ELEVATORS:
The hangar and the flight-deck are served by two main lifts, with a capacity of at least 30 tons, capable of carrying the fighter aircrafts and the helicopters:
one 14 x 21.6 m “internal” lift forward of the island, on the starboard side of the flight deck
one 14 x 15 m “deck edge” lift abaft the island to starboard; that particular feature also allows for its use as a side ramp (loading ramp) for Ro-Ro operations alongside a pier
While the aft elevator is indeed a foldable one, this capability is only required in very particular circumstances (maintenance or entry into Taranto dockyard for instance). The “deck edge” feature reduces the impact on air operations and increases the available space on the flight-deck. On the other hand, the forward elevator is of the “internal” type because it was not considered as sufficiently safe (damage control, survivability, maintenance) to have both lifts of the “deck edge” variant.
In addition to those two main elevators, there are also a number of smaller and specialized lifts:
two 15-ton lifts mainly for the transport of ammunition and other material/equipment; one is locate forward of the forward aircraft elevator, and the other next to the aft deck-edge aircraft elevator
one 7-ton lift for personnel and food/equipment
a lift dedicated to medical transport, for casualties, linking the flight deck and hangar deck to the hospital area