The Queen Elizabeth-class aircraft carriers are the largest ships ever built by the British Royal Navy. They are three times bigger than the earlier Invincible-class aircraft carriers. The crew size is relatively small compared to the US Navy Nimitz-class flat-tops. There are only 679 officers and sailors on the British carriers. One reason for the smaller crew is that the Queen Elizabeth-class vessels have new technology onboard that requires fewer people to handle weapons.
What Makes These Aircraft Carriers Special?
Personnel can move missiles and bombs to the flight deck six times faster than the Invincible-class. The Queen Elizabeth-class carriers have two islands for better situational awareness, overall control, and handling.
“The highly integrated mission system is the brains of these ships. Bringing together tactical, navigation, command information and mission control data, it can support multiple aircraft operations and task force group command functions. The twin islands design separates the running of the ship from this activity giving greater visibility of the complex flying operations,” according to BAE Systems.
Quick Specs on the Queen Elizabeth-class
The two Queen Elizabeth-class carriers, the HMS Queen Elizabeth and HMS Prince of Wales, each displace 65,000 tons. They are 918 feet long and 229 feet wide—about the size of three soccer fields. The top speed is 25 knots with a range of 10,000 miles. The HMS Prince of Wales is the fleet flagship of the Royal Navy, replacing the Queen Elizabeth in 2024.
These Floating Air Bases Don’t Take Much Time Off
The carriers have a high operational tempo, making them effective in combat. They can fly 72 sorties daily and have up to 72 aircraft on board. That is impressive action for such a large carrier and for a relatively small crew, which means the ships are highly efficient and productive.
The F-35B Is the Featured Fighter on Board
The elevators can bring up to four F-35B Lightning II stealth fighters from the hangar to the flight deck in just 60 seconds. Queen Elizabeth carriers have ski jumps to help launch aircraft into the air. The F-35Bs are short take-off and vertical landing warbirds. There are 18 F-35Bs usually on board, with a maximum capacity of 36 Lightning IIs.
Highly Survivable with a Powerful Strike Group
The Queen Elizabeth-class has quality systems for self-defense, including three Phalanx close-in weapons systems. The 20mm Vulcan cannon on the Phalanx is highly effective and can hit a target up to a mile away.
The British carriers also have a protective screen that shields them from enemy missile and airplane attacks. This is achieved using Crowsnest radars that can sniff out threats before they attack the carriers. The Crowsnest radar system flies on the Royal Navy’s Merlin MK2 helicopters.
Queen Elizabeth-class carriers typically form a strike group with six frigates and destroyers, plus at least one Astute-class submarine and two fleet support and re-supply ships.
The carriers often work with NATO in training exercises and are necessary to project power against adversaries like Russia. NATO calls these mission groups “Naval and Striking Support Forces.”
Sometimes, the carriers will perform exercises with NATO submarines playing the aggressor forces, and they practice undersea warfare operations during these “cat and mouse games.” The carriers use anti-submarine helicopters to protect the strike group.
Queen Elizabeth-Class Aircraft Carrier Royal Navy. Image Credit: Creative Commons.
The carriers can show off their long-range capabilities with intercontinental voyages. In 2021, during Queen Elizabeth’s first deployment, the carrier steamed to Japan and back—a 55,000 nautical mile journey. This marked a critical mission to show that US-allied carriers could operate in East Asia – evidence that the Americans had friends who could also project naval power against China and deter adversarial navies outside their home regions. However, the Elizabeth-class did not have nuclear propulsion, and they weren’t necessarily planning to sail outside Europe, so the patrol in the Indo-Pacific was noteworthy for its ambition.
British carrier aviation has a colorful history, and there have been 16 different classes of aircraft carriers over the decades. The prior class—the Invincible line of carriers—comprised the HMS Invincible, HMS Illustrious, and HMS Ark Royal. These were all commissioned in the 1980s during the latter stages of the Cold War. Boilers and geared turbines propelled these carriers.
The first class of British carriers had 18 aircraft, and this was during World War One, so the Royal Navy has been a leader in carrier aviation for over a century.
The Queen Elizabeth-class carriers are advanced ships that are the pride of the British fleet. They can lead NATO operations if a ceasefire in Ukraine needs to be enforced by a multinational peacekeeping force.
One of the carriers would likely deploy to the Black Sea to enforce a no-fly zone if an armistice is achieved. This would be the most important mission the HMS Queen Elizabeth or HMS Prince of Wales have ever taken, and the carriers will rise to the occasion if called to duty.
About the Author: Dr. Brent M. Eastwood
Brent M. Eastwood, PhD is the author of Don’t Turn Your Back On the World: a Conservative Foreign Policy and Humans, Machines, and Data: Future Trends in Warfare plus two other books. Brent was the founder and CEO of a tech firm that predicted world events using artificial intelligence. He served as a legislative fellow for US Senator Tim Scott and advised the senator on defense and foreign policy issues. He has taught at American University, George Washington University, and George Mason University. Brent is a former US Army Infantry officer. He can be followed on X @BMEastwood.
