One of Malta’s special naval friends, the strike carrier HMS Illustrious, will leave Grand Harbour this morning for a two-month stint in the Indian Ocean.
The Illustrious, or Lusty as she is known to her crew, has a special relationship with Malta. One of her earlier namesakes served here during World War Two. The Illustrious has paid many visits to Malta in the recent past, most notably in 2005 to coincide with Queen Elizabeth II’s visit during the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting.
On that occasion, the Illustrious engaged in the centuries-old tradition of firing all her guns prior to entering port, with the bastions coastal battery reciprocating in turn. In times gone by, this was done to show the port of call’s authorities that the gun breeches were empty and that there was no threat to those involved. The Illustrious is deploying in the Indian Ocean for two months as part of a multinational training group of which another ship with a Malta connection, the USS Cole, is a member. The Cole departed on Tuesday.
The carrier was almost deserted yesterday as many of her crew were soaking up the sunshine at bars and coffee shops around Valletta. However, many might still have been nursing sore heads as the whole crew went out for a last good night out in St Julian’s prior to the daily grind of two-month’s worth of training exercises at sea. It is evident that the crew loves coming to Malta, from the chefs, all the way up to the senior officers – as they in fact told me themselves.
“The people are always so friendly, the weather always seems to be good when we come and there is never any hassle or bother,” said Lieutenant Commander Bill Lauste.
HMS Illustrious is the second of three Invincible Class aircraft carriers, and the fifth ship to bear her proud name.
Illustrious was built at Swan Hunters – another well-known name in Malta – Ship Builders Yard on the Tyne, and subsequently commissioned in her base port of Portsmouth in 1982.
HMS Illustrious is an impressive 209m long, with a beam of 36m and a displacement of 22,000 tonnes. She has 1,400 compartments and 15 lifts, and is powered by four gas turbine Olympus engines (a naval version of Concorde’s), giving her a top speed in excess of 30 knots.
With a Tailored Air Group embarked she has a full complement of over 1,000 people, and can operate with a range of both rotary and fixed-wing aircraft from the Harrier GR9 to troop-carrying Chinooks.
Her roles can vary widely, and include everything from Maritime Strike to Evacuation Operations; all of which she has ably demonstrated to be very capable of fulfilling.
The ship’s motto, Vox Non Incerta, comes from a quote in the bible, specifically Corinthians I, Ch.14 v.8, which reads: “For if the trumpet give an uncertain sound, who shall prepare himself to the battle?” The motto then, means “No Uncertain Sound”, and suits Illustrious extremely well.
Incidentally, the ship’s crest features three naval horns and a twinning ceremony has taken place with each of the three cities of Cottonera. Each city is now represented by one of the horns.