The Improved Implacable-class supercarriers are a class of aircraft carriers built for the Royal Navy and other Commonwealth and Allied navies. The name of the class indicates the roots of the class' design in the Implacable-class carriers of World War II. Currently, no Improved Implacable-class ships remain in service with the Royal Navy, but some remain in service with other navies. Improved Implacable-class ships are conventionally powered, have an overall length of 326.14 meters (1070 ft) and a displacement of 82,000 tons, and can carry up to 90 aircraft.
The Improved Implacable-class ships use angled flight decks in a CATOBAR arrangement.
Specifications
- Type: Supercarrier
- Service Period: late 1960s-Present
- Characteristics
- Length: 1070 feet (326.14 meters)
- Beam: 272 feet 82.91 meters)
- Draft: 33.5 feet (10.21 meters)
- Displacement: 82,000 tons
- Crew: 4,460
- Power: 307,500 shp
- Propulsion: 6 x Y300 steam boilers, 4 x steam turbines, 4 x shafts
- Range: 16,500 nautical miles (30,560 kilometers) at 15 knots (27.78 km/h)
- Speed: 36.5 knots (67.6 km/hr)
- Sensor Suite:
- Type 909 Sea Dart Fire Control RDF x 2
- Type 974 Navigation RDF
- Type 982 Fighter Control RDF
- Type 983 3D Air Search RDF
- Type 988 3D Air Search RDF with CDS
- Type 992 2D Surface Search RDF
- Armament
- 4 x Sea Dart GWS.30 Mod 1 AAM launchers
- 3 x CIWS
- Airwing: 90 fixed wing aircraft and helicopters
- Aviation Facilities: 4 x BS Mk.VI steam catapults, 3 x deck edge elevators, 4 x wires and Mk.14 arrestor engines
Ships in class
- HMS Implacable (R23)
- HMS Formidable (R24)
- HMS Theseus (R25)
- HMS Venerable (R26)
- HMS Pioneer (R27)
- HMS Majestic (R28)
- HMS Audacity (R29)
- HMS Pathfinder (R30)
- HMIS Viraat
- HMIS Vishal
- HMAS Brisbane
- HMAS Commonwealth