HMS Queen Elizabeth heading back to open water following lengthy repairs in Rosyth

HMS Queen Elizabeth is back in open water following around eight months of engineering work.

The aircraft carrier underwent considerable work during her time in Rosyth, the dockyard where construction on her was completed.

She will have to wait until low tide on the Forth before travelling under the three bridges that span the water – including the iconic rail crossing.

• HMS Queen Elizabeth sets sail from Portsmouth to test new nav and propulsion upgrades
• Don’t send a carrier just for the sake of it, former Royal Navy commodore warns
• HMS Queen Elizabeth: All you need to know about the mighty aircraft carrier

The ship left the basin in Rosyth yesterday at high tide.

The size of aircraft carriers like HMS Queen Elizabeth and her sister ship HMS Prince of Wales means getting her to open water is a delicate and well-planned process.

She spent the night at anchor in the shadow of the Queensferry Crossing after leaving the dockyard.

The ship spent a little longer in Fife than initially planned, undergoing upgrades to her propulsion system as well as other engineering work.

She will be a welcome return to the fleet, with a busy Royal Navy needing every seagoing asset available to meet its ambitions.

HMS Queen Elizabeth’s next deployment hasn’t been confirmed, but she could see herself tasked with Operation Firecrest in the North Atlantic in next few weeks.