HMS Queen Elizabeth aircraft carrier prepares to leave home port

The 280-metre, 65,000-tonne aircraft carrier is due to set out from Rosyth on the Firth of Forth.

Queen Elizabeth is the largest ship of the Navy of great Britain, it leaves its dock for the first time.

But the HMS Queen Elizabeth has faced significant setbacks during its construction.

The carrier has a crew of about 700 which could theoretically double depending on the number of planes aboard.

Once free, she will wait for low tide and have her tallest masts and antennae stripped down to pass under the Forth bridges, before making her way to the open sea under her own power.

After leaving Rosyth, she will embark on around six weeks of sea trials before returning to Fife for further fitting out.

"At the end of that period we know that all the basics work".

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A crew of 1,000 will operate HMS Queen Elizabeth, which can house up to 40 aircraft.

"The reason being is that (aircraft carriers) provide the government, very simply, with an incredibly flexible tool - it's not just about war fighting but deterrence, coercion, political signalling, providing a huge sea base for disaster relief and humanitarian assistance".

It is one of two Queen Elizabeth class carriers being constructed, at a cost of more than £6 billion.

We will go where it's best to go and not where it's best for a Soviet nuclear to go, so the reality is we can probably look after ourselves as long as our escort is in the right place at the right time.

"Submarines you can't see, but these are very visible symbols of power and power projection".

Aboard the aircraft carrier 700 sailors.

The carrier is expected to be operational in 2020, when it will be bound for destinations ranging from the Persian Gulf to the South China Sea, adds the Guardian.