When was hms illustrious built

It has also been deployed to conflict zones in Bosnia, Iraq, Sierra Leone and helped aid efforts after Typhoon Haiyan struck the Philippines in December. This picture shows boxes of aid waiting to be loaded on to the ship. The Ministry of Defence has invited tenders from private companies and trusts to secure Illustrious's future. Royal Navy carrier returns home. Royal Navy carrier to be retired.

It was broken up at Faslane in Buy a print License an image. For further information, please contact Archive staff: Email: library rmg. Visit Us. Search Want to search our collection? Search here. We use cookies to ensure you have the best browsing experience and to help us improve our website. So rapidly was Illustrious deployed that she was commissioned while at sea.

Rear Admiral Derek Reffell commanded the relief task group from Illustrious during this period. After the RAF airfield was repaired, Illustrious returned to the UK for a full shakedown cruise and workup period, and was formally commissioned on 20 March Operational history: The ship saw no further action during the remainder of the s, but continued to be a valuable asset for the Royal Navy in showing the flag and participating in exercises all around the world.

During those years, the ship received several enhancements during refits, including a steeper ski-jump to enable the Harriers in the air wing to take-off with a larger payload. During an 'Extended Defect and Maintenance Period', numerous modifications were made to the ship including the removal of her Sea Dart missile defences at a cost of twelve million pounds.

This allowed for extra deck space that enables her to carry up to 22 aircraft, including the Harrier GR7. On 3 April she suffered a catastrophic gearbox failure which almost saw the end of the vessel's naval career. Just starting out on her "fly the flag" around the globe trip, at about whilst reaching full engine revs, the oil vapour surrounding the gearbox exploded causing a fire lasting well over four hours.

At one point the captain made preparations to abandon ship, but was then overruled by the fleet admiral who believed the ship could be saved. There was no loss of life or serious injury, but the trip was put off for several months whilst the ship was taken out of service for extensive repairs.

All three of the navy's carriers rotated through the area. In she led Task Group A combat deployment for the ship took place in During the exercise, the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center took place. Illustrious remained in theatre while other elements of the task force returned to the United Kingdom. Illustrious had elements of the Royal Marines on board, ready for possible combat operations in Afghanistan.

In , on full power trials, she made List of aircraft carriers of the Royal Navy. Military Wiki Explore. Popular pages. Project maintenance. Register Don't have an account? HMS Illustrious Edit source History Talk 0.

For other ships of the same name, see HMS Illustrious. Seafire crash on HMS Illustrious , Visit from King George VI , Retrieved 23 November Retrieved Illustrious -class aircraft carrier. Formidable Illustrious Indomitable Victorious.