Thousands of families and well-wishers lined the harbour walls in Portsmouth to wave off the Royal Navy’s flagship HMS Prince of Wales as it set sail for the Indo-Pacific.
The £3 billion aircraft carrier will lead the Carrier Strike Group (CSG) made up of UK, Norwegian and Canadian warships for the eight-month deployment to join exercises, operations and visits with 40 countries across the Mediterranean, Middle East, south-east Asia, Japan and Australia.
Banners and flags were waved by members of the public from the walls and beach of Portsmouth harbour with sailors aboard the 65,000-tonne warship waving back to cheers from the crowds as they passed.
A Royal Navy spokesman confirmed that the ensign on the flight deck of HMS Prince of Wales was at half-mast as a “mark of respect” for the late Pope.
Also sailing from the Hampshire naval base on Tuesday was the Type 45 destroyer HMS Dauntless.
They will then be joined by two Norwegian vessels – tanker HNoMS Maud and frigate HNoMS Roald Amundsen – as well as the UK and Canadian frigates HMS Richmond and HMCS Ville de Quebec, which are sailing from Plymouth.
The support vessel Royal Fleet Auxiliary tanker RFA Tidespring will make up the final ship in the CSG which will involve other ships and nations during the deployment called Operation Highmast.
A contingent of 18 UK F-35B jets will join the carrier in the days after departure, with that number increasing to 24 during the deployment.
Also joining will be Merlin Mk2 anti-submarine helicopters from RNAS Culdrose and Merlin Mk4 Commando and Wildcat helicopters from RNAS Yeovilton, as well as T-150 Malloy and Puma drones.
Defence Secretary John Healey said: “I want to thank the thousands of our armed forces personnel involved in the delivery of this immensely complex operation, demonstrating the UK’s world-leading capability to deploy a major military force around the world.
“This is a unique opportunity for the UK to operate in close co-ordination with our partners and allies in a deployment that not only shows our commitment to security and stability, but also provides an opportunity to bolster our own economy and boost British trade and exports.
“As one of only a handful of countries in the world able to lead a deployment of this scale, the Royal Navy is once again demonstrating its formidable capability while protecting British values and sending a powerful message of deterrence to any adversary.”
Armed forces minister Luke Pollard said: “The deployment of the HMS Prince of Wales Carrier Strike Group not only projects UK military power, but it’s also a platform for our exports, for our businesses, for promoting UK jobs and growth, as well as our influence.
“And by having an international-by-design task group with our Norwegian, Canadian and Spanish friends alongside us for this initial phase of the deployment, we’re working with our allies showing strength by coming together in these more uncertain times.”
Commodore James Blackmore, CSG commander, said: “Working closely with partners from across the globe, Operation Highmast will demonstrate credible deterrence and our support to Nato and the rules-based international order.
“This will reaffirm that the UK is secure at home and strong abroad and reinforce the UK’s commitment to the Indo-Pacific.”
A total of 2,500 military personnel – about 2,100 British, 400 from Norway, Canada and Spain – will initially deploy as part of the CSG, with the numbers rising to 4,500 for the major exercises in the Indo-Pacific region.
Captain Will Blackett, commanding officer of HMS Prince of Wales, said: “This ship is a fantastic machine, she’s got amazing equipment – state of the art – and we’re very proud to take her around the world.
“But it only works because of the magic that’s brought to it by the people on board.”
Gemma McConnell, 42, from Plymouth, Devon, was with children Lachlan, seven, and Chloe, four, to wave off 38-year-old Surgeon Commander David McConnell.
She said: “You’ve got to believe in the Navy to be a Navy wife, a proper part of it.
“It doesn’t ever make me sad when he goes away, because I think it’s an adventure, he gets to see the world, he’s getting to be with amazing people and it just gives me an enormous sense of pride.”
Viv Pyatt, 61, from Probus, near Truro, Cornwall, came to see son Able Seaman Harry Pyatt, 24, off.
She said it had been an emotional farewell and added: “We all had a few tears, even my son, he had a few tears, but he’s got a girlfriend on board, so I think they’ll look after each other, so they’ll be fine.”
The CSG’s first task will be to join a Nato exercise off France testing aerial defences before the ships move on to the Mediterranean to work with an Italian-led carrier force and then head east via the Red Sea.
This is the second CSG deployment to the Indo-Pacific, with the previous one led by HMS Prince of Wales’ sister ship, HMS Queen Elizabeth, in 2021, and the ships are expected to return to the UK by Christmas.
