Queen Elizabeth Class Aircraft Carriers: A Comprehensive Analysis

Design and Key Features of the Queen Elizabeth Class Carrier

As sonar specialist Aaron Amick explains, the Queen Elizabeth class signifies the United Kingdom's return to large-deck carrier aviation and serves as a centerpiece of the Royal Navy’s power projection capabilities. The class consists of two ships: HMS Queen Elizabeth and HMS Prince of Wales. Each ship measures 284 meters in length, weighs approximately 65,000 tons, and stands as one of the largest warships ever constructed in the UK.

Amick highlights the innovative integrated electric propulsion system, which uses both gas turbines and diesel generators to generate electricity for all ship systems, including propulsion. This approach is notable for its efficiency and adaptability in managing power demands. The carriers also feature a 12° ski jump on the flight deck, specifically designed to support Short Take-Off and Vertical Landing (STOVL) operations with F-35B Lightning II jets, eliminating the need for traditional catapults and arresting gear. Despite operating a smaller air wing than U.S. supercarriers, they can generate up to 72 fast-jet sorties per day during surge operations, giving them significant combat capability.

To ensure survivability, Amick continues, the carriers rely on layered defensive systems, including Phalanx Close-In Weapon Systems (CIWS) for close-range missile defense. However, the ships are deliberately armed with a limited organic weapon load, emphasizing their role within a Carrier Strike Group (CSG). This operational framework assumes that other vessels, like destroyers and frigates, provide area defense. According to Amick, this approach underscores a core philosophy in Western naval operations: the carrier as a sensor node, command platform, and airpower generator, rather than a standalone arsenal.

The carriers also incorporate a dual island design, separating navigation and ship control (located on the forward island) from flight operations (managed from the after island). Amick points out that this design minimizes interference, boosts redundancy, and allows for enhanced visibility of both ship handling and the flight deck. Strategically placed sensor systems, such as the Artisan 3D radar, Type 1008 navigation radar, and Scanter Series 2500 electro-optical systems, further enhance the carrier's operational efficiency and situational awareness.

The ship’s innovative construction methodology is also worth noting. Amick explains that both carriers were built using a modular approach, with pre-fabricated sections assembled at Rosyth Dockyard. This method helped distribute the industrial workload across multiple UK shipyards but also introduced programmatic complexities, including cost escalation and revisions during development. Nevertheless, the resulting carriers are a testament to advanced engineering, balancing efficiency, survivability, and forward-looking design meant for a service life of several decades.

The Role and Integration of F-35B Lightning II Aircraft

The backbone of the Queen Elizabeth class’s combat capability is the inclusion of the F-35B Lightning II, a fifth-generation stealth multirole fighter optimized for STOVL (Short Take-Off and Vertical Landing) operations. As Amick details, these aircraft make the Queen Elizabeth class a potent offensive and defensive naval platform, bridging gaps in intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR), while dominating air superiority and delivering precision strikes without needing traditional catapults or arresting gear.

A single Queen Elizabeth class carrier can host up to 36 F-35Bs, though operational deployment numbers are often smaller and tailored to specific mission requirements. These aircraft, which use the ski-jump design of the flight deck, serve as the primary method for both long-range strike and air superiority, delivering unmatched capabilities across multiple mission profiles.

But the carrier's air wing goes beyond just fighter jets. As Amick notes, the Merlin HM2 helicopters, equipped with dipping sonar, sonobuoys, and torpedoes, provide anti-submarine warfare (ASW) capabilities at range. These helicopters are fundamental to securing the carrier strike group’s underwater perimeter. Alongside them, the Crowsnest airborne early warning (AEW) system, mounted on the Merlin platform, extends radar coverage and enables detection of over-the-horizon threats through an integrated network.

Besides Merlins, the carriers host Wildcat HMA2 helicopters, which are versatile platforms designed for multiple roles, including surface warfare, reconnaissance, force protection, and light strike missions. Amick stresses that this combination of aircraft and unmanned systems transforms the carriers into mobile airbases, capable of projecting air and sea power across vast distances.

