HMS Queen Elizabeth II at home - AIN

August 18, 2017

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Britain’s Costly Carrier Enters Home Port The first of the UK’s two new aircraft carriers sailed into its home base at Portsmouth for the first time on August 16, after seven weeks of initial trials at sea. The 65,000-tonne HMS Queen Elizabeth II is due to be handed over to the Royal Navy by the end of the year, from the Air Carrier Alliance (ACA) consortium that built her. The two warships are costing more than £6.5 billion ($8.4 billion), nearly £3 billion more than expected when the contract was signed in mid-2008. That sum does not include the cost of acquiring the aircraft and helicopters that will fly from them. The UK is spending more than £3 billion ($3.9 billion) to acquire its first 18 Lockheed Martin F-35B stealth fighters, 14 of which will form the first operational squadron next year. Another near-£300 million ($380 million) is buying 10 Airborne Surveillance and Control (ASaC) radars that can be fitted to the Navy’s existing fleet of Leonardo Merlin Mk2 helicopters. The two carriers will also carry other Merlins equipped primarily for anti-submarine warfare (ASW) or commando troop carrying, depending on whether they are configured for the “carrier strike” or “Littoral Maneuver” role. In the latter role, the carriers will also carry some Apache, Chinook and Wildcat helicopters. Read More