Fifth UK shipyard to be involved in the construction of Navy’s biggest ships ever starts work.

Work began this week on the first of three blocks that BAE Systems Surface Ships will build for the carriers in Portsmouth. At 70m long and 40m wide, it will use 6,000 tonnes of steel. It will house space for machinery and supplies as well as switchboards and some accommodation.

BAE Systems’ role in the Carrier build programme at Portsmouth is in the order of £800M, forming a substantial element of the workload at the Naval Base, where the company employs over 3,000 people, including around 200 apprentices.

In all, six shipyards across the UK will be involved in the manufacture of the ships’ hulls, supporting up to 8,000 jobs in the construction and up to another 3,000 throughout the supply chain.

Construction of the ships is progressing, and a national project that draws on the skills of shipyards throughout the UK is underway. This includes the shipyards at Glasgow, Rosyth, Newcastle, Devon and Birkenhead, as well as around a further 100 contracts throughout the supply chain. Some of the sections of the first ship’s flight deck, called sponsons, have already been delivered to Rosyth, where the ships will be assembled. In Spring, the first of the blocks of hull are also due to leave for the Scottish shipyard from Appledore in Devon. Many of the key components for the ships such as the diesel generators and the turbines have also already been manufactured.

The carriers, to be named HMS Queen Elizabeth II and HMS Prince Charles are due to be completed between 2014 and 2017.

Across the UK the defence industry supports 300,000 jobs and proudly works hard with the Armed Forces both at home and overseas on operations.