Royal Navy: What ships will sail alongside HMS Prince of Wales? Carrier Strike Group set for Indo-Pacific op

HMS Prince of Wales, the country’s flagship, will be taking charge of the UK Carrier Strike Group (UKCSG). The formation will be carrying out military exercises and diplomatic drills in Japan, Australia and elsewhere.

Titled Operation Highmast, sailors will be leaving HMNB Portsmouth on April 22. Crowds are expected to line the Hot Walls in Old Portsmouth and pack the naval base to see their loved ones leave the city. HMS Prince of Wales will lead the UKCSG through the Red Sea and towards the pacific.

Various British forces will work alongside the 65,000 tonne vessel, as well as international allies. The (UKCSG) has existed in various forms since the mid-2000s. Its aim is to showcase the capabilities of the British forces, and allow for them to work alongside international allies. Here is what the military formation will comprise of.

HMS Prince of Wales

The £3.2bn warship will be at the head of the UKCSG, which will comprise of multiple support ships, frigates, destroyers and submarines. Various aircraft will also be deployed alongside them. Britain will partner with 12 nations for the operation.

HMS Prince of Wales can house up to 24 F-35B Lightning jets, which can defend the formation from the skies while also moving into offensive positions at speed. Merlin and Wildcat helicopters will also play an integral role in operations, as well as Malloy T-150 drones which can ferry supplies between the ships.

HMS Dauntless

The Portsmouth-based Type 45 destroyer will be a part of the formation. She ended her maintenance period in March and carried out various training drills in preparation for the deployment.

One of these trials the warship shoot down a series of attack drones during Exercise Sharpshooter - where sailors had to deal with various simulated threats from the air and the water. The exercise aimed to test the destroyer’s air defence capabilities, which will be her primary task on the deployment.

The destroyer recently had her propulsion system upgraded, She is equipped with Sea Viper missiles, a 4.5-inch gun, Phalanx Gatling guns and other weapons - while also being able to house Wildcat helicopters armed with Martlet missiles.

HMS Richmond

The Type 23 frigate will join HMS Prince of Wales after being assigned to various operations last year. She spent much of 2024 in the Red Sea, protecting merchant ships from Iranian-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen.

Sailors were in the line of fire around the Bab-al-Mandeb Strait and Gulf of Aden. Her Sea Ceptor missiles were fired once to shoot down a large swarm of drones. Rebels launched 57 missiles and drones from various sites in Yemen during that month. During the deployment, the Duke-class ship travelled over 22,000 nautical miles.

She is a specialist anti-submarine hunter armed with Sting Ray torpedoes and Sea Ceptor air defence missiles.

RFA Tidespring and RFA Argus

Royal Fleet Auxiliary tankers will be deployed alongside the UKCSG to provide munitions support. RFA Tidespring, a 39,000 tonne Tide-class tanker, will be the primary support vessel on the deployment. She previously worked alongside the Royal Navy flagship during Exercise Strike Warrior near Scotland in October last year.

Civilian sailors carried out replenishment at sea trials and other operations. Royal Navy fleets rely on the RFA during major deployments as vital supplies such as fuel, ammunition, spare equipment, water resources and other equipment housed there. RFA Tidespring’s regular crew of 60 sailors is expected to swell up to more than 100.

RFA Argus is expected to join Operation Highmast near its conclusion, as the tanker conducts sea trials and edges closer to re-joining the fleet.

Astute-class submarine

Astute-class submarines were previously used during a UKCSG deployment in 2021. These nuclear-powered attack vessels, which can carry a crew of roughly 100 personnel, are armed with Spearfish torpedoes and Tomahawk cruise missiles. Their aim will be to protect the formation from underwater threats and other ordinances.

Norwegian vessels HNoMS Roald Amundsen and HNoMS Maud

Naval forces from Norway are expected to play a vital role in Operation Highmast. Defence secretary John Healey announced their participation in August last year.

HNoMS Roald Amundsen, a Fridtjof Nansen-class frigate, can house a crew of 120 personnel. Her weapons include the Evolved Sea Sparrow Missile, which has a range of more than 30 miles. She can also carry the Naval Strike Missile - primarily used to deal with surface targets - and a 76mm Melara Super Rapid gun.

HNoMS Maud is a replenishment oiler which offers support in a similar way to the RFA ships. She previously carried out replenishment at sea drills with HMS Prince of Wales during Exercise Strike Warrior. The Norwegian was built at the same shipyard in South Korea as RFA Tidespring, so both vessels are visually similar.

Other international ships

Canadian and Spanish sailors will join the group. Roughly 250 personnel will be housed on ESPS Mendez Nunez. The frigate is equipped with a 5-inch gun, SM-2 missiles, Evolved Sea Sparrow Missiles, Harpoon variants and a Sea Hawk helicopter.

HMCS Ville de Quebec, a Canadian frigate which will carry a similar number of sailors. Her main armament is a Bofors 57mm Naval Automatic Gun, while also being equipped with Harpoon anti-ship missiles and Evolved Sea Sparrow Missiles.

The formation will make various port visits alongside allies including US, India, Singapore and Malaysia. A large international contingent of 19 partner nations will take part in Exercise Talisman Sabre in Australia, and will train alongside the Japanese Self Defence Forces.