There are three aircraft carriers in the fleet:
However only two ships are considered operational at any one time. At present HMS ARK ROYAL is at Rosyth undergoing a major refit. She is due to re-enter service at the beginning of 2001 and become operational by the summer. At that time another ship (probably HMS ILLUSTRIOUS as HMS INVINCIBLE is currently undergoing a minor refit) will go into the reserve and eventually be subject to a major refit.
| Displacement | 20,000 tonnes |
| Length | 210m |
| Beam | 36m |
| Crew | 682 + 366 in an FAA squadron |
| Armament | Phalanx or goal keeper CIWS |
| Aircraft | 12 Sea Harriers or RAF Harriers or a mixture of both. 4 AEW Sea King helicopters, 6 ASW Sea King helicopters. |
Although now referred to as aircraft carriers, the Illustrious Class was designed to be what was known as a Through-Deck Cruiser. This perhaps reflected the conventional opinion that an aircraft carrier should be capable of launching aircraft other than STOVL aircraft, and be significantly larger than this class.
HMS ILLUSTRIOUS was commissioned on 11 July 1980 and was one of the two aircraft carriers that served in the Falkland's War. During the 1960's and 1970's the unfortunate decision was made by successive governments to abolish Royal Naval carriers. HMS ARK ROYAL IV was the last true Aircraft carrier that the Royal Navy possessed (but see the proposed CVF) and she was decommissioned in 1978. However, through clever-planning and lobbying, the Royal Navy secured the through-deck cruisers.
The main purpose of the Invincible class was anti-submarine warfare. At the time this class was designed and commissioned the cold war was still very much alive. The threat was from the old Soviet Union and it was expected that this class would work alongside the large-American aircraft carriers. The Royal Navy carriers would concentrate on the submarine threat, leaving the American carriers to deal with CAP and strike-force missions. Although this is now only one of the many roles this class can play, the USN and RN carriers do occasionally operate together, usually for training purposes.
The last refit that HMS INVINCIBLE and HMS ILLUSTRIOUS underwent was to remove the SEA DART air-to-air missile system. The reason for this was to increase the deck space and provide extra magazine space. The justification for this was the setting up the Joint Force 2000 initiative, ordered under the Strategic Defence Review. Under this new initiative RAF Harriers and RN Harriers will serve together more frequently at sea. Although this is the first time that the arrangement has been formalised and placed under a designated commander (currently FONA) RAF Harriers have served on the Invincible class aircraft carriers on an ad hoc basis several times before, notably in the Falkland's War, the Gulf War and the actions over the former Yugoslavia. The removal of the Sea Dart system ensures that the Invincible class will always need to be accompanied by a TYPE 42 destroyer for air-defence protection. However whenever an aircraft carrier went to a potentially hostile area of operations previously, she would be under escort.
It has now been accepted that the Invincible class is a useful part of the fleet. Indeed, they have arguably regained their place as the capital ships of the fleet. The aircraft carrier will normally be the flagship for the fleet, and as was shown in the Falklands War, the Gulf War and operations in former Yugoslavia, the role of these ships are essential. This has been one of the reasons why the government has decided to replace this class of ships with a true aircraft carrier. This is currently known by the designation CVF but it is known that there will be two vessels, each of approximately 40,000 tonnes. That these vessels are considered is a testament to the Invincible class which has shown there remains a need in the Royal Navy for aircraft carriers.
