WATCH: Residents gather to see HMS Queen Elizabeth return to Portsmouth
Residents lined the seafront as HMS Queen Elizabeth arrived at Portsmouth Naval Base fresh from an exercise in America.
The Queen Elizabeth, one of the largest Royal Navy ships ever built, is an aircraft carrier that can carry up to 60 aircraft, as well as 1,600 crew.
In August it was sent to America for a training exercise, testing its ability to launch aircraft off the coast of Norfolk, Virginia.
Today it returned home, greeted by hundreds of onlookers.
“It’s so precious to Portsmouth,” said Michael Hodge, from Emsworth. “It’s part of our heritage.
“Portsmouth has had a great naval history for hundreds of years. This is the next generation.”
“I’ve seen a lot of warships but this is the big one,” said Peter Griffiths, from Stafford.
“It’ll bring plenty of jobs. It’s just what Britain needs, especially at this time with all the unrest in the world.”
Further aircraft tests are being planned for the Queen Elizabeth next year before it goes into service in 2020.
For now, though, it will reside in the Portsmouth docks, like the many hundreds of ships before it.
