A royal goodbye for Ark Royal
occasion. For the final time Her Majesty the Queen inspects a Guard of Honour comprising men and women of Britain’s most famous warship, HMS Ark Royal, on a gloomy but mild November Friday.
THE sombre faces match the suitably solemn
The Queen was the guest of honour as 25 years of loyal and proud service by the fabled aircraft carrier were celebrated in the ship’s home of Portsmouth. But there was, said Ark’s Commanding Officer Capt Jerry Kyd, “added poignancy” to those long-planned birthday celebrations: little more than three weeks before the Queen visited, Prime Minister David Cameron announced the nation’s flagship would pay off “with immediate effect”. The 1,000 guests – friends and family of the 650-strong ship’s
company – could have being paying tribute to HMS Indomitable this day.
But thanks to the forthright views of the Queen Mother, who insisted that the third of Britain’s Harrier carriers should bear the name Ark Royal, the powers that be bowed to royal will. She was right, of course. And for 21 years, from Ark’s launch on
the Tyne in 1981, through to her final visit for a recommissioning ceremony in 2001 – just six months before her death – the Queen Mother was the ship’s avid sponsor and supporter. Nine years later there could be only one guest of honour at
this service of commemoration and celebration of Ark Royal’s life. And so it was that the Queen inspected a Guard of Honour comprising members of the ship’s company before climbing the gangway to chat with sailors and aircrew, including Army Air Corps personnel who brought an Apache gunship on board, about recent activities. Following an all-ranks lunch Her Majesty returned to dry (well,
pride,” said Capt Kyd. “As we embark on the last chapter in the life of this Ark Royal, her signifi cant achievements of the last quarter of a century, including her battle honours in Bosnia and Iraq, will not be forgotten.
damp given the weather) land to meet many of the organisations who’ve been affi liated with the RN’s most famous current ship. Before leaving, the Queen cut a silver jubilee cake – adorned with sailors of the various branches aboard – signed the ship’s visitors’ book and received a posy from ten-year-old Imogen Bellfi eld, daughter of Cdr Rob Bellfi eld, the ship’s commander. “To be the captain of this ship on this day fi lls me with immense
“The iconic name, Ark Royal, is synonymous with military excellence, and the fi ve ships that have carried this most famous name for nearly 500 years of British naval history have faithfully served our country with distinction.” After the Queen’s visit, Ark sailed for Glen Mallan in Scotland to offload ammunition before paying farewell visits to Newcastle (allowing Ark to say her goodbyes to Leeds, her affiliated city) and a well-deserved ‘cultural visit’ (aka run ashore) to Hamburg. Weather permitting, the carrier will make her final entry to
Portsmouth, flying her decommissioning pennant, on December 3, passing Round Tower at 9.30am. Picture: LA(Phot) Abbie Gadd, HMS Ark Royal
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