Imposing HMS Ark Royal moors on the Thames
14th June 2007
Daily Mail
Looking like it's been picked up and dumped in the middle of London, the hulking figure of the Navy's flagship HMS Ark Royal sits silently, moored in Greenwich.
The ship steamed up the River Thames and was moored between two buoys to mark the 25th anniversary of the end of the Falklands conflict.
The ship, which has just received an £18million upgrade dwarfs the buildings of Greenwich, including the famous observatory which can be seen in the top right hand corner of the picture.
The warship is not open to the general public during her stay in London, but will be hosting a number of events for community groups and local schools.
The Portsmouth-based vessel has just completed the multi-national joint training exercise Noble Mariner 07 in the Baltic Sea in preparation for her leading Command ship role within the Nato Response Force.
HMS Ark Royal's commanding officer, Captain Mike Mansergh, said: "We are delighted to have the opportunity to pay a visit to London. It is very appropriate that the fleet flagship should be in London at this time of commemoration."
He added: "This has been a hugely challenging period and I am delighted with the performance of the ship's company and the ship. We are now ready in all respects to deploy anywhere in the world to support a wide range of missions."
Ark Royal is one of three Invincible class aircraft carriers in the Royal Navy, although the navy has four aircraft carriers in total. The helicopter carrier HMS Ocean is slightly bigger than the three normal aircraft carriers.
But even the Ark Royal and the other Royal Navy aircraft carriers will be dwarved by the Royal Navy's new, giant aircraft carriers, which will be around THREE times bigger than the current ones, and will be the world's largest warships not including the US Navy's aitctaft carriers.
An artist's impression of one of the new Royal Navy "Queen Elizabeth Class" aircraft carriers, the world's largest warships outside the United States.
dailymail.co.uk
14th June 2007
Daily Mail
Looking like it's been picked up and dumped in the middle of London, the hulking figure of the Navy's flagship HMS Ark Royal sits silently, moored in Greenwich.
The ship steamed up the River Thames and was moored between two buoys to mark the 25th anniversary of the end of the Falklands conflict.
The ship, which has just received an £18million upgrade dwarfs the buildings of Greenwich, including the famous observatory which can be seen in the top right hand corner of the picture.
The warship is not open to the general public during her stay in London, but will be hosting a number of events for community groups and local schools.
The Portsmouth-based vessel has just completed the multi-national joint training exercise Noble Mariner 07 in the Baltic Sea in preparation for her leading Command ship role within the Nato Response Force.
HMS Ark Royal's commanding officer, Captain Mike Mansergh, said: "We are delighted to have the opportunity to pay a visit to London. It is very appropriate that the fleet flagship should be in London at this time of commemoration."
He added: "This has been a hugely challenging period and I am delighted with the performance of the ship's company and the ship. We are now ready in all respects to deploy anywhere in the world to support a wide range of missions."
Ark Royal is one of three Invincible class aircraft carriers in the Royal Navy, although the navy has four aircraft carriers in total. The helicopter carrier HMS Ocean is slightly bigger than the three normal aircraft carriers.
But even the Ark Royal and the other Royal Navy aircraft carriers will be dwarved by the Royal Navy's new, giant aircraft carriers, which will be around THREE times bigger than the current ones, and will be the world's largest warships not including the US Navy's aitctaft carriers.
An artist's impression of one of the new Royal Navy "Queen Elizabeth Class" aircraft carriers, the world's largest warships outside the United States.
dailymail.co.uk