'Excited' families gather in droves to greet 'awesome' HMS Prince of Wales sailors returning to Portsmouth
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Large crowds lined the Hot Walls and gathered on The Round Tower to welcome back the 65,000 tonne warship
Smiling faces and cheering crowds greeted the Royal Navy flagship and her sailors as they returned home.
HMS Prince of Wales sailed past The Round Tower in Old Portsmouth this morning (July 24), with personnel waving at their loved ones. The early start didn’t stop proud spectators from lining the Hot Walls at around 8.30am.
Kirsty and Lillian Jones, alongside Elena and Emilie Smith, couldn’t wait to catch up with Medical Assistant Chloe Jones and her boyfriend Able Seaman Harry Pyatt. They travelled from Nuneaton and were amazed to see all the families on the Hot Walls.
Lillian, Chloe’s mum, told The News: “We’re just excited to see her. We miss her a lot and it’s nice to welcome her home. It’s genuinely a wonderful atmosphere and an emotional time. Hopefully I won’t start crying and the tissues don’t come out. We’ll give her a massive hug
“I thought at first in the navy that she would get homesick, but she’s just amazed me with everything she’s done. It’s changed her as a person and she’s just so positive, outgoing, and confident.”
Kirsty, Chloe’s sister, said the family previously greeted the personnel following their Indo-Pacific deployment Operation Highmast. “The sound of the horn and the atmosphere was fantastic,” she added. “I absolutely loved it and the kids really enjoyed it.
“It’s been nice to have this family get-together to come down and meet over people. It’s exciting to hear about their experiences. The opportunities in the navy are brilliant, you don’t often just go to Norway or Iceland do you. We’re excited to hear about their experiences and what they’ve got up to. We’re a proud family. She started in the sea cadets so I think that’s what inspired her.”
Large banners with different designs were held up to the personnel as the carrier sailed past. Flags were held high to catch the attention of those on board. Spectators clapped and cheered loudly in response to the ship’s horn.
Laura Perkins, of Hilsea, was delighted for her husband Petty Officer Phil Perkins to be reunited with his three children, Oliver, Arthur, and Jacob. He has served for 21 years. “We’re all excited to see him,” Laura said. “It has been a few years now since he’s been away. We can’t wait to have him back, especially for the summer holidays.
“It was nice to have him ashore for a while, but also nice to have him away. We got used to him being at home but it’s a great experience for him to get back to sea. For the youngest, this is the first proper deployment he’ll remember.”
When asked how they manage with Phil often being away, she added: “It can be hard at times. Each time he goes away, there are different challenges, but you find the right support. As long as you’ve got the right support in place, it makes it a lot easier.”
Oliver said: “I’m looking forward to doing lots of activities with dad when he gets back. We’ll get on the motorbike and get that started up.”
Jacob said his dad is a brilliant role model. He added: “I’m very proud of him. He’s been in the navy longer than I’ve been alive.”
Terri Bethell made the journey from Surrey to see her son Sam. She said he will be chomping at the bit for the second deployment phase to start. “I think he’s enjoyed the whole experience,” she said. “Looking forward to seeing him and hearing what he’s been up to. I’m ever so proud since he joined when he was 16, nearly ten years ago now.”
Abbie said her brother and the other sailors are “awesome” for succeeding on such a large deployment. She added: “We’ll probably have our yearly roast dinner with all the family to celebrate him coming home. He’ll share all his stories and I’m sure he has loads to tell.
“He sent us a video of him sitting on top of the ship with the sunset and it was really cool. When I was younger, it made me think about joining as well. You see them marching in their uniform and you just think it’s really cool.”
Donna Viv set off from Derbyshire to welcome her son AB Lewis Hawkins, 20, back home. He joined the force when he was 16.
“I’m extremely excited and very emotional,” she said. “It’s amazing to be with the other families and be part of something, knowing they’ve done a really good job.”
Donna said being part of a network of military families is wonderful, something which was unexpected for her. “It’s opened my eyes so much,” she added. “We'll pick up from the dockyard, take him home, have a nice family BBQ, and let him do whatever he wants.
“He deserves it. The deployment has opened his eyes as the world tour was so different with the temperatures. He has enjoyed the cold. It put the ships and pilots to the test. I’m extremely proud. He loves his job and loves what he does. I’m so happy I get to support him in that.”
The 65,000 tonne carrier left HMNB Portsmouth on April 24 for Operation Firecrest, taking the helm of the UK Carrier Strike Group (UKCSG). Alongside Type 45 destroyer HMS Duncan, naval support ship RFA Tidespring, F-35B fighter jets, and rotary wing with un-crewed autonomous systems, British personnel completed the first phase of the deployment.
Exercise Neptune Strike was the last part of phase one, a signature set of manoeuvres which showed how Nato allies work together. Long-range strikes were previously conducted from F-35B Lightning jets of 809 Naval Air Squadron. An RAF Voyager and an Italian 767 tanker were used to conduct a series of sorties which stretched as far as Poland.
Some of the cities the group visited include Stavanger, Bergen, and Aarhus, and other locations. The task group recently completed surface and subsurface drills with a French destroyer and HMS Somerset. A total of 19 countries from Nato and Joint Expeditionary Force (JEF) have worked together throughout the Operation.
The North Atlantic and the High North are considered some of the most challenging to operate in. Personnel safeguarded the skies of Iceland and the Arctic from incursions by Russian aircraft. One plane was intercepted by British fighter jets for flying too close to HMS Prince of Wales in a dangerous manner, dropping sonobouys into the water.