Royal Navy Carrier Strike Group Joins Allies Off Of Scotland For Exercise Strike Warrior

A powerful Royal Navy task group of stealth jets and warships has assembled in the North Sea to complete critical preparations for a major global deployment in 2025. The UK Carrier Strike Group with HMS Prince of Wales as its focal point is off the coast of Scotland to carry out Exercise Strike Warrior – military drills that will confirm that the task force is ready for operations.

It is all in preparation for the Carrier Strike Group 25 deployment, which will send British warships, support vessels and jets across the world on the first mission of its kind since HMS Queen Elizabeth led a 49,000-mile mission to Japan and back in 2021. For now, F-35B Lightning jets, frigates, destroyers, submarines, Royal Fleet Auxiliary tankers, and helicopters are in the North Sea, as they test their ability to carry out operations seamlessly together.

This will be supported by the RAF who will provide aircraft to support anti-submarine operations and test the air defence capability of the task group.Running the exercise from HMS Prince of Wales is Commodore James Blackmore, Commander of the UK Carrier Strike Group, and his battle staff, who carefully coordinate operations, ensuring the task group works as a highly effective unit. He said: “The UK’s Carrier Strike Group is the 1* battle staff that commands the fleet embarked on HMS Prince of Wales.” 

“I have command of highly capable assets and personnel, which provide a powerful capability across all domains from anti-air to cyber.”

“This exercise is important because it will validate my team as a “Very High Readiness” force, which means we can be ready to command a fleet with a few days’ notice."

“This is all in preparation for next year’s exercise across which will see us traverse the globe to achieve.”

“Exercise Strike Warrior is an important milestone for 809 NAS, being the Squadron’s first return to sea since the Falklands conflict and an important stepping stone in developing our Initial Operational Capability.”

During Strike Warrior, HMS Prince of Wales will be surrounded by warships, including HMS Portland, HMS Iron Duke, HMS Dauntless and an Astute-class submarine which will protect her from a range of threats.HMS Portland (Type 23 frigate) will work on countering threats beneath the waves in their primary role as submarine hunters, aided by Merlin helicopters and P8 Maritime Patrol Aircraft from the RAF.

Type 45 destroyer Dauntless brings world-class air defence to the task group, with her powerful Sampson radars and Sea Viper missiles acting as a shield from above – systems which have just proved their prowess against drones and missiles with HMS Diamond in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden. An Astute-class hunter killer submarine is lurking beneath the waves, capable of fending off adversary subs but also hitting targets with Tomahawk missiles.

Over the next two weeks, this potent task group will come up against intensive warfare scenarios to test their ability to firstly protect HMS Prince of Wales and her air group, which will be required to carry out flying operations throughout. The UK Carrier Strike Group will operate with NATO warships from Standing NATO Maritime Group 1—the alliance’s premier task force in Northern European waters – throughout Strike Warrior.

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