HMS Queen Elizabeth: First pictures show Royal Navy warship arrive in New York City in sight of Empire State Building

The Royal Navy warship is in the US for historic flight trials but will be spending seven days in the Big Apple. 

HMS Queen Elizabeth arrived in New York this afternoon. 

The ultimate symbol of British naval power dropped anchor within sight of the Statue of Liberty and the skyscrapers of Lower Manhattan for seven days in New York's Upper Bay '“ in full view of Ellis and Liberty Island tourists and thousands of commuters on the Staten Island ferry.

With a photo from the Royal Navy showing the warship against the backdrop of the New York City skyline, including the Empire State Building in the far right corner. 

The ship's Commanding Officer, Captain Jerry Kyd, said: '˜I am delighted and proud to have brought HMS Queen Elizabeth into New York Harbour for the first time.

'˜This visit is very symbolic of the intimate relationship the Royal Navy has with the US Navy and Marine Corps and comes at the mid-way point in the F-35 flight trials '“ we have over 170 embarked US staff at the moment on board in support.'

During the visit to the Big Apple '“ which comes on the back of three weeks of intensive maiden trials with the new F-35 Lightning jet '“ the ship will host several high profile national and international events.

There will also be time for the ship's company to relax and explore one of the world's greatest cities.

Air Engineering Technician Aaron Moment, who is part of the detachment from RNAS Yeovilton's 845 Naval Air Squadron on board, said: '˜This will be my second time in New York but I am really excited to be going back with my squadron as part of HMS Queen Elizabeth.

'˜We're all planning on seeing the sights, taking a trip to Times Square and paying respects at the 9/11 memorial.

'˜The last few weeks at sea have been challenging but I have loved every minute of it.

'˜We have all put in a lot of hard work and performed really well. Seeing the F-35 Lightning jets landing on board for the first time was a real highlight too.'

While in New York HMS Queen Elizabeth's first ever Commanding Officer Captain Jerry Kyd will be handing the command of the £3.1bn to Captain Nick Cooke-Priest. 

The US ambassador to the UK Woody Johnson will be visiting the HMS Queen Elizabeth in New York today (October 19). 

Defence Secretary Gavin Williamson said: '˜HMS Queen Elizabeth is not just a warship but a symbol of our enduring commitment to our security and the security of our allies too.

'˜The state-of-the-art ship is built on more than 470 years of proud Royal Navy history and her entry into New York harbour shows that our Armed Forces are ready to stand by our allies for generations to come.' 

The historic flight tests carried out by the HMS Queen Elizabeth in the last three weeks has seen F-35 jets land on the deck for the first time, and fighter jets drop test bombs in recent days. 

It is not yet known what the high profile events that will be hosted on the £3.1billion warship will be.