Naval Today said:The forward section of Britain’s biggest future warship is now outwardly complete after engineers successfully attached the final part of HMS Prince of Wales’ bow.
After some exact calculations to get the centre of gravity spot on, the 620-tonne block was raised by the enormous Goliath crane which dominates the north bank of the Forth and then put down on its final position on the front of the ship in the dry dock.
The upper bow has been constructed in four huge sections, all built at the Appledore yard in Devon, then shipped to Rosyth, where Prince of Wales is taking shape in the same enlarged dry dock where her older sister Queen Elizabeth was pieced together.
Lifting the second ship’s upper bow segment into place comes just days after the forward island – home, among some 100 compartments, to the carrier’s bridge – was also fixed into position on the flight deck.
BALTIC SEA (June 8, 2015)Royal Navy ship HMS Ocean(L12) & USS San Antonio (LPD 17) lead maritime forces from 17 nations underway in formation for BALTOPS 2015. BALTOPS is an annually recurring multinational exercise designed to enhance flexibility and interoperability, as well as demonstrate resolve of allied and partner forces to defend the Baltic region. (U.S. Navy photos courtesy of the Royal Navy by LPhot Luron Wright/Crown Copyright/Released)
USTKA, Poland (June 16, 2015) Landing craft vehicle personnel return to the British Royal Navy HMS Ocean as a Chinook departs the ship. Ocean is sailing off the coast of Poland during exercise Baltic Operations 2015 in preparation for an amphibious landing in Ustka. BALTOPS is an annual multinational exercise designed to enhance flexibility and interoperability, as well as demonstrate resolve of allied and partner forces to defend the Baltic region. (U.S. Marine Corps photo by 1st Lt. Sarah E. Burns/Released)
Naval Today said:Royal Navy Type 45 destroyer HMS Duncan is working around the clock to support day and night strikes against key ISIL targets in the Middle East launched from the USS Theodore Roosevelt.
She’s the latest Royal Navy Type 45 destroyer to take her place with a US carrier battle group on operations in the Gulf region, and is part of a coalition of more than 60 countries.
The vessel has the ability to provide air traffic and fighter control.
As well as supporting the international effort against the ISIL fundamentalists – the 8,500-tonne warship has also joined the wider security mission in the region: patrolling the Red Sea, Gulf of Aden, the Gulf of Oman and accompanying shipping through the key choke points in the region such as the Strait of Hormuz and the Bab al Mandeb.
Working with the US carrier also sets the pace for the arrival of the Royal Navy’s two new Queen Elizabeth class carriers – allowing the Service the opportunity to develop effective techniques.