Queen christens aircraft carrier

Naming ceremony marks move into final stages for largest warship ever built in UK

After five years of construction in six different shipyards HMS Queen Elizabeth is structurally complete and is to be officially named by her namesake at Rosyth, Fife, today.

The naming ceremony comes five years after the first metal was cut on the vessel and 33 months after the first section entered the dry dock at Rosyth to begin assembly.

June saw the final structures of the aircraft carrier fitted, including the communications mast and the Flyco (Flying Control), the carrier's equivalent of an airport control tower. In preparation for the Queen's visit painting work has also started.

Ian Booth, the carrier programme director with the Aircraft Carrier Alliance, said: “We’re working hard to prepare the ship and plan the celebrations which will mark this significant phase in the programme to deliver the nation's flagships.

“Getting to this point is testament to the hard work and commitment of everyone involved in the programme, from the teams across the alliance to our suppliers in every region of the country.”

At 65,000 tonnes, the ship will be three times the size of the current generation of Invincible-class carriers – and one and a half times larger than Britain’s last traditional carrier, HMS Ark Royal, which paid off in the late 1970s.

When deployed HMS Queen Elizabeth will have a range of 10,000 nautical miles, be able to steam 500 nautical miles a day and be able to carry a mixture of 40 jets and helicopters, as well as up to 1,600 embarked service personnel, including a crew of 679.

After the naming ceremony the dock will be flooded and she will be towed out into the basin to continue the internal fitting out work, with sea trials set for 2017 and flight trials of the F-35B Lightning II jets set for 2018.

Rosyth will then begin work to complete HMS Prince of Wales.