PREVIEW

Pictured: Royal Navy sailors onboard HMS Prince of Wales waving at the crowds onshore as she leaves HMNB Portsmouth on an eight-month mission.

The UK’s premier naval deployment of 2025 sailed today, led by the nation’s flagship, the aircraft carrier HMS Prince of Wales.

HMS Prince of Wales left Portsmouth as she prepares to lead an international task force to the Indo-Pacific on an eight-month mission to demonstrate UK and allied collective resolve and determination to maintain security and freedom from the Atlantic to the Pacific.

Between now and December, the Carrier Strike Group will conduct a series of exercises and operations with air, sea and land forces of a dozen allies in the Mediterranean, Middle East, South-east Asia, Japan and Australia.

OP HIGHMAST is a multinational deployment to the Indo-Pacific, led by the Royal Navy Flagship HMS Prince of Wales, reaffirming the UK’s commitment to the security of the Mediterranean and Indo-Pacific, while providing an opportunity to promote British trade and industry.