A taste of life on board Lusty

By Rajini Vaidyanathan
BBC News, on board HMS Illustrious

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A look at life on board HMS Illustrious

As the noise and the wind get closer, so too does the sight of a Harrier jet.

Witnessing it land is an impressive sight, but even more so when it is negotiating its way onto a short and narrow runway, which happens to be on a ship.

This is all part of the daily routine on HMS Illustrious, the UK's strike aircraft carrier.

Lusty, as she is affectionately known, is a warship ready to serve at a moment's notice.

Aircraft ranging from helicopters to Harrier jets land and take off from the deck on a regular basis.

In effect, it is a mobile runway allowing the military to base themselves anywhere in the world, and much of the daily routine on board is about training and preparing for that eventuality.

A WEEK'S RATIONS 5,500 eggs 6,300 sausages 11,000 rashers of bacon 820 litres of milk 23,000 teabags

'No permission'

Capt Ben Key is commanding officer of Illustrious. He says: "Our mission is quite simple. It is to deliver safe and effective airpower whenever, as well as wherever, it may be required from the sea.

"An inherent feature of naval life is that because the Earth's surface is 70% water we can travel freely around the world - we don't need to ask people's permission.

"We can move up to 500 miles a day to put ourselves in the best position. We can operate without support from land bases for long periods of time."

As many as 21 aircraft are able to fit onto the flight deck at one time and in busy periods aircraft can be seen taking off and landing simultaneously.

The runway is about 200m long and when planes are stacked up, some jets only have a 100m run up to take off.

Lt Cdr Mike Pamphilon, who has been a Royal Navy pilot for 30 years, says landings can be tough in choppy weather.

"When it's flat we move on the deck and land on it, a bit similar to a floating car park.

The runway is just 200m long and can hold up to 21 aircraft at one time

"But when the deck is actually moving around then, of course, you're coming down to the deck and the deck is moving towards you."

Up in Flight Command, known as FlyCo, commanders guide the aircraft onto the runway safely.

Several decks down is the operations room - the nerve centre on board - where movements around the ship are tracked via a bank of computers and sophisticated radar technology.

Below the flight deck is a maze of passageways and stairwells. Getting around can be tiring, climbing several levels to get from A to B.

Bank and laundry

An entire community is living and working on the many lower levels of HMS Illustrious.

At its peak there can be as many as 700 staff on board. Many will be stationed on the ship, away from home for up to nine months at a time.

There is everything from a bank and a laundry, to a dentist, fire station, bakery and a medical centre complete with operating table.

VITAL STATISTICS 209m long 22 500 tonnes 18 individual decks 17 different nationalities

Also there is a DVD rental service and a shop which sells the ship's own label beer, which bears Illustrious' motto: Vox Non Incerta - "no uncertain voice".

Chocolate is one of the most popular items sold on board.

When it comes to food, or "scran" as it is known in the navy, three meals are served daily.

Despite a budget of only £2.34 a head per day - and regardless of rank - the meals are generous and tasty.

All dietary requirements have to be catered for, so there is always a vegetarian and vegan option.

In the last week alone, HMS Illustrious ate its way through 5,500 eggs, 6,300 sausages and 11,000 rashers of bacon, and drank its way through 820 litres of milk and 23,000 teabags.

Commander Alex Parry is in charge of logistics.

Capt Ben Key oversees the work of as many as 700 staff

"Everyone's a food critic," he jokes, "but we don't get any complaints.

"Food can become a morale thing - the only thing to look forward to when you've been away for a long time and days blend into one another."

As the navy's largest warship, the daily running of things is a massive operation - and is set to get even bigger.

Starting in 2014, two new strike aircraft carriers will be added to the fleet to replace HMS Illustrious which will be decommissioned: HMS Queen Elizabeth and HMS Prince of Wales, at a cost of almost £4bn.