Stealth jet pilots ramp up training ahead of HMS Queen Elizabeth debut
The team due to land on HMS Queen Elizabeth's flight deck have been getting ready for take-off from the carrier '“ by practising using a replica ski jump similar to the one on the 65,000-tonne warship.
Ski ramps were introduced on the previous generation of carriers to give Harriers extra lift, allowing them to take off at a slower speed or with a heavier payload '“ and have been retained on the new flagships for the same reason.
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Hide AdTwo specially-modified F-35Bs and four pilots '“ ex-Fleet Air Arm pilot Peter '˜Wizzer' Wilson, the Royal Navy's Commander Nathan Gray, Squadron Leader Andy Edgell and a US Marine Corps aviator '“ will conduct the tests on the Portsmouth-based warship.
Earmarked to take place off the east coast of the US in the autumn, it will be the first time in eight years a fast jet has landed on a British warship.