HMS Queen Elizabeth will soon set sail on a month-long training cruise.

The aircraft carrier will make its way to Glen Mallen in Scotland, where it will restock its ammunition supply. During the cruise, the crew will have the opportunity to work with highly advanced F-35 fighter jets, an experience that will further enhance their skills and knowledge.

For more fantastic images of this, follow ‘Marine + Air Photography‘ by clicking here.

The ship is expected to return to Portsmouth in March after a successful training cruise. The crew will then have a few months to prepare before the aircraft carrier departs again and leads the Carrier Strike Group 23 deployment in August.

According to the Royal Navy, HMS Queen Elizabeth is the largest and most powerful vessel ever constructed for Britain.

“This awe-inspiring warship is capable of carrying up to 40 aircraft. As well as state-of-the-art weaponry and communications systems, HMS Queen Elizabeth boasts five gyms, a chapel and a medical centre.

The flight deck of HMS Queen Elizabeth comes in at an enormous four acres, and will be used to launch the fearsome new F35 Joint Strike Fighter fast jet. Four fighter jets can be moved from the hangar to the flight deck in just one minute. The ship’s two propellers weigh 33 tonnes each. The powerplant behind them generates enough power to run 1000 family cars.”

George Allison
George has a degree in Cyber Security from Glasgow Caledonian University and has a keen interest in naval and cyber security matters and has appeared on national radio and television to discuss current events. George is on Twitter at @geoallison

59 COMMENTS

      • not necessarily. in the mean time i encourage you to look at the little covered in media fact that hms somerset had a unplanned dry dock in Rosyth Jun-Aug 2022 due to a failure of the rudder bearing that flooded the tiller flat, or that HMS Trent has suffered mechanical been stuck in Gibraltar since may 2022. She was dry-docked 8 Aug-29 Sep 2022 ahead of planned w. Africa deployment. After trials, she was back in dock 15-23 Oct 2022 but has been alongside ‘the wall’ in Gibraltar ever since.

    • coming out early-mid this year , going USA late this year, then onto a long ago scheduled refit of sorts at the beginning of 2024. they may have decided to do that refit now. delay’s expected.

        • Don’t speculate , it wasn’t a propellor failure, and the propulsion system is optimised for the requisite performance. This is an electrical propulsion vessel, additional shafts would not have made any difference to this particular failure

    • According to Charlie Parker writing in The Times back on 20 January the boat will be refloated by the end of February then it’s off to Portsmouth for “months” of maintenance.

  1. Let’s hope she makes it further than her sister ship😂🙈.
    Lovely looking ships, is csg23 going anywhere nice this year? I haven’t looked into it at all.

    • Always thought the QE class looked rather ugly for Carriers, the slab of a ski jump at the front and the rather blocky hull that looks like it’s form was conceived solely in CAD. Function over form I guess.
      It sometimes reminds me of Kryton’s head from red dwarf. At least it goes with the MK8 gun.

        • Given they are not nuclear Carriers I’m not sure EMALS is a viable option due to the power requirements for the electromagnets. It unproven and expensive anyway as the US can vouch with the Ford Carriers.
          Steam powered cats and traps maybe, but they didn’t include them during the build as they cost too much, and seem to have commited to the F35B.
          Personally don’t see the govt installing them and replacing the number of jets aswell to justify the conversion.

          The Russians managed to get their Carrier’s ski slope looking nice, even if the ship bellows black smoke when it’s not being towed or laid up in port.

          • The US Navy is quite happy with EMALS performance now that the bugs have been worked out. It proves to be more efficient and less costly in the long term.

          • The power margin is there it was designed in.

            EMALS works from rechargeables anyway which trickle recharge between launches.

            As F35B don’t need a catapult there wouldn’t be a lot of point adding one?

            Or are be going to the interminable AEW debate which will almost certainly be a drone platform by 2030.

      • Have you seen them in person? I can confirm that they are the best looking class of super carrier in operation despite their chin.

        Not to knock US warships but much like their cars they have a bit of a sterner look that their European counter parts.

  2. The Northern Irish may not be too pleased to find out after paying into the defence budget of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Island, that this Aircraft Carrier now belongs to Great Britain rather than the whole of the UK.

  3. I’m guessing the author is American – what are these ‘cruises’ of which you speak? And the shop is going to Glen Mallan

  4. HMS Prince of Wales is still in Rosyth. It’s absolutely disgraceful that our second aircraft carrier is likely to be out of action for many months to come.

  5. One is tempted to ask,where is the Prince of Wales.God help us if this develops into z shooting war.
    Actually cynicism doesn’nt really cut it.Surely to God we can build a ship where a major component doesn’t fail.Look at our destroyers major engines component ljke the generating sets failing or under capacity,under load?
    MOD in the slot for this!!!!!

    • According to the latest evidence at Committee, Prince of Wales will be undergoing repairs to both propeller shafts before returning to Portsmouth for routine maintenance.

      Mildly surprising that it requires much maintenance as it’s not been at sea much so hopefully she can be deployable before Autumn as currently planned.

    • It was never seriously expected that we would operate both carriers simultaneously.
      Naval vessels are complex – very complex – they will break down from time to time.

  6. A couple of 3M 22 Zircons would send the QE to Davy jones’s locker quick time. Why are we building these huge white Elephants?

  7. Does anyone know the exact date the Queen Elizabeth returns to Portsmouth in March as I would love to go and see it and book a hotel.

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