Construction
Illustrious was built by Vickers-Armstrongs at Barrow-in-Furness, launched in 1939, and commissioned on 16 April 1940. She displaced 28,000 tons and carried up to 57 aircraft, including about 33 to 36 in her armoured hangar (depending on type). Illustrious carried fewer aircraft than the preceding Ark Royal and the subsequent Indomitable and Implacable class carriers. The heavily armoured hangar was smaller than on Ark Royal, but after her flight deck round-downs were removed during refits and she began using a permanent deck park, her aircraft capacity was greatly increased. She was nicknamed "Lusty" by the men who served in her. On 24 May 1940, Illustrious ran her full power trials and recorded 113,700 shp at 234.2 rpm. Her exact speeds were not recorded as she had her paravanes streamed, but it was estimated that she could have made about 31 knots (57 km/h; 36 mph) under full power.
The cost of construction of Illustrious was £3,800,000. The electronic equipment fitted to her cost £13,500, and the naval aircraft embarked on her in 1939 cost £600,000.
Read more about this topic: HMS Illustrious (87)
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