HMS Queen Elizabeth sailed through the sunny Mediterranean this morning for its first overseas trip to Gibraltar.
The 65,000 tonne, £3.1billion aircraft carrier made its way through the Strait of Gibraltar this morning in preparation for an onshore visit to the British overseas territory.
Queen Elizabeth will be at sea for the next month for rotary wing trials involving helicopters taking off and landing on the four-acre flight deck.
Queen Elizabeth will be at sea for the next month for rotary wing trials involving helicopters taking off and landing on the four-acre flight deck, which is pictured this morning in the Straits of Gibraltar
Later this year, the UK’s F-35s, the world’s most advanced fighter jet, will undertake flight trials from the deck of the aircraft carrier while it is at sea off the east coast of the US.
The UK is currently embarked on a £9.1 billion programme to buy 48 by 2025 of the F-35Bs from American aviation giant Lockheed Martin.
Britain currently has 14 of the warplanes being tested and flown in the US.
The two Chinooks are from the Aircraft Test and Evaluation facility at MOD Boscombe Down. the four aircraft will all be carrying specialist testing equipment.
The 65,000 tonne, £3.1billion aircraft carrier made its way through the Strait of Gibraltar this morning in preparation for an onshore visit to the island