Royal Navy's £3bn aircraft carrier HMS Queen Elizabeth returns after a 'huge' 10 weeks at sea

HMS Queen Elizabeth sailed back into her home port of Portsmouth today with a ‘fully trained’ crew.

The 65,000-tonne behemoth completed a demanding set of sea trials and flight tests with the F-35B stealth jet, clearing it for front-line duty.

Now the £3.1bn warship has just one final test to tackle before she can officially lead a carrier strike group into war.

Taking place in autumn, it will see HMS Queen Elizabeth undergoing further training alongside Nato and US allies in British waters.

Captain Angus Essenhigh, Queen Elizabeth’s commanding officer, said it was a hugely exciting moment for his ship’s company.

Speaking of the latest deployment, he added: ‘This has been an absolutely pivotal moment for HMS Queen Elizabeth

‘It’s been a success. The ship has held up beautifully and the jets have achieved way more than they expected to.’

Families of the crew were unable to give the huge warship the traditional quayside welcome at Portsmouth Naval Base because of Covid-19 restrictions, but some waved home their loved ones from the harbour walls.

Before sailing, the crew, who had spent a period in isolation, were tested for coronavirus and two sailors were taken off after testing positive.

Armed forces minister James Heappey said: ‘HMS Queen Elizabeth is an extraordinary ship crewed by extraordinary people from both the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force.

‘They deployed at the height of the Covid-19 outbreak and have remained at sea for over 10 weeks so that they could complete their operational training with the minimal risk of infection.

‘They've put their duty to our country ahead of spending time with their families during the pandemic and, in the process, they've taken us a step closer to once again having a carrier strike capability with the capacity to project British influence across the globe.’

AND MORE: Ministry of Defence shells out £436k to racially-abused troops over four years

The ship set sail from Portsmouth in April for sea trials, then returned briefly to base before setting off again for flight trials in the North Sea with the F-35 stealth jets from 617 Squadron, better known as The Dambusters.

The 1,100 men and women on board were put through their paces during a series of key tests at sea, climaxing in 18 fictional fire and flood incidents raging simultaneously – with the ship expected to continue flying operations while damage control teams toiled in the carrier’s depths.

‘The ship's company have worked incredibly hard over the past 70 days, making every effort to surpass the high standards set by our assessors,’ said Capt Essenhigh.

‘They have come through with flying colours which means HMS Queen Elizabeth has taken a huge step towards sailing on her maiden deployment, flying the flag for the United Kingdom and demonstrating that we are a global naval power with global ambitions.’

HMS Queen Elizabeth will remain in the naval base for a period of maintenance before deploying again towards the end of September.

A message from the Editor

Thank you for reading this story on portsmouth.co.uk. While I have your attention, I also have an important request to make of you.

With the coronavirus lockdown having a major impact on many of our advertisers - and consequently the revenue we receive - we are more reliant than ever on you taking out a digital subscription.

Subscribe to portsmouth.co.uk and enjoy unlimited access to local news and information online and on our app. With a digital subscription, you can read more than 5 articles, see fewer ads, enjoy faster load times, and get access to exclusive newsletters and content. Visit our Subscription page now to sign up.

Our journalism costs money and we rely on advertising, print and digital revenues to help to support them. By supporting us, we are able to support you in providing trusted, fact-checked content for this website.