Shipyard wins £55m navy contract

The carriers will be the Royal Navy's largest vessels

A Tyneside shipyard has secured a £55m deal to build sections of two new Royal Navy aircraft carriers.

A&P Tyne, at Hebburn, will construct the mid sections of the carrier, HMS Queen Elizabeth and HMS Prince of Wales.

The contract will secure work for many of the firm's 210 staff for the next five years, a spokesman said.

The 280m-long ships will be the Royal Navy's largest vessels, each capable of carrying up to 40 aircraft.

The sections built on Tyneside will make up approximately 4,000 tonnes of each ship, the equivalent of more than 420 double decker buses.

A&P group managing director David Skentelbery said it was a "hugely prestigious project".

"We are set to deliver a substantial part of these ships and I am delighted that we can represent the North East on the project."

The contract was awarded by the Aircraft Carrier Alliance (ACA) - the consortium building the ships.