UK Carrier Strike Group

The UK Carrier Strike Group (UKCSG) is a carrier battle group of the Royal Navy. It has existed in various forms since the mid-2000s. Between 2006 and 2011, the formation centred around the Royal Navy's s until the retirement of their Harrier GR9 strike aircraft in 2011 as a result of the Strategic Defence and Security Review. The UKCSG subsequently returned in February 2015 ahead of the entry into service of the new s, and . The aim of the CSG is to facilitate carrier-enabled power projection.

Overview

Role

As a unit within the Royal Navy, the UK Carrier Strike Group's role is to facilitate carrier-enabled power projection (CEPP) in support of the UK's interests. As a self-contained force, it is capable of operating independently or as part of a wider operation. The unit is centred around either of two ''Queen Elizabeth''-class aircraft carriers, which are designed to carry up to 40 aircraft each, with accompanying surface ships and submarines providing protection from air, surface and undersea threats. Initially, only one carrier strike group was to be maintained, however, under current strategic planning, two carrier strike groups will now be maintained with one held at very high readiness and the other at lower readiness. Both of these groups can surge and form a combined unit if required.

Size and composition

The size and composition of the UKCSG varies depending on operational requirements which are decided upon during operational planning. A typical CSG consists of a ''Queen Elizabeth''-class aircraft carrier, two surface escorts (with one being a Type 23 frigate for anti-submarine warfare and the other being a Type 45 destroyer for anti-air warfare), a submarine and a fleet tanker. In the future, escort duties will also be provided by the Royal Navy's new Type 26 and Type 31 frigates. For replenishment-at-sea, the Royal Fleet Auxiliary provides its Tide-class fleet tankers, which were specifically designed to refuel the aircraft carriers, in addition to RFA ''Fort Victoria'' for dry stores. ''Fort Victoria'' is the only ship capable of resupplying the aircraft carriers with dry stores but a programme to replace her with three new fleet solid support ships is underway, aiming to deliver the first new vessel in 2031. As of 2024, the Royal Navy and Royal Fleet Auxiliary were experiencing considerable challenges keeping adequate numbers of destroyers, frigates and support ships at sea due to both personnel shortages and because of the age of some vessels. Until adequate numbers of escorts and support ships become more readily available (as newer vessels are projected to enter service in the latter 2020s and early 2030s), the deployment of a carrier strike group is increasingly reliant on ships provided by allies. Overseas, the UK has established a number of naval facilities to support the UKCSG, including the naval base and the UK Joint Logistics Support Base, which are located in Bahrain and Oman, respectively.

The ''Queen Elizabeth''-class aircraft carriers are designed to carry around 40 aircraft but can carry up to 72 at maximum capacity. Its Carrier Air Wing (CVW) will consist of up to 24 F-35B Lightning II multirole fighters by 2023. This is in addition to around 14 helicopters of varying types. For a Maritime Force Protection tasking, the CVW may consist of Merlin HM2 helicopters operating in both the anti-submarine warfare and airborne early warning (AEW) roles. For a Littoral Manoeuvre package, it may consist of a mixture of Chinook and Merlin Mk3i/4 transport helicopters and Apache AH1 and/or Wildcat AH1 attack helicopters. By 2030, the Royal Navy aims to replace some of these helicopter platforms with medium-sized fixed wing unmanned aerial vehicles, currently known as Vixens, capable of undertaking strike, air-to-air refueling, electronic warfare and airborne early warning missions.

Previous formations

The Royal Navy has operated task groups centred around aircraft carriers since the introduction of , the world's first aircraft carrier with a full length flight deck, in 1918. During the Second World War, it operated 85 aircraft carriers of various types which were deployed in task forces alongside battleships, destroyers and cruisers.

In 1950, during the Korea War, the Royal Navy deployed several aircraft carriers as part of a Commonwealth Task Force, which also comprised seven cruisers, eight destroyers, 14 frigates, two submarines, two depot ships, twelve tankers and a hospital ship. In 1956, during the Suez Crisis, the Royal Navy formed a combined naval task force with the French Navy, named Task Force 345, which comprised five aircraft carriers, in addition to numerous cruisers, destroyers, frigates, minelayers, minesweepers and assault ships.

The 1982 Falklands War saw the deployment of a 127-ship naval task force to retake the Falkland Islands and South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands after they had been captured by Argentina. The aircraft carrier group, named Task Group 317.8, included the aircraft carriers and , alongside numerous escort and support ships.

During the 1990s, the Royal Navy deployed the aircraft carriers and HMS ''Invincible'' during the Yugoslav Wars. ''Ark