnostics. The Queen is afterall, the head of the Anglican church and actually said "May God bless her and all who sail in her" at QE's christening. The smashing of a bottle of whisky on QE's bow at the ship's christening is also symbolic of wetting a baby's head at a church christening.

The press also refer to it as a christening:
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/ ... hisky.html
http://www.usatoday.com/story/cruiselog ... /24688775/

It is most certainly not a "christening", regardless of what the "press" might blather on about (do you trust them to get anything correct?). This is merely some drivel perpetuated by English(US) instead of proper English and merely lazy journalism.

This goes much further back than the modern, namby-pamby limp-wristed testicular rubbish of politically corrected excreta.
Perhaps you might refer back to all the other ships NAMED by Her Majesty and Her mother before her?

Also, please ignore the excreta pumped overboard by the press.
We are talking about an inanimate object Vs a living creature during this process.

[The Armchair Soldier]

A great shot of POW, here:

It doesn't feel that long ago since we were looking at a few chunks of metal on the dockside. Incredible how fast they have built her.

[Opinion3]

Shame we can't have a third - it would no doubt be even quicker and even cheaper

[rec]

The key is having 1) sufficient dedicated aircraft both rotary and fixed wing, 2) adequate modern escourts, and 3) good Fleet train; without these the QE class would be pointless.

1) F35B for vcarriesr only, 3 fixed wing squadrons of 14 (12 combat and 2 for buddy buddy refueling) , all RN would make sense (let the RAF have the C or A they would better suit the RAFs needs).

2) The conversion of the remianing 8 Merlin HM1s to be AEW specialist helicopters.

3) Ordeing of both t26s and T 31s concurrently form 2017 onwards, 1 of each per year.

4) Ordering of 3 Mars SS , to be built by arircraft carrier alliance.

If 1-4 dont happen, then I think QE is about as useful as HMS Hood was (Impressive for flag waving only)

[seaspear]

no buddy to buddy refueling on the f35b ,for the escorts you would hope the type 45 issues would of been addressed by 2017

[S M H]

The days of FFA only fast jets have long gone. The RAF joint manning of dedicated carrier squadrons is in effect the only option as long as we keep our present defence spending patterns. The single purchase of the b f35 is a necessity as the fast jet numbers are kept low while not rationalising our commitments. With little political desire to reverse the defence cuts. Or the desired to match our resources to provide suitable assists to cover the commitments without overstretch. Living in the defence austerity means that our services have had to stop the infighting. The requirement that we need is not which service the jet squadrons embarked on our carriers are. But that the carries are equipped effective fast jets squadron numbers with carrier qualified aircrews.

[bobp]

Ordering of 3 Mars SS , to be built by arircraft carrier alliance

Hopefully that will be the case if not Cammel Lairds.

[PhillyJ]

I managed to catch Episode 9, series 1 of HMS Ark Royal last night...interesting comment made by Captain Kyd was that it was sad seeing the last 'ever' ski jump launch from a UK carrier as the replacements would have cats'n'traps for the new F35's. This was first broadcast in July 2013

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt3629846/?ref_=ttep_ep9

[SKB]

I managed to catch Episode 9, series 1 of HMS Ark Royal last night...interesting comment made by Captain Kyd was that it was sad seeing the last 'ever' ski jump launch from a UK carrier as the replacements would have cats'n'traps for the new F35's. This was first broadcast in July 2013
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt3629846/?ref_=ttep_ep9

I put the Ark Royal tv series in the Invincible Class thread on page 1 if anyone wishes to see it.: http://ukdefenceforum.net/viewtopic.php?f=41&t=168

[GibMariner]

HMS Prince of Wales also seems to have been given a Twitter account: https://twitter.com/HMSPWLS

[Gabriele]

QEClass Carriers ‏@QEClassCarriers 30 min30 minuti fa Visualizza traduzione
Duke of Rothesay gave the order for the last block of @HMSPWLS to be lowered into position & thanked the workforce.

[SKB]

PoW Assembly Diagram Update! (Tuesday 21st June 2016)

Sponson SP11 lifted and fitted by HRH Prince Charles!

PoW hull now structurally completed.

PoW Assembly Diagram 21Jun2016 SP11.PNG

[Caribbean]

Sponson SP11 lifted and fitted by HRH Prince Charles!

Damn - he's strong!

[Jdam]

How does the POW structurally completed compare to the QE's?

[SKB]

How does the POW structurally completed compare to the QE's?

Both ships hulls were structurally complete when the last sponson was fitted. Coincidentally, both were SP11. So...

QE: 759 days (2 years, 0 months, 28 days. First block was LB03 float in on 29th August 2011. Last block was SP11 on 26th September 2013)
PoW: 659 days (1 year, 9 months, 20 days. First block was LB02 float in on 1st September 2014. Last block was SP11 on 21st June 2016)

[R686]

How does the POW structurally completed compare to the QE's?

Both ships hulls were structurally complete when the last sponson was fitted. Coincidentally, both were SP11. So...

QE: 759 days (2 years, 0 months, 28 days. First block was LB03 float in on 29th August 2011. Last block was SP11 on 26th September 2013)
PoW: 659 days (1 year, 9 months, 20 days. First block was LB02 float in on 1st September 2014. Last block was SP11 on 21st June 2016)

not a bad learning curve between vessels, but do wonder how long QE would have been built if not for the fumbling by HMG

[Gabriele]

Defence Photography has a photo of PoW getting her last big piece.


Defence Photography ‏@DefencePhoto 1 h1 ora fa Visualizza traduzione
@HMSPWLS looking great in today's sunshine #QEClass #DefencePhotography @RoyalNavy

[SKB]

HRH The Prince of Wales visits HMS Prince of Wales




(The Courier.co.uk)

Standing at Rosyth Dockyard upon the ship that bears his title, the Prince of Wales struck a gavel that commenced the lowering of the final section of the vessel’s structure, a major milestone in construction of the Royal Navy’s newest aircraft carrier.

Touring the Fife shipyard on Tuesday, the Prince met with the men and women who are putting together the warship, which will operate alongside its sister carrier, HMS Queen Elizabeth.

Joined by around 500 construction workers, as well as the ship’s company for the short ceremony, the Prince acknowledged the effort required in getting the Royal Navy’s new flagship to such a stage.

“It gives me enormous pleasure to join you here and officiate the formal lowering of the final section of this remarkable ship.

“It is an enormous tribute to the skills and ingenuity and efforts of so many people.

“I look forward to seeing it completed and at sea.”

Tuesday’s symbolic moment marked the completion of the Prince of Wales’ structure, three years before the ship sets sail for the first time.

The Duke of Rothesay, as he is known on visits to Scotland, was given a guided tour of the £3.1 billion aircraft carrier as construction continues in the shadow of the new Queensferry Crossing.

The 570-tonne block – known as Sponson 11 – was the final piece of the warship to be manufactured and was lowered into place by the dockyard’s “Goliath” crane, which dominates the skyline of the West Fife coast.

Final welding will now commence, with the vessel scheduled to be handed over to the Royal Navy in 2019, when her sea trials will begin.

The Prince also posed for a photograph with the ship’s company, led by Captain Ian Groom.

He said: “Having the Prince of Wales coming to visit HMS Prince of Wales and meet the ship’s company is a privilege and a historic moment as well.

“For me it is a huge honour.

“This is absolutely the pinnacle of where I could see myself sand I have not stopped smiling since I received this appointment.”

[PhillyJ]

I put the Ark Royal tv series in the Invincible Class thread on page 1 if anyone wishes to see it.: http://ukdefenceforum.net/viewtopic.php?f=41&t=168

Cheers for that link.