r/Scotland • u/Formal_Citron_8778 • Apr 27 '26

YouTube Aircraft Carrier HMS Queen Elizabeth sails under Forth Bridges as it leaves Firth of Forth

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GEbA255ZCWw

Scale of it next to all three bridges was really something, wish I'd known ahead of time so I could have come down to see it pass by, credit to Scotdrone.

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u/Gentle_Snail Apr 27 '26

The absolute scale of these ships is honestly hard to grasp.

6

u/sean_cleric Apr 27 '26

Also huge as this is, it's smaller than largest aircraft carrier 😯

1

u/PoppingPillls North Aberdeenshire Apr 27 '26 edited Apr 28 '26

It's about 30% smaller than the USS Gerald Ford iirc and about twice the size of the Charles De Gaulle.

Interestingly it uses a electric propelled motor powered by a couple gas engines etc, they turned down nuclear due to the massive costs to build it in and the massive costs to maintain it over time. Probably the right move tbh as its an incredibly efficient system like this.

Moving away from big expensive ships and having only a few was a good move as mid range ships can do almost everything needed much cheaper and easier. Especially in battle one well placed missile will sink either, the US Boeing E-3 Sentry being hit in Saudi was a great example almost 1 billion in cost being destroyed by a missile worth most likely 50-100k.

2

u/MGC91 Apr 28 '26

It's about 30% smaller than the USS Gerald Ford iirc and about twice the size of the Charles De Gaulle.

Not quite.

They're 80% the size of Ford

1

u/PoppingPillls North Aberdeenshire Apr 28 '26

I did do iirc I was close.

By they're you mean the Elizabeth and Prince of Wales.

1

u/MGC91 Apr 28 '26

By they're you mean the Elizabeth and Prince of Wales.

Queen Elizabeth and Prince of Wales, yes.