THEY are the skilled Hampshire workers putting the building blocks in place for Britain’s biggest ever warship.

More than 300 people who previously worked in Southampton have been involved in the construction of the giant 65,000 tonne HMS Prince of Wales aircraft carrier – one of the largest construction projects in the country.

Welders, platers, electricians and a whole range of other technicians from the city have been helping to construct the components for a 79m section of the vessel’s 280m hull.

And yesterday, they watched on proudly as the first great milestone in the multi-billion pound project was finally completed.

Inch by inch, two huge “ring” sections of the hull they are working on were moved together using six slow-moving trucks with a total of 240 heavy-duty wheels.

Over the next three months, the ring that was moved, weighing 1,300 tonnes, will be welded together with a separate ring, itself weighing in at 2,500 tonnes.

The work is being carried out by BAE Systems staff at the Navy dockyards in Portsmouth.

A workforce of some 800 are helping to create a 6,000 tonne section of the ship – the equivalent of 550 buses – and have built it from scratch from flat sheets of steel.

Hampshire’s role in building the vessel will come to an end in 2016, when the fully welded and painted hull section will be floated on a giant barge to Scotland for further work.

Once completed, the ship could undergo tests in 2020 ahead of going into service.

Hundreds of people from Southampton are being employed by BAE Systems for the project, many of whom once worked at the former Vosper Thornycroft site in Woolston.

Project leader in Hampshire, Paul Bowsher, pictured left, said: “It’s a massive effort to get to this moment and we are amazed by the scale of it.

“It has been a team effort from drawings to supply chain and securing the equipment – lots of planning has gone into it.

“We are immensely proud to be working on this national flagship.”