The Future Aircraft Carrier project (also known as the "Carrier, Vehicular, Future" or CVF project) The new class of carriers will be much larger than the Royal Navy's existing "Invincible" class carriers. It is currently estimated that the new class will have a displacement (weight) of 65,000 tonnes, will be 280m long and 70m wide, and have a draught (the depth of water needed to float the ship) of 9m. The ships' complement will be around 1500 all-told, including the Joint Force Air Group (JFAG) who will support and fly the embarked aircraft. Each ship will carry about 40 aircraft (Joint Combat Aircraft, Maritime Airborne Surveillance and Control system, and Merlin helicopters).
