Author(s): Chris Terrill

Military History

65,000 tons. 280 metres long. A flight deck the size of sixty tennis courts. A giant piece of Sovereign British territory that's home to up to 50 Aircraft. HMS Queen Elizabeth in the biggest ship in the Royal Navy's history and one of the most ambitious and exacting engineering projects ever undertaken in the UK.

But it's her ship's company of 700, alongside an air group of 900 air and ground crew that are Big Lizzie's beating heart. And How to Build an Aircraft Carrier tells their story.

From before the first steel of her hull was cut, Chris Terrill has enjoyed unprecedented access to Queen Elizabeth and the men and women who have brought her to life. From Jerry Kyd, the ship's inspirational Captain to Lt Cdr Nathan Grey, the first pilot to land Britain's new stealth jet fighter on her deck, Terrill has won the trust and confidence of the ship's people.

How to Build an Aircraft Carrier tells the story of Britain at her best- innovative, confident, outward-looking and world beating.