HMS Prince of Wales: Royal Navy appoint new Commanding Officer to Portsmouth carrier as he hails ship's crew

Captain Will Blackett has taken the mantle from Captain Richard Hewitt OBE after the huge 65,000 tonne warship finished its deployment in the USA and returned to Portsmouth in December. Capt Hewitt hailed the ship’s crew as he was handed the honour.

"It is a huge privilege to assume Command of this incredible Ship and her fantastic crew,” Capt Blackett said. “They have achieved a huge amount in the last year and I look forward to continuing the building momentum towards high readiness and global operations.”

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The aircraft carrier’s crew was pushed to their limits throughout their most recent deployment. Pilots tested “fully-laden” F-35 fighters alongside their US counterparts and carried out operations with crewless aircraft for the first time.

Sailors visited Virginia, Florida, Washington and other destinations while carrying out these tasks. As previously reported in The News, Capt Hewitt said the crew achieved great successes following the ship’s history of mechanical setbacks – spending much of 2022 and 2023 in Scotland while repairs took place.

"Every task given to us to deliver, we have done,” he said. “In some areas, we’ve exceeded expectations with the amount of aviation work we have conducted throughout the deployment. Carrier Strike has been set up for the future, whether it is HMS Prince of Wales or HMS Queen Elizabeth taking the helm. The deployment has been very important and very valuable and I think we’ll reap the rewards in the future.”