HMS Prince of Wales To Set Sail This Weekend For Strike Warrior Exercise

HMS Prince of Wales will sail from Portsmouth this weekend ahead of leading the UK Carrier Strike Group on a major exercise in the North Sea.
The 65,000-tonne carrier will depart for a critical autumn training programme – which includes the major Exercise Strike Warrior – that is a key stepping stone for the ship, her air group and escorts ahead of a global deployment next year.

HMS Prince of Wales will sail from Portsmouth on Saturday morning – weather permitting – and head to the exercise area off the Scottish coast after qualifying her air wing off Cornwall.

F-35B Lightning jets from joint Royal Navy/RAF 809 Naval Air Squadron and 617 Squadron will embark on the carrier as she leads a multinational naval task force of warships and works alongside partner nations.

It is the first time 809 NAS will deploy with a Queen Elizabeth-class carrier, having formed at RAF Marham in Norfolk at the end of last year.

They join the 617 ‘Dambusters’ as the second, front-line stealth fighter formation, operating the fifth generation F-35B Lightning jets.

To read more, visit the Royal Navy's website.