Advanced Sensor Systems and Their Operational Benefits

Amick underscores the importance of the Queen Elizabeth class’s advanced sensor architecture in enhancing situational awareness and survivability. Central to this capability is the S1850M long-range radar, developed by Thales Group and BAE Systems. This radar operates in the L-band, which provides strategic advantages for long-range detection. Its ability to track up to 1,000 targets simultaneously within a 400-kilometer radius helps the carrier identify potential threats, including ballistic missiles and high-altitude aircraft, well before they reach interception range.

Augmenting the S1850M is the Artisan 3D radar, also developed by BAE Systems, which specializes in tracking fast, low-observable threats like sea-skimming missiles and drones. Its ability to operate in cluttered environments, such as areas near shorelines, and its resistance to jamming make it critical for modern high-threat environments. This medium-range radar system can track over 800 targets simultaneously and updates its radar picture at 30 revolutions per minute, ensuring near-real-time situational updates.

Completing the sensor suite, the carriers are equipped with the Series 2500 electro-optical system, which provides passive surveillance capabilities. Amick explains that these systems can track and identify targets without emitting detectable radar signals, an indispensable feature for maintaining stealth in contested environments.

Together, these complementary systems, the S1850M, Artisan, and electro-optical systems, offer a robust layered defense capability. Amick concludes that such integration creates a multi-domain situational awareness architecture, giving operators the critical data they need to ensure survival and operational readiness. The ability to detect threats early and share this information across the Carrier Strike Group facilitates rapid decision-making, a decisive factor in modern naval warfare.

The Air Wing: Multirole Helicopters and Early Warning Systems

Aaron Amick explains that the air wing aboard the Queen Elizabeth class carriers is specifically designed as a layered and adaptable force, capable of addressing threats across the air, surface, and subsurface domains. Among its critical components are the airborne early warning, anti-submarine warfare (ASW), and multirole support helicopters.

Amick highlights the Merlin HM1 and HM2 helicopters, built on the AgustaWestland AW101 platform, as the Royal Navy’s foremost ASW asset. These large, three-engine helicopters are notable for their endurance, range, and heavy lift capability, allowing them to conduct long-duration missions at sea. Equipped with a powerful dipping sonar, the Merlin can detect submarines well beyond the carrier’s onboard sensor range. Additionally, it can deploy sonar buoys to create an extended underwater detection network. Once a submarine is located, the Merlin is armed with Sting Ray torpedoes and depth charges, making it an effective combatant against subsurface threats. Amick stresses that these helicopters ensure the carrier strike group remains protected from what are often the most elusive dangers: enemy submarines.

Complementing the Merlin is the Crowsnest Airborne Early Warning (AEW) system, which is mounted on the Merlin HM2. According to Amick, this system overcomes the Earth’s curvature limitation for shipborne radars, allowing for early detection of low-flying threats like sea-skimming missiles. Employing advanced Thales Searchwater radar and the Cerberus mission system, the Crowsnest provides long-range air and surface surveillance. The dome-mounted radar extends the sensor horizon, feeding real-time data into the strike group’s Link 16 network. Amick notes that this integration offers unparalleled situational awareness, giving decision-makers additional time to respond to threats and maintain a strong tactical advantage.

Lastly, Amick discusses the AW159 Wildcat, a smaller but highly versatile helicopter designed for maritime operations. Manufactured by Leonardo S.p.A., the Wildcat serves as a lightweight multi-role platform that is smaller and more agile than the Merlin. While its endurance and range are more modest, its purpose is to serve as a rapid-response and surface warfare platform in the carrier group. Armed with a range of weapons, including Martlet and Sea Venom missiles, as well as Sting Ray torpedoes for light ASW work, the Wildcat can engage a variety of surface targets, from small boats to surface-based drones.

Taken together, Amick concludes, the Queen Elizabeth class carriers’ air wing represents a holistic and layered defense system. The Merlins handle subsurface threats, the Crowsnest extends situational awareness well beyond the ship's horizon, and the Wildcats provide flexible surface warfare and reconnaissance capabilities, ensuring no domain is left unaccounted for.

Future Trends in Naval Aviation: Integration of Unmanned Systems

Turning to future operations, Amick focuses on the carriers’ readiness to integrate uncrewed aerial systems (UAVs) into their air wings, signaling significant advancements in naval aviation. He introduces the Mojave UAV, a tactical drone developed by General Atomics, which brings cutting-edge capabilities to the table. Designed for short takeoff and landing operations, the Mojave is compatible with the Queen Elizabeth class carriers due to its lack of need for traditional catapult and arrestor gear systems.

