Name: HMS Prince of Wales prepares to leave Portsmouth for Carrier Strike Group op
Uploaded: 2025-04-22T18:07:24.000Z
Duration: 10 min 59 s
Description: HMS Prince of Wales will be deployed to the Indo-Pacific for eight months, where she will conduct a range of military drills and diplomatic visits. She will take charge of a large strike group involving other warships, a plethora of aircraft and forces from other countries.

Crowds gathered in Old Portsmouth this afternoon (April 22) to say farewell and good luck to the Royal Navy’s flagship as she starts a huge global mission.

HMS Prince of Wales has departed from HMNB Portsmouth and is heading towards the Indo-Pacific, with well-wishers, friends and family members packing Old Portsmouth to give her a great send off. She will be taking charge of the UK Carrier Strike Group (UKCSG) - a large military formation of warships, aircraft and assets from British allies.

The £3 billion aircraft carrier will lead the Carrier Strike Group (CSG) made up of UK, Norwegian and Canadian warships for the eight-month deployment to join exercises, operations and visits with 40 countries across the Mediterranean, Middle East, south-east Asia, Japan and Australia.

Banners and flags were waved by members of the public from the walls and beach of Portsmouth harbour with sailors aboard the 65,000-tonne warship waving back to cheers from the crowds as they passed.

Also sailing from the Hampshire naval base this afternoon (Tuesday) was the Type 45 destroyer HMS Dauntless with crowds also gathering for her send-off.

They will then be joined by two Norwegian vessels – tanker HNoMS Maud and frigate HNoMS Roald Amundsen – as well as the UK and Canadian frigates HMS Richmond and HMCS Ville de Quebec, which are sailing from Plymouth.

The support vessel Royal Fleet Auxiliary tanker RFA Tidespring will make up the final ship in the CSG which will involve other ships and nations during the deployment called Operation Highmast.

See below for more details of the deployment and pictures and video from the scene, see our blog below.