HMS Queen Elizabeth is the lead ship of the Queen Elizabeth class of aircraft carriers and the Fleet Flagship of the Royal Navy. Capable of carrying 60 aircraft including fixed wing, rotary wing and autonomous vehicles, she is named in honour of the first HMS Queen Elizabeth, a World War I era super-dreadnought, which in turn was named after Queen Elizabeth I. The carrier Queen Elizabeth carries her namesake ship’s honours, as well as her Tudor rose-adorned crest and motto.
The ship began sea trials in June 2017, was commissioned on 7 December 2017 and entered service in 2020. Her first seagoing commanding officer was Commodore Jerry Kyd, who was appointed in 2014, but did not take command until May 2016, having previously commanded the carriers Ark Royal and Illustrious.
The ship is designed to operate V/STOL aircraft. The air wing will typically consist of F-35B Lightning II multirole fighters and Merlin helicopters for airborne early warning and anti-submarine warfare. The design emphasises flexibility, with accommodation for 250 Royal Marines and the ability to support them with attack helicopters and large troop transports such as Chinooks. She is the second Royal Navy vessel to bear the name Queen Elizabeth, and is based at HMNB Portsmouth.
When on operations, Queen Elizabeth will deploy as the central part of a UK Carrier Strike Group, comprising escorts and support ships, with the aim to facilitate carrier-enabled power projection.
#british #military #queenelizabeth
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I'd guess an advantage of 2 separate towers means 2 separate targets before all radar is lost.
As a brit I love the American f15 Eagle and a-10 thunderbolt 2. For me the best planes on the planet.. But it won't be long before China make exact copies lol
The two towers increases space as well and stability
Everyone appears bemused as to why both HMS Queen Elizabeth and her sister carrier HMS Prince of Wales, have two operations towers. With ever greater sophistication in terms of computerised systems, to continue to concentrate all operations functions at a single node became increasingly counterintuitive. By having principal flight ops, and a secondary support ships ops in one node, and vice versa in another, command functions may be separated between two sites of vulnerability, and a secondary command site may be created for each command function as well. No longer do huge capital ships have everything concentrated in one place. At the same time, flight staff and navigation/weaponry staff may each focus on their ever more complicated jobs, appart from one another. Having one control site on an aircraft carrier is akin to trying to drive ten trains and the entire rail network from just one place.
They can carry up to 72 aircraft in case of war….
They are amazingly automated as well, so only need around 900 personnel v the Nimitz class which needs around 5000 to operate…
just a small correction to the video, a typical carrying capacity of the QE's is 40 airframes 36 F-35B and 4 ASW helicopters, however that can be swapped around and changed depending on mission requirements, in 2021 she sailed with 26 aircraft 1 squadron of 8 F-35B's from Britain (The Dam Buster Squadron) and 2 squadrons of F-35B's from America (Wake Island Avengers) and 4 ASW helicopters.
In a wartime posture she would typically carry a couple over 40 aircraft, and in an emergency she can surge to 70 aircraft however this is a last resort as F-35B's could be launched but not recovered on the flight deck due to overcrowding.
the vid is not wrong, just using the 2021 deployment numbers rather than the actual deployment numbers, the reason she sailed with 26 instead of 40 is because we only had 8 frontline operational F-35B's the others were training aircraft.
One tower controls the ship the other is dedicated to air traffic however both towers are interoperable should one fail for one reason or another
OK, the QEs were initially intended to be 65,000 tonnes but naval architects said they actually emerged at 70,600 tonnes, The 36 x F35-B figure was originally given as the fast jet component of a STANDARD, peacetime 'strike'-role airwing, which would be "surged" in war with a max balanced airwing then topping out at c60 aircaft 'all types. Which implies up to c48 x F35-B in a max 'strike'-role airwing.
