HERE'S the giant air traffic control tower which will direct fighter jets and attack helicopters from the deck of Britain's new aircraft carrier.

The steel structure is taller than most tenements in Glasgow and was built on the banks of the Clyde at the BAE warship yard at Scotstoun.

It is so heavy – 750 tonnes – that 12 transponders each fitted with six wheels had to be used to inch the Aft Island on to a barge which will eventually take it round the northern coast of Scotland to Rosyth in Fife where the multi-billion pound super-sized carrier Queen Elizabeth is being assembled.

The entire operation from quayside to barge took almost five hours.

Chains will be used to keep it in position and rigid. Parts of the nine-deck tower will also be welded to the barge floor before the sea journey begins on Sunday.

The voyage is expected to take five days before the barge reaches the east coast yard next Friday.

Standing 31m high, it is the tallest structure ever built at the Scotstoun yard.

The maritime equivalent of an air traffic control tower it will be the domain of a flight commander.

He and a small group of personnel will control the movements of Britain's attack helicopters and fighter jets.

Defence chiefs have not revealed how many planes will operate from the carrier. Experts reckon it will have the capability to manage a 40-strong squadron but the number is more likely to be around 12.

The Aft Island is a remarkable feat of engineering. Housing 110 separate compartments it contains more than 44,000 metres of cable and is the final section of the carrier to be assembled.

Angus Holt is the Queen Elizabeth block delivery director at BAE Systems.

He said: "The load out of the Aft Island marks a great achievement for the team here on the Clyde.

"It is a real credit to their hard work and skill that the block was completed ahead of schedule and to an exceptional standard, demonstrating the pride and drive amongst the team to deliver the nation's flagships."

Work was completed 86 weeks after the first steel cut - a month ahead of deadline. Everything about the new carrier is huge.

The giant Goliath crane – with the largest lift capacity of any crane in Britain – will be used at Rosyth to lift the super structure off the barge and on to the flight deck of HMS Queen Elizabeth, which is the first of two carriers being built.

Once integrated on to the flight deck, Britain's newest warship and biggest ever aircraft carrier will stand 56metres tall - higher than Niagara Falls.

gordon.thomson@eveningtimes.co.uk