Britain gives go-ahead for new aircraft carriers

By Dan Lalor

LONDON (Reuters) - Britain is set to sign a long-awaited 4 billion pound deal to build two aircraft carriers, which will be the Royal Navy's largest ever ships and which are set for 50 years of service.

"Today's confirmation that we are proceeding with the two aircraft carriers underlines our commitment to both the Royal Navy and the UK shipbuilding industry," Minister for Defence Equipment and Support Ann Taylor said on Tuesday.

The 65,000-tonne carriers, due to be called Queen Elizabeth and Prince of Wales and to enter service in 2014 and 2016, are expected to each carry 36 F-35 Joint Strike Fighter combat jets as well as four early-warning aircraft.

The manufacturing contract is going to a consortium that includes a shipbuilding joint venture being set up between BAE Systems and VT Group. Other members include Babcock International Group and France's Thales, which designed the ships.

Thales said the contract would be worth more than 500 million euros (398 million pounds) to the French electronics group.

Thales is also involved in a French project to build one new aircraft carrier, which is awaiting final approval from President Nicolas Sarkozy.

Britain and France agreed to co-operate on the layout of the combined three ships but the Ministry of Defence struggled to align its spending plans with its budget.

Signs the logjam had been broken came with the ministry's May 8 announcement that U.S. defence contractor General Dynamics Corp's Piranha 5 was the preferred design for the army's next generation of medium-weight armoured utility vehicles.