Captain James Cook and the search for Antarctica

Captain James Cook and the search for Antarctica

Total Undersea War

Total Undersea War

HOW TO BUILD AN AIRCRAFT CARRIER

Chris Terrill

The Incredible Story of the Men and Women Who Brought Britain's Biggest Warship to Life

65,000 tons. 280 metres long. A flight deck the size of sixty tennis courts. A giant piece of Sovereign British territory that's home to up to 50 Aircraft. HMS Queen Elizabeth in the biggest ship in the Royal Navy's history and one of the most ambitious and exacting engineering projects ever undertaken in the UK.

But it's her ship's company of 700, alongside an air group of 900 air and ground crew that are Big Lizzie's beating heart. How to Build an Aircraft Carrier tells the story of Britain at her best: innovative, confident, outward-looking and world beating.
Regular Price £20.00 Special Price £17.99
Availability: In stock
65,000 tons. 280 metres long. A flight deck the size of sixty tennis courts. A giant piece of Sovereign British territory that's home to up to 50 Aircraft. HMS Queen Elizabeth in the biggest ship in the Royal Navy's history and one of the most ambitious and exacting engineering projects ever undertaken in the UK. But it's her ship's company of 700, alongside an air group of 900 air and ground crew that are Big Lizzie's beating heart. And How to Build an Aircraft Carrier tells their story. From before the first steel of her hull was cut, Chris Terrill has enjoyed unprecedented access to Queen Elizabeth and the men and women who have brought her to life. From Jerry Kyd, the ship's inspirational Captain to Lt Cdr Nathan Grey, the first pilot to land Britain's new stealth jet fighter on her deck, Terrill has won the trust and confidence of the ship's people. How to Build an Aircraft Carrier tells the story of Britain at her best: innovative, confident, outward-looking and world beating.

ISBN: 9780241400104
Format: Hardback
Author(s): Chris Terrill
First Publishment Date: 20 January 2022
More Information
Coming Soon No
Author(s) Chris Terrill
Customer Reviews
  1. Highly recommended
    Chris Terrill has built himself an enviable reputation for his documentary work with the Royal Navy, both afloat and with the Royal Marines – he passed the green beret commando course! This book complements his two BBC documentaries on HMS Queen Elizabeth and is succinctly and accurately sub-titled, “The incredible story of the men and women who brought Britain’s biggest warship to life”. Building the two largest warships ever built for the Royal Navy is not just a marvellous feat of engineering, but also a statement of intent and national belief. The cost of £6 billion plus for both ships is a victory for the Navy Board in winning the funding battle against conflicting demands from the other two services. Unlike the abortive plan to build CVA-01, this project had the support of the RAF who recognised the importance of the ships for the national STOVL F-35B programme. With QE and her sister ship Prince of Wales now operational, these ships are something to be proud of. Inevitably the number of statistics is mind boggling – I was reassured to find that the double decker bus is still a unit of measurement, along with tennis courts and football pitches, but sadly no Queen Mary funnels. The book mirrors TV documentary style, focussing on certain characters to tell the story of the ship and her builders. The challenge of taking a highly complex new ship to sea will always be accompanied by various incidents. Clearly it made good television to have some “real life dramas” and the book follows this, making for a relaxed style, but compulsive reading none the less. As with all ships, it is the people that make it, and QE certainly has her fair share of characters. However, it is not just about the naval personnel, but about the myriad of trades involved in the buildin, from the diver who found the 1500kg bomb in Portsmouth harbour during dredging operations preparing for the ship, to the cabinet maker selecting oak and making the Captain’s dining table, complete with a “time capsule” letter box. The achievement of getting the ship to sea, through trials and work up and then deploying to USA to carry out the first flight operations with the F-35, including the first ever Shipborne Rolling Vertical Landing Deck after some 10 years of not operating fixed wing carriers, is a tribute to the leadership of the command team and hard work from all onboard. It is nothing new to hear the phrase that the “Navy isn’t what it used to be”; what this book demonstrates is that the Navy may have changed but the people are still the same mix, and without them we would not have such a potent platform as the QE operational and delivering fixed wing carrier air power. This is a hugely enjoyable book that will appeal to the retired, serving and those looking to serve. I look forward to the next offering from Chris Terrill covering the CSG deployment to the Far East. Highly recommended.

    Review by

    Posted on

Write Your Own Review
You're reviewing:HOW TO BUILD AN AIRCRAFT CARRIER