HMS Prince of Wales: What is the Royal Navy ship set to visit Liverpool?

HMS Prince of Wales arrives in Liverpool next Monday, December 2 and hundreds of thousands of visitors are expected to flock to Pier Head to see the 65,000 tonne warship during its visit to Liverpool Cruise Terminal. She last sailed down the River Mersey in March 2020, when huge crowds gathered on Liverpool's waterfront to catch a glimpse of the massive aircraft carrier.

The Royal Navy's largest ship has a top speed in excess of 25 knots and was built in sections around the UK, including Cammell Laird in Liverpool, Govan and Scotstoun in Glasgow, Appledore in Devon, A&P on the Tyne in Newcastle and Portsmouth. She was assembled in Rosyth in Fife, Scotland and a total of 10,000 people worked on construction of the ship.

There are 364 kilometres of pipes inside the ship – enough to stretch from Liverpool to Canterbury in Kent – and from keel to masthead she measures 56 metres, four metres more than Niagara Falls. Facilities onboard include a chapel, a medical centre and 12-bed ward, staffed with GPs, a nurse and medical assistants, as well as a dentist and dental nurse. The on-board medical centre also has a pharmacy, with no prescription charges.

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When deployed, the medical team on board the ship is bolstered by an extra 20 personnel including surgeons, anaesthetists, consultant nurses, a radiologist and bio-medical scientist. They can perform emergency, life-saving surgery and resuscitation on any casualty – the ship is equipped with an operating theatre, recovery/resuscitation room and X-Ray facilities. Once stabilised in the two-bed intensive care facility, serious casualties can be flown ashore for long-term treatment in hospital.

There are five gyms on the warship which include a cardiovascular suite, two free weight rooms and a boxing gym. There are five galleys, including two main galleys, plus three smaller ones. The 32 chefs and caterers are expected to provide up to four meals a day – 6,000 servings in all: breakfast, lunch, dinner and a ‘midnight meal’ for those working late shifts.

The galleys are in operation 24 hours a day, with five options at lunch, three for the main evening meal to cater for all tastes/medical/religious/lifestyle options. The flight deck is 280 metres long and 70 metres wide, enough space for three football pitches.

Each of the two aircraft lifts can move two F-35B stealth fighters from the hangar to the flight deck in 60 seconds. The warship has a range of 8,000 to 10,000 nautical miles, and has two propellers - each weighing 33 tonnes and with a combined 80MW output of power - enough to run 1,000 family cars or 50 high speed trains.

Six engines – two gas turbines, four diesel generators – produce the power to support all life and activity aboard. With all running at full capacity, they could meet the electricity needs of everyone in the ship’s home city of Portsmouth – around 200,000 inhabitants. The two main engines – Rolls-Royce MT30s – are the most powerful gas turbines ever installed on a ship. Based on the jet engine which carries Boeing 777 airliners, each MT30 produces around 30 per cent of the carrier’s power requirements – enough power to supply 36,000 homes, or a town the size of Burnley.

The distribution network on board manages enough energy to power 30,000 kettles or 5,500 family homes. The ship’s plants will produce 319,000 litres of fresh water daily – that’s enough to fill an Olympic-sized swimming pool.

An exciting programme of activities is planned for the duration of her visit, including opportunities for the public to get on board and meet the crew. Tickets for a grand tour of the Royal Navy’s biggest ship sold out in November, just two days after sales began. A staggering 20,000 people will be permitted to explore the ship this weekend, and after the sell-out ticket release last month "there will be no further releases."

It won't be that hard to spot the ship once she is docked at Liverpool Cruise Terminal, but if you are looking to get a closer view then viewing is available the length of Princes Parade.

If you're over the water, you'll also be able to see the vessel from the Wirral waterfront with the promenade from New Brighton's Fort Perch Rock along to Woodside Ferry Terminal being the prime spot for viewing.