Editing River Clyde (section)

== Shipbuilding decline ==
[[File:HMS Daring at Scotstoun.JPG|thumb|Although diminished from its early 20th-century heights, [[shipbuilding]] remains an important industry on Clydeside. Shown is {{HMS|Daring|D32|6}} after launching]]

During and immediately after [[World War II]], the Clyde's  importance as a major industrial centre rapidly declined. During the war, the [[Luftwaffe]] singled out [[Clydebank Blitz|Clydebank for bombing]], and its buildings sustained heavy damage. In the immediate postwar period, the sharp reduction in warship orders was initially balanced by a prolonged boom in merchant shipbuilding. But by the end of the 1950s, other countries had begun to establish well-capitalised and highly productive shipbuilding centres that were able to outcompete many of the European shipbuilding yards. Several Clydeside yards booked a series of loss-making contracts in the hope of weathering the storm, but their unprofitable circumstances continued for too long, and by the mid-1960s they faced potential collapse.<ref>{{cite web|last1=Harris|first1=Hilary|title=Seaward the Great Ships|url=https://movingimage.nls.uk/film/2230|website=Moving Image Archive|publisher=National Library of Scotland|access-date=11 November 2017}}</ref> [[Harland and Wolff]]'s Linthouse yard went under, and Fairfields of Govan faced bankruptcy. The government tried to limit the decline by creating the [[Upper Clyde Shipbuilders]] consortium, but the consortium became mired in controversy and collapsed in 1971. After that, [[James Callaghan]]'s Labour government implemented the [[Aircraft and Shipbuilding Industries Act 1977]] (c. 3), which nationalised most of the Clyde's shipyards and grouped them with other major British shipyards, such as the firm [[British Shipbuilders]].

Today, two major shipyards on the Upper Clyde remain in operation. They are both owned by a naval defence contractor, [[BAE Systems Surface Ships]], which specialises in the design and construction of technologically advanced warships for the Royal Navy and other navies around the world. The two yards are the former [[Yarrow Shipbuilders|Yarrow]] yard at [[Scotstoun]], and [[Fairfield Shipbuilding and Engineering Company|Fairfields]] at Govan. In addition, the [[King George V Dock, Glasgow|King George V Dock]] is operated by the [[Clyde Port Authority]].  [[Ferguson Shipbuilders]], at Port Glasgow on the Lower Clyde, is now owned by the Scottish government. It is the last survivor of the many shipyards that once dominated Port Glasgow and Greenock. Its core business is now the construction of [[RORO|car ferries]].