HMS Prince of Wales: When will warship be returning home to Portsmouth?

According to the King’s Harbour Master, the warship will return to the harbour at 9.30am. Loved ones and well-wishers are expected to be in attendance to welcome her home.

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HMS Prince of Wales has been carrying out trials of unmanned aircraft off the United States’ coast – giving a glimpse into the future of warfare and naval operations. The largest un-crewed aircraft ever launched from the carrier’s flight deck was used in a variety of exercises.

Codenamed "Mojave”, the specially-modified aircraft was operated remotely by a “pilot” at a computer terminal – taking off and landing on the ship off the east coast of the USA. No crewless machine its size has ever flown from a carrier outside the US Navy before.

Rear Admiral James Parkin, Royal Navy director develop – whose team planned the trial – said: “The Mojave trial is a European first – the first time that a Remotely Piloted Air System of this size has operated to and from an aircraft carrier outside of the United States. The success of this trial heralds a new dawn in how we conduct maritime aviation and is another exciting step in the evolution of the Royal Navy’s carrier strike group into a mixed crewed and un-crewed fighting force.”

The warship’s social media had announced they were heading “back home” on November 30.