HMS Ark Royal (R07), the last
Invincible-class light
aircraft carrier to be completed, is the fifth ship of the
Royal Navy named in honour of the
flagship of the
English fleet that defeated the
Spanish Armada.
Ark Royal is slightly larger than her sister ships and during construction she was fitted with a steeper ski-jump ramp, (twelve degrees, as opposed to seven degrees of the
Invincible) to improve
STOVL take-off performance for the
Harrier aircraft.
She is currently the
flagship of the active fleet.
Construction
Her keel was laid by
Swan Hunter at
Wallsend on 7 December 1978. She was
launched on 20 June 1981 sponsored by
Queen Elizabeth, the Queen Mother and
commissioned on 1 November 1985. Originally intended as
Indomitable in line with her sister ships (
HMS Invincible and
HMS Illustrious), public resentment at the scrapping of the previous
Ark Royal (Britain's last large aircraft carrier up to that date) in 1980, led the
Royal Navy to announce that the name would be revived on the new ship. The unfinished
Ark Royal was reportedly offered for sale to the
Royal Australian Navy in 1981.
HMS Invincible was later offered for sale instead.
Refits
1999-2003
In May 1999
Ark Royal put into
Rosyth for refitting, which included the removal of the
Sea Dart missiles and covering over of the foredeck to allow for an enlarged deck park for aircraft. She was recommissioned in 2001. She sailed to the
Persian Gulf for the
2003 Invasion of Iraq in 2003. Helicopters from
Ark Royal played a crucial role in the
Battle of Basra2004-2006
In April 2004
Ark Royal entered into extended readiness, following which she entered refit with the return to service of
Illustrious.
Ark Royal completed an extensive refit in August 2006 and returned to Portsmouth, her home port, to rejoin the fleet on 28 October 2006 where she underwent 10 weeks of training and sea trials.
Ark Royal will be utilised as an
LPH, replacing
Ocean while she undergoes refit. On 16 November 2006 a British Army
WAH-64 Apache attack helicopter landed on Ark Royal for the first time marking an increase in the carriers capability. On 22 March 2007, HMS Ark Royal was returned to the Royal Navy Fleet after a two-year refit worth £18 million. As of May 2007, she once again became the Fleet Flagship, reclaiming the title from her sister ship,
Illustrious, which had been Flagship since the end of her refit in 2005.
2009
In January the Ark Royal first visited
Liverpool and then she returned to the
River Tyne, where she was built. Her voyage from Portsmouth to Liverpool was made with 108 Cadets from the Sea Cadet Corps and the Combined Cadet Force embarked.
Operations
Ark Royal was deployed in 1993 to the
Adriatic during the
Bosnian War.
Ark Royal, commanded by Captain
Alan Massey (Now
Vice Admiral and
Second Sea Lord), took part in the
2003 invasion of Iraq where her complement singularly consisted of helicopters rather than her usual mix of helicopters and
Harrier aircraft. During operations in the war two
Westland Sea King helicopters, from
849 Naval Air Squadron, collided in mid-air with the loss of one American and six British lives.
Ark Royal is expected to remain in service until 2016, at which time she will be replaced with
HMS Prince of Wales. This new vessel is expected to displace three times that of the
Invincible class and offer a steep change in operational capability.
Her current commanding officer (since 31 July 2008) is Captain John Clink. He relieved Captain Mike Mansergh who had been CO since August 2006.
In October 2008,
Ark Royal was a participant in
Exercise Joint Warrior 08-2.
Gallery
Affiliations
- Wartime Ark Royal Association
- TS Gamecock (Shirely and District)
- Leeds Branch RN Historic Flight Support Group
- Leeds Chamber of Commerce
- Yorkshire Fleet Air Arm Association
- Headingley Royal Naval Association
