HMS Prince of Wales: I witnessed the greatest moment to happen in Portsmouth in 2023 as Royal Navy ship returns

It has to have a compelling back story, bring emotion out of people and has to make an entire city stand still. That is what happened when HMS Prince of Wales made her triumphant return on Monday. More than 2,500 people from all ages and walks of life gathered to see the humungous warship with their own eyes and capture the moment she sailed into Portsmouth Naval Base. Families and friends congregated along the jetty in the hopes of seeing their loved ones aboard ship before they disembarked. People from Wales, East Yorkshire and even as far as Scotland all made the trip to see the 65,000 tonne vessel after her USA mission. Sailors waved from the flight deck – responding to the endless sea of cheers and waves.

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It has been a long time coming for HMS Prince of Wales to successfully complete a deployment. The gutting moment when she broke down off the coast of the Isle of Wight in August last year led to many defence commentators believing the ships will never be as useful as her price tag suggests. Months of repairs followed once she was taken to Scotland.

Questions about if the taxpayer would end up footing the bill for the repairs and the extent of which they were known beforehand continued to swirl as HMS Prince of Wales remained stubbornly in the dry dock. She finally left the Firth of the Forth in July and returned to Portsmouth for a brief period before heading off to America – on a deployment which was prepared for last year. Battling past that adversity, the carrier’s crew performed many firsts throughout her longest ever deployment.

The crewless aircraft Mojave was extensively tested – taking off and landing on the ship’s flight deck for the first time. Gruelling exercises were carried out with US pilots, where “fully-laden” F-35 fighter jets were tested to their limits and a procession of wildcat helicopters were seen soaring through the sky and spread out along the flight deck. These exercises not only showed what the ship and crew could do, but also prepared them for what may lie ahead.

HMS Prince of Wales’ magical return capped off the most successful period of her lifetime. Visitors saw loved ones return to them in memories they would cherish forever, You don’t have to take my word for how special that is. Rachael Kaiser-Kemsley, of Shoreham, got to see her husband Ben again and show how much their 11-week-old baby Autumn has grown.

Before they were reunited, she told The News: “Autumn has missed him so much and was only five weeks old when he left. He might cry but I’m not sure. He’ll be very surprised because she’s grown twice the size. I’ve sent him lots of pictures of her. It sounds like he had a great time. It’ll be lovely to give him a big cuddle. I’ll probably cry.”

Guy, Marlene and Ian Upchurch along with their extended family, from Derby, were eagerly awaiting the return of Leo, 21, and Maximus, 19. “The experience they were getting they would not get anywhere else,” Ian said. “To go in the navy and travel the world is an experience they would not have had otherwise. From the way they’ve spoken, it’s the beginning of an amazing career. We’re really proud of them.”

Jade Brame, of Gosport, described how her children Oscar, seven, and Harper, five, were feeling before they saw their dad Marcus return to them. “The children all made posters for him in their own writing and drew their own pictures,” she said. “I’ve been bombarding him with news about the kids. He’s been to some beautiful places. It’ll be emotional seeing him. Oscar said he was going to cry happy tears.”

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These feelings were perfectly illustrated by the Chappell family who had driven all the away from South Wales to see Henry, 20, step ashore. He was inundated with hugs and kisses as his loved ones welcomed him back home. Henry, AB, said: “It’s great to be back and lovely to see my family. I missed them a lot. It was a great ship’s company and I had some great times with some great mates. I managed to get to Washington and really enjoyed that. I’ll remember being with my mates, it was a great three and a bit months.”

His father John added: “I’m a proud father. He followed his brother’s footsteps and went into the navy. I’m sure he’ll do well on his next deployment. He’s someone who’s serving his country, especially in recent times with a lot of upset around the world. It’s brilliant to see him home safe and we’re extremely proud of him.” There were countless outpourings of emotion as loved ones embraced each other – a fitting end to HMS Prince of Wales’ triumphant return.

Despite the mechanical problems, speculation and uncertainty, the crew completed a successful deployment and ended it all with a return which will live on in the city’s memory. I certainly will never forget it.