Aircraft lifts ordered for new Navy carriers

[SO19]

Aircraft lifts ordered for new Navy carriers
An Equipment and Logistics news article

4 Apr 08

A contract for the manufacture of aircraft lifts for the Royal Navy's two new 65,000 tonne carriers was announced yesterday, 3 April 2008, by Defence Minister Baroness Ann Taylor.

The £13M contract, awarded to MacTaggart Scott of Loanhead, Scotland, means MOD orders for equipment, materials and infrastructure for the two ships, HMS Queen Elizabeth and HMS Prince of Wales, now total more than £160M.

Baroness Taylor, Minister for Defence Equipment and Support, said:

"The aircraft lifts order announced today and the other equipment and steel already contracted are a clear demonstration of the steady progress towards commencing building work at the shipyards. Construction of the carriers will provide jobs for thousands of people across the UK, which is only fitting given that these ships will be a key element of our nation's defences."

MOD Defence Equipment and Support carrier project team leader Rear Admiral Bob Love said:

"Each of the carriers will have two huge lifts, which can lift 70 tonnes each - or two Joint Strike Fighters - from hangar to flight deck in 60 seconds. They are so powerful that together they could lift the weight of the entire ship's crew (1,450 people). We are working closely with industry participants as we move towards building these ships."

The lifts and their associated motors and hydraulic machinery have been designed using established technologies to provide excellent reliability throughout the expected operating life of the carriers, up to 50 years.

The two carriers will provide our front-line forces with the modern, world-class capabilities they will need over the coming decades. They will be the biggest warships ever constructed in the UK.

Installed weight of the two lifts on each ship is around 500 tonnes and each lift platform covers 400 square metres - nearly the size of a tennis court.

Contracts announced to date include those for Identification Friend or Foe electronics, diesel generators, steel, flying control rooms, landing aids, navigation and bridge systems, infrastructure works at Rosyth dockyard to allow for the assembly of the ships, a fibre optic cable plant, a reverse osmosis plant and the aviation fuel system.

This aircraft lifts contract has been placed by Thales UK, on behalf of the Aircraft Carrier Alliance, with MacTaggart Scott. MacTaggart Scott has been heavily involved in the development of the aircraft carrier. The company employs 245 workers at its Loanhead site in Midlothian.

http://www.mod.uk/DefenceInternet/Defen ... rriers.htm

[Tab]

No aircraft carriers but they have ordered the lifts

[harry hackedoff]

Do the french know about this
They`ll get very angry you know