Royal Navy: Pilot expertly flies US aircraft from HMS Prince of Wales as crew continue intense training

The £3.2bn aircraft carrier is currently in the USA after leaving Portsmouth on September 1. Her crew are carrying out Autumn trials alongside their American counterparts.

As part of their schedule, one Fleet Arm Air pilot was tasked with flying a MV-22 Osprey. The aircraft has a similar payload capacity to the Merlin Mk4 used by the Royal Marines – a couple of dozen troops when full – but can carry them as fast as 150mph.

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The pilot, who has not been named for security purposes, said: “The key difference is that the US Marine Corps views the MV-22 as a fixed wing asset which can land and take off vertically – as opposed to a helicopter that can fly faster and further.” The pilot has a wealth of experience in flying Merlin Mk2 helicopters and has trained up and coming service personnel at RAF Shawbury and 705 NAS.

They said handling the American aircraft has been a completely different experience to normal. “Learning to operate a MV-22 is a complete restart for any future Royal Navy exchange pilot,” they added.

Ospreys have been operating from the flight decks of Royal Navy and Royal Fleet Auxiliary ships over the past decade. Despite this familiarity, US crews still need to get used to how the Royal Navy operate and handle different deck layouts, procedures, radio calls and other procedures.

The Osprey pilot said: “Everyone was very eager to be involved and take advantage of an excellent training opportunity for their aircrew. They say ship is huge, very clean, awesome….the deck and Flyco team are great.

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"Everyone I met afterwards has been glowing in their praise of the crew and of the ship. They were especially grateful for the hospitality shown to the Marine Corps personnel whilst onboard and also very impressed with the professionalism of the deck team.

"All of these pieces together added up to a very positive view of HMS Prince of Wales and of the Royal Navy in general.” Officers from destroyers USS Donald Cook and Winston S Churchill joined the carrier as it sailed from Maryport, Florida, to Norfolk, Virginia.

Ensign Rowell, from USS Donald Cook, said: “It’s been great seeing how you operate on the bridge; the automation and technology on board is amazing.”