A 3,400 tonne mass of steel as long as ten double-decker buses was hoisted into position on the first of the Royal Navy’s two new supercarriers.
The section will become Lower Block 02 of the HMS Queen Elizabeth, the Navy’s largest ever aircraft carrier, currently construction at BAE System’s shipbuilding hall in Portsmouth, and it will provide living quarters for sailors.
The 65,000 tonne carrier is scheduled to go into service in 2016.
Paul Bowsher, the project manager in Portsmouth, said: “This is the biggest ship the Royal Navy has ever had. It’s bigger than anything we’ve ever built in Portsmouth. Nothing comes close to the scale of this.”
Lower Block 02 is comprised of five large rings which were moved together and welded. Hundreds of workers are now busy installing equipment on the vessel before it is shipped up to Scotland in April next year for the next stage of construction.
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Duncan Lee, the fittings manager, said: “Compared to how warships were 20 years ago, these are much more comfortable. There’s a lot more recreational space to really make it feel like a home from home.”
The Portsmouth workers are also building a smaller stern section, Lower Block 05, which will be finished early next year, and two “island” control towers to go on the flight deck.
As soon as Lower Blocks 02 and 05 are completed, work will begin on the next carrier, HMS Prince of Wales, which will be the second of the Royal Navy’s two Queen Elizabeth class supercarriers.
Mr Lee added: “These carriers will get us back on the world stage and give us a dominant presence again.”