Working only weekends has finally paid off. Sitting at home one midweek day, sending out CVs to all and sundry in the aviation industry, I received an email from the Guild. It offered the first to reply a trip on HMS Illustrious and I jumped at the chance. Amazingly, within 40 minutes the trip was fully booked (complete with 10 reserves!) so I’m glad I didn’t dither.

Myself and two other lucky applicants flew from Biggin Hill to Newcastle in a Piper Commanche. From here we headed to the docks where we were greeted by Lieutenant Si Mittens who was to be our liaison officer during the trip. The first evening was spent settling in (mainly in the Wardroom) and it was immediately apparent how friendly the whole crew were... all 685 of them!


HMS Illustrious (‘Lusty’ to her crew) is an amazing sight. She displaces 22,000tonnes of water when afloat and measures nearly 700ft end to end. Capable of 30kts ‘flat out’ she has an unrefueled range of 5,000nm. She was commissioned in 1982, just too late to serve in the Falklands Campaign, but she has helped enforce no-fly-zones in Bosnia and the Persian Gulf. She remains a vital part of this nation’s defences today.

The following morning we awoke to strong winds although this was not apparent from our windowless cabins. A tour of the ship and its various departments showed that it was more akin to a small city, complete with a highly equipped medical centre, a series of eateries (aka messes), bars and even a well stocked shop. Our planned departure that afternoon had to be postponed due to the strong winds; three tugs were unable to release the strain enough to slip the dock. A further attempt just after dusk finally allowed us to slip out into the North Sea to meet the gales that were waiting for us.

It had been planned for the Harrier group who were renewing their carrier ratings to arrive on Saturday but the gales had grown and it was well out of limits for the aircraft. Further tours of the ship followed, plus a chance encounter to meet the other guest on board, none other than BBC Top Gear’s Richard Hammond. Richard (a.k.a The Hamster) was onboard filming for one of his engineering programmes. The tour of the engine room was an impressive sight to say the least, the four Rolls-Royce Olympus gas turbines (producing 97,000hp) and eight diesel generators providing the ship with an abundance of power.

Dinner that night was held in the officer’s mess and it also happened to be the Commodore’s dining out dinner. For those of us who have never been to a proper dining out event the proceedings were extraordinary and food was of impeccable standard (as it had been throughout). Fortunately I was seated next to the Wing Commander to guide me through the event.


Come Sunday morning we were greeted with the deafening sound Rolls-Royce Pegasus engines. This could only mean one thing... the Harrier boys had arrived! We all reported to the observation deck between the flight deck and the control tower to witness pairs of Harriers making ‘attack runs’ on the ship at low level. All too soon it was time for them to land though and I shall never forget the sight of Harriers landing vertically right next to us, so close that you can almost look into the whites of the pilot’s eyes. It was an indescribable experience. By now we had passed through the rough weather and the conditions were perfect for the carrier operations with clear blue skies and a gentle wind down the deck. We spent the afternoon with the FLYCO (in the tower) watching the new carrier pilots practising their approaches.


We had been invited to dine with the Captain that evening and were joined by the Commander from the Naval Strike Wing and his senior pilot. After one final evening in the Wardroom to reflect on our trip it was to our cabins for the final night of being gently rocked to sleep by the motion of the ocean.
The final morning allowed us to brief for the departure which was to be by the Helicopter Delivery Service once the jets had departed. The need to wear environmental protection suits did cause some raised eyebrows amongst our group however the walk across the flight deck to the waiting chopper reinstated the giddy school boy instincts within us. The feeling of departing from a carrier deck was just like your first solo.... it’s all very exciting, you don’t really know what you’re doing and its over far too quickly!

Overall the trip was a phenomenal experience for the five of us who went on it and I hope that those of you reading this article who have never been on a Guild trip will consider one in the future. They offer an insight into parts of aviation that many of us wouldn’t get to normally see.