Final Countdown To Royal Navy Carrier Strike Group's Mission Begins

Operation Highmast — the name given to the 2025 Indo-Pacific deployment of the Royal Navy’s Carrier Strike Group (CSG) — will start towards the end of this month, it has been confirmed.

Aircraft carrier and current RN flagship HMS Prince of Wales is scheduled to set sail from Portsmouth on April 22, according to a recent press statement from the U.K. Ministry of Defence (MoD). 

She will meet up with the rest of the flotilla off the coast of Cornwall. The CSG is expected to include Type 23 frigates HMS Portland and HMS Iron Duke, Type 45 destroyer HMS Dauntless and an Astute-class submarine, as well as supply ships for logistical support.

A Royal Norwegian Navy frigate will also sail with the flotilla for its entire voyage, making Norway the only nation to join the full duration of the CSG deployment. In total 12 other nations, including Canada and Spain, will be supporting the deployment with ships or personnel across the course of the eight-month deployment.

Around 2,500 personnel from the Royal Navy and 592 from the Royal Air Force will be involved in the mission, as well as about 900 British Army personnel during selected exercises.

En route the CSG will participate in Exercise Neptune Strike under NATO command in the Mediterranean testing high-end maritime strike capabilities. Further exercises and port visits will follow in the Indian Ocean, with partners including the U.S., India, Singapore, and Malaysia.

The CSG will also link up with 19 partner nations for Exercise Talisman Sabre near Australia, train alongside the Japanese Maritime Self Defence Force, and conduct a port visit to India.

Defence Secretary John Healey commented: “This is a unique opportunity for the U.K. to operate in close coordination 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.”

Minister for the Armed Forces Luke Pollard added: “This isn’t just about hard power; it’s about building influence and opening new trade opportunities both for defence and other sectors of our economy which will deliver British jobs and growth.”

• You can read more details about the upcoming mission on the U.K. MoD website