Britain’s biggest warship has been deployed to the North Sea with a group of F-35B Lightning stealth fighters for the latest round of wargames.
Footage published by the Ministry of Defence showed two of the most powerful ships at sea in European waters – HMS Prince of Wales alongside the USS Harry S Truman.
As part of Exercise Strike Warrior, the UK and US joined forces to highlight Nato’s unified maritime capabilities
The UK hosted the US Commander Rear Admiral Sean Bailey, who watched the F-35B Lightning stealth fighters launch from her flight deck – then join the Truman’s F/A-18 Super Hornets and an E/A-18G Growler conduct a flypast of the two naval groups.
This exercise is set to underscore – even if indirectly – the alliance’s readiness to respond to any potential threats close to European waters and beyond.
‘Strike Warrior has delivered a short and intense period of training,’ said Captain John Cromie, deputy commander of the UK Carrier Strike Group.
‘Testing the group all the way from individual responses to a fire or flood through to complex long-range F-35B missions,’
The UK Carrier Strike Group – comprising HMS Prince of Wales, air wing, escorts, supporting vessels and almost 2,000 personnel – was deployed at sea for training as part of exercise Strike Warrior.
But it is one of the final milestones of its preparation for a global deployment to the Indo-Pacific in 2025.
Lightnings from the UK’s new front-line strike fighter unit, 809 Naval Air Squadron have been operating from the deck of the warship and training for strike missions.
This has included the dropping of live ordnance onto the Cape Wrath range in Scotland.
The exercise involves an array of forces, with participation from the Royal Navy, British Army, Royal Air Force, and Nato allies, including Norway, Denmark, Belgium, Germany, and Portugal.
(Picture: Royal Navy)
Supporting anti-submarine operations, RAF Poseidon P8 maritime patrol aircraft contributed to the group’s defensive strategy, while Nato aircraft protected against mock aerial threats.
HMS Dauntless, a Portsmouth-based destroyer, led the air defence of the strike group.
Ben Dorrington, Dauntless’ commanding officer, said his team was subjected to a ‘broad range of threats, including enemy air sorties and anti-ship cruise missiles.’
Nick Smith, 809 naval air squadron’s commanding officer, said the exercise has been ‘phenomenally successful’, laying ;firm foundations’ for when his F-35s re-join the task group in 2025 on its first deployment.
(Picture: Royal Navy)
He continued: ‘The training teams have surpassed their targets with 19 pilots completing carrier qualifications within the first weeks of the deployment and flight deck teams receiving their authorisations to safely operate on the deck, both day and night.
‘Our integration has also spread beyond the ship, demonstrated by the successful release of live weapons on targets at Cape Wrath; weapons prepared by the ship’s company, loaded and delivered by 809 NAS and 617 Squadron engineers and pilots, controlled by Royal Marine Commandos on the ground.’
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