Queen Elizabeth II visits 'HMS Queen Elizabeth'

Monarch given tour of flagship naval vessel before it sets sail for Asia

BESTPIX PORTSMOUTH, ENGLAND - MAY 22: Queen Elizabeth II during a visit to HMS Queen Elizabeth at HM Naval Base ahead of the ship's maiden deployment on May 22, 2021 in Portsmouth, England. The visit comes as HMS Queen Elizabeth prepares to lead the UK Carrier Strike Group on a 28-week operational deployment travelling over 26,000 nautical miles from the Mediterranean to the Philippine Sea. (Photo by Steve Parsons - WPA Pool / Getty Images) — Britain's Queen Elizabeth visited the country's new aircraft carrier on Saturday. Getty

May 23, 2021

Queen Elizabeth II visited the the Royal Navy’s flagship aircraft carrier, ahead of its maiden operational deployment.

Prince William arrives to attend the opening ceremony of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland in Edinburgh on May 22, 2021, during his week-long visit to Scotland. AFP

The HMS Queen Elizabeth is the latest Royal Navy ship to honour the queen's Tudor forebear Queen Elizabeth I.

It is set to embark on a 28-week deployment to Asia that UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson has insisted is not intended to provoke China.

The £3 billion ($4.24 billion) vessel boasts eight RAF F35B stealth fighter jets on board and is scheduled to depart from Portsmouth Naval Base in southern England, accompanied by six Royal Navy ships, a submarine, 14 naval helicopters and a company of Royal Marines.

The 95-year-old queen arrived by helicopter on Saturday and was greeted by the ship’s commanding officer, Capt Angus Essenhigh, and Commodore Stephen Moorhouse, commander of the UK Carrier Strike Group.