The Royal Navy aircraft carrier HMS Prince of Wales arrived in Darwin on July 23, marking the first port visit to Australia by a British aircraft carrier since HMS Illustrious in 1997.
The arrival of the UK Carrier Strike Group's flagship in Australia’s Northern Territory brings to a close its involvement in the country's largest military exercise of the year, Talisman Sabre 2025. The exercise involves approximately 35,000 personnel from 19 nations and runs until early August.
For the past couple of weeks, the carrier and its strike group have been operating off Australia’s northern coast, at times in conjunction with the USS George Washington carrier group. The HMS Prince of Wales also hosted US Marine Corps MV-22 Osprey aircraft on its flight deck.
The visit is part of Operation Highmast, an eight-month global deployment by the naval force operating on behalf of the British Government. The navy said that upwards of 4,500 British military personnel will be involved throughout the course of the deployment, including 2,500 Royal Navy sailors and Royal Marines.