The drone, powered by a Rolls-Royce M250 turboprop engine, has a wingspan comparable to a medium-altitude, long-endurance drone. Amick notes that the Mojave is unmatched in its range, capable of flying over 1,000 nautical miles while carrying a payload of up to 100 kilograms. It is built for missions requiring persistent intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR) coverage, as well as light strike operations that can reduce risks to human pilots. By cycling such UAVs for prolonged periods, carriers can establish constant presence and surveillance over strategic areas.

Amick underscores the broader implication of integrating UAVs like the Mojave: merging manned and uncrewed operations into a cohesive combat unit. The capacity of drones to perform ISR, relay communications, and augment strike capabilities under human oversight is a cornerstone of future carrier strategy, he explains.

Amick concludes that this fusion of human and uncrewed aviation assets solidifies the strategic importance of the Queen Elizabeth class carriers. Designed for sustainability and adaptability, these platforms remain at the forefront of transitioning modern naval aviation, ensuring that the United Kingdom stays prepared for evolving operational challenges in a more complex global security environment.

What was said, and when

The points this article makes, and the moment in the recording where each was said. Every time below opens the recording at that moment.

• The Queen Elizabeth class consists of two ships: HMS Queen Elizabeth and HMS Prince of Wales. 00:10.
• Each ship measures 284 meters in length. 12:01.
• Each ship weighs approximately 65,000 tons. 00:10.
• The Queen Elizabeth class carriers feature an integrated electric propulsion system using both gas turbines and diesel generators. 00:33.
• The carriers have a 12° ski jump on the flight deck designed to support Short Take-Off and Vertical Landing (STOVL) operations with F-35B Lightning II jets. 00:48.
• The carriers do not use traditional catapults and arresting gear. 00:48.
• The carriers can generate up to 72 fast-jet sorties per day during surge operations. 01:18.
• The carriers rely on layered defensive systems, including Phalanx Close-In Weapon Systems (CIWS) for close-range missile defense. 01:34.
• The carriers are armed with a limited organic weapon load. 01:34.
• The carriers incorporate a dual island design separating navigation and ship control from flight operations. 05:56.
• The carriers are equipped with Artisan 3D radar, Type 1008 navigation radar, and Scanter Series 2500 electro-optical systems. 04:26.
• The carriers were built using a modular construction methodology at Rosyth Dockyard. 10:24.
• The construction methodology distributed the industrial workload across multiple UK shipyards. 10:24.
• The F-35B Lightning II jets operate in STOVL mode and are central to the carriers' offensive and defensive naval capabilities. 07:00.
• A single Queen Elizabeth class carrier can host up to 36 F-35Bs. 07:24.
• Merlin HM2 helicopters with dipping sonar, sonobuoys, and torpedoes provide anti-submarine warfare (ASW) capabilities for the carriers. 07:36.
• The Royal Navy uses Crowsnest airborne early warning (AEW) systems mounted on Merlin helicopters for extended radar coverage and detection of over-the-horizon threats. 35:07.
• Wildcat HMA2 helicopters serve multiple roles, including surface warfare, reconnaissance, force protection, and light strike missions. 40:13.
• The ships utilize the S1850M long-range radar capable of tracking up to 1,000 targets within a 400-kilometer radius. 20:10.
• The Artisan 3D radar can track over 800 targets and updates at 30 revolutions per minute. 24:03.
• The carriers are equipped with Series 2500 electro-optical systems for passive surveillance capabilities. 03:16.
• Merlin HM1 and HM2 helicopters are capable of deploying sonar buoys and are armed with Sting Ray torpedoes and depth charges. 38:22.
• The Crowsnest AEW system employs advanced Thales Searchwater radar and Cerberus mission system for air and surface surveillance. 35:41.
• The AW159 Wildcat helicopter operates as a rapid-response platform armed with Martlet and Sea Venom missiles and Sting Ray torpedoes. 40:48.
• The Mojave UAV, compatible with these carriers, can fly over 1,000 nautical miles with a payload of up to 100 kilograms. 42:36.
• The Mojave UAV is powered by a Rolls-Royce M250 turboprop engine. 41:53.
• The integration of the Mojave UAV into carriers supports persistent intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR) and light strike operations. 43:25.