You see, the various reduced numbers given for F35 are merely 'political' and do not reflect the real number a QE carrier could comfortably operate IF our loathsome establishment mediocrities hadn't done their usual trick of making huge cuts in the number to be purchased… (from 138 planes to currently just a 'certain' 48, and likely a final total of max 72)
In short, the rats that infest Westminster and Whitehall prefer not to have it made too obvious that for the foreseeable future, our carriers will typically put to sea with fewer than half the number of planes on board than they were designed to operate 😁
When you look at a map of the world, the size of countries like the USA & Russia & China. And then there is this little island who ruled the seas for centuries. No doubt. The Royal Navy were the atomic bomb of bygone times. No one could match them. France & Spain tried but were no match.
The reason HMS queen Elizabeth and HMS prince of Wales has 2 separate islands is because of the size of its exhausts and positioning of its huge engines. This in turn gave separate ship control and flight control stations. Redundancy in case one was damaged and more flight deck space.
Alot of people presume it was named after the late Queen Elizabeth ll but its named after Queen Elizabeth 1 . 👑 The Tudor rose is a clue ! It also can be looked up on Google if unsure I'm sure !!
What a combo. F-35's and this Carrier. Stunning😍
Just use HMS, never "The HMS" as that would be like saying "The His Majesty's Ship".
Use HMS Queen Elizabeth first, then Queen Elizabeth or The Queen Elizabeth thereafter.
The F-35B is a JOINT USA-UK project, which is why the RAF/Royal Navy are using it. The UK’s Rolls Royce Aero Engines invented the Rolls-Royce LiftSystem, and the USA’s Pratt & Whitney Corporation was given the contract for the F135 jet engines, which attaches to it. Most of the other systems of the F-35B are common to the F-35A and F-35C variant.
The F-35B is the only successful variant of the F-35 aircraft variants, is the product of UK engineering design, engineering, and innovation! This, despite the fact that all of the Americans commenting on the F-35B’s Vertical Take Off and Landing capability, ALWAYS FAIL TO MENTION, or OMIT THE FACT, that this technology system and capability, is in fact a BRITISH INVENTION!
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rolls-Royce_LiftSystem
https://www.rolls-royce.com/products-and-services/defence/aerospace/combat-jets/rolls-royce-liftsystem.aspx
The two towers (great film!).. One is for flight control and aerial operations and the other is for navigation and ship operations.
Hint! It isn't "the" HMS whatever. That would be like saying "the His Majesty's Ship" which is just plain wrong. 🥺
Remember that the f35 is a joint project with the USA, UK and 6 other countries not just an American aircraft, so we're probably just as much to blame for the bugs 🙂
1 is for fighting the other is for sailing and navigation.
My personal opinion is that the Elizabeth class is GREATLY lacking in defensive capability.
As much as I love the Royal Navy it is seriously lacking in armament the carrier was supposed to be fitted with 30mm defensive guns but it still doesn’t have them. Our f35b’s are only cleared for launching one type of anti air missile and dropping laser guided paveway bombs.
Most of our ships and all of our aircraft have lost anti ship capability ( apart from the wildcat with the sea venom which is still on trails).
I love the carriers and the new frigates being built but what is the point of them if they have very limited offensive capability. I hope with the restoration of 3% gdp defence spending that we might see some offensive capability but I’ll believe it when I see it from the government and MOD
Hiya looking in from England. in answer to your question regarding the two islands on HMS Queen Elizabeth and HMS Prince of Wales. as far as I am aware the rear island controls the flight decks. and the Foreword Island controls the general running of the aircraft carrier. By the way the budget for defence in England UK is about to go up to 3%. there is absolutely no question the armed forces over here are definitely being built up.
The west must always be the most advanced in military and science.
These sights make me feel safe.
The lack of a launcher and arrester system (originally planned , dropped for cost cutting reasons, reinserted into the design , then dropped again) renders these ships little more than large amphibious assault ships. They cannot operate fixed wing early warning and control aircraft or tankers. They have to use the F35B which was intended for use by the US marines on amphibious assault ships to replace the Harrier. The F35B has half the combat radius of competing carrier fighter and strike aircraft and can carry much less payload. This means, any opposing carrier strike group or land based attack aircraft could hit a Queen Elizabeth strike group long before it could hit them. Cost cutting is a false economy.
Redundency, if ones hit it can still operate, kinda obvious.
We need a strong defence, because there are crazy people out there (not mentioning any names) who only understand force.
5:26 Front is ship operations stuff like steering & the back is for conducting flight operations. The idea is supposed to be redundancy so if one tower is destroyed, the other can still operate both roles.
You missed out! A couple of months ago we got a documentary on TV which took us out on trials and a US visit with her – brilliant!
HMS Queen Elizabeth has just arrived in Norfolk navy base, Viginia, USA. Watched a feed of it docking yesterday I think.
The two island design is because of several reasons.
The exhaust of the two gas turbines is vented through the top of them. And because the two gas turbines are separated from eachother in case of battle damage, Each turbine needs it's own exhaust. One per island.
It gives the ship navigating officers a good view of the ships bow from the bridge, Making manoeuvring the ship easier, While the flight ops staff have a clear centralised view of the flight deck. For controlling flight operations.
Splitting them into two separate islands, Instead of one long island. allows an Aircraft elevator to be positioned in between them. Better using the available space.
Either island can assume the function of the other, In case of technical issues or battle damage. The separation makes it much harder to take them both out of action with a missile for example.
The two main radar's are mounted on them ( one on each ) this separation giving each radar a better view and results in less signal interference from the other one..
😄👍
As I understand it the F35 is not fully American as the UK is a partner in the design and production and some components are made in the UK, and based on the original innovative Harrier jet.
Even though the F35 is an American aircraft around 15% of every one is British tech and made in the UK.
Due to continually reduced defence-spending budgets, the UK has always had to find ways of getting more bang for their bucks than other countries. So for example, while the QE class carriers are able to carry far fewer airframes than the US Ford class carriers (40 versus around 90), the UK are able to build three QE class carriers for the same cost of a single Ford class carrier, which essentially means that they could put a third more aircraft into the air as the US for the same cost, notwithstanding the cost of the actual aircraft themselves. There are other important factors, such as power generation. While the Ford class carriers are nuclear powered, which gives them unlimited mileage and theoretically allows them to stay at sea indefinitely, with more than enough power to future-proof them by allowing as many new add-ons as necessary, the QE class carriers are not nuclear powered and have limited operational range of 10,000 nautical miles and an operational lifespan of around 50 years. However, in reality, few nations allow nuclear-powered ships into their ports, which means resupply has to be done at sea. Furthermore, serious repairs would most likely require a return to a US port. Also, despite being able to stay at sea indefinitely, the morale of the crew onboard would decline sharply during an overly-extended mission, which means that the main benefit of being nuclear-powered is limited to the ability to produce enough energy to make it future-proof, though the cost of maintaining a nuclear-powered carrier are far higher than for a gas/deisel turbine system and requires a much larger crew. The QE class carriers are able to enter any friendly port with a deep-enough harbour, which enables them to carry out repairs or resupply without having to return to their home port. Another feature of the QE class carriers is the twin lift system, which allows four jets to be brought up to the flight deck in approximately 1 minute, while the use of the ski-jump instead of a catobar system theoretically allows for a higher sortie rate. Also, retrospecively fitting a catobar system could be achieved relatively cheaply, compared with doing it the other way round. It's still early days, and as with any new system or piece of kit, there are always teething problems to begin with. At the end of the day, the viability and survivability of these carriers depend on their escort ships, and there is no better anti-aircraft destroyer than the Daring class Type 45, or more effective anti-submarine warship or helicopter than the City class frigate and Merlin Mk 2 helicopter. In any case, an allied carrier strike group, combining US, UK, and other allied warships, is a formidable strategic asset, able to project a huge amount of hard power anywhere in the world.
One tower is air traffic control. The other tower is ship control.
After a few years off it was great to see the Royal Navy return to full Blue Water Navy strength. I'm not sure you are aware, but ALL Royal Navy ships are built in British dockyards and always have been.
The two bridges the forward one is maritime the rear is air this contains all air wings needs like flight control center deck controll marshaling control briefing rooms and air crew prep rooms and alert crew stations for air wing defence on the inboard side you can see the flight control center they also as a structure contain the ships exhaust one in each tower there is also a small lift behind the tower that goes direct to the ships infirmary so injured pilots and deck crew can be taken straight to medical help there is also another lift to supply munitions to the flight deck that has no access to hanger space so munitions can not be affected by hanger deck fires the magazine can be eather find with water or have oxygen removed
QE carrier can take 75 aircraft max and in the future a nose extention could be added to add another 100+ metres to the deck to take the future Tempest fighter.
4:09 Overall height of 280 metres? That's 918 feet. It's actually 63 metres (206 feet).
When it comes to the command towers at a basic level they work as exhaust towers as the power units are far apart for suitability reasons, it also allows for differing radar systems to be installed with out interfering with each other which would happen if you tried to install several on one tower. But from a practical perspective the forward tower is the main command where as the rear one is flight control, however both towers are dual purpose so if the forward tower is damaged the rear can do both flight and command and if the read is damaged the front can take over flight control, it also ads defensive survivability because if one tower is hit the remaining tower still has a targeting radar that can be use
Invisible class?😂😂wtf
Let’s not forget the most important thing…. The dam thing has a pub on board 🎉. Imagine getting pissed and joyriding an f35 😮
I'm in that picture of the strike group at the beginning of the video. I was on the stores ship to the right of the QE as you're looking at it.
The F-35 is a complete dog 💩 jet. I really hope we don't have to witness how inept they are against the Su-34's or MiG-31's.
What's the Invisible Class… Is that new or are they mispronouncing the Invincible Class…?
Because of the benefits of the twin island system, I expect the next generation of US carriers to adopt the design.
The two networked multi frequency quad radar systems will probably roll out too. One island restricts your radar capacity & ability to host multiple redundant & specialised variations.
The shape of the hull and flight deck were designed for stability and support of vertical landings even when undertaking evasive manoeuvres, something Britain has plenty of experience of following the Falklands conflict.
The Nimitz class is good but it wasn't designed to launch & land aircraft while under attack as Britain insisted was a core function of the Queen Elisabeth class.
The UK has experience of aircraft carrier air-sea operations under fire, with modern missiles & aircraft in a combat zone without air or sea superiority from the 1980s. The USA last undertook operations of that nature between 1941-1945, very different times & technology (a bomb didn't chase you if dropped from 30 miles away).
America got cocky with its ships.
Big & Impressive but a bee can end a life & it knows it will die in the process.
Pride goeth before a fall.
Americans know how to design aircraft that’s for sure!
Try looking up the "Tempest" aircraft Britain is developing to replace the "Typhoon", both the F-35 & Tempest should be operational on the QE class, the Tempest has an AI flight system that can perform its mission even if the crew are dead or return to a safe base if it's crew are lost.
I'd love you to watch a video on the "Future Cruise" missile system being built by the UK & France.
It's basically an upgrade of the "Storm Shadow" AI, stealth cruise missile used by the UK but with a 24h flight time and loitering capability with a Land/Sea operation without the current system that has two different systems, it will have a 8,000 mile range hypersonic or 24h flight time at 800-1050kph.
They can carry conventional & French nuclear warheads. (Yes, stealth nuclear missiles with AI that will talk to eachother)
They will begin deployment in 2027 on UK & French vessels (submarine & surface).
It's like Harpoons, currently replaced by "Sea Serpent" systems, designed to evade anti-missile defences (why Britain gave Harpoon to Ukraine) or Maritime Brimstone "Sea Spear" a loitering 60km range missile that has an AI (They can make a target think it's missed before attacking).
It's also really good value compared to the US behemoths. Arguably a better ship with this point put into account.