RMS Queen Elizabeth was sold to the city of Long Beach, California. "Queen Elizabeth" was sold to a succession of buyers, most of whom had unsuccessful plans for her. Finally "Queen Elizabeth" was sold to Hong Kong businessman Tung Chao Yung, who intended to convert her into a floating university cruise ship called Seawise University. In 1972, while undergoing refurbishment in Hong Kong harbour, fire broke out aboard under unexplained circumstances and the ship was capsized by the water used to fight the fire. In 1973, the wreck was deemed an obstruction to shipping in the area, and so was partially scrapped where
HMS Queen Elizabeth (R08) "Queen Elizabeth" was also scheduled to undergo a first replenishment at sea from ; although this had to be abandoned due to bad weather, this allowed both ships the opportunity to simulate the scenario in detail. "Queen Elizabeth" returned to Portsmouth on 27 February 2018, berthing at Princess Royal Jetty. On 2 March 2018 in Portsmouth Harbour, "Queen Elizabeth" successfully tested her port side Marine Evacuation System (MES), a series of bright orange inflatable escape chutes and rafts. "Queen Elizabeth" departed Portsmouth for a third time on 10 June 2018, heading to the coasts of Cornwall for a second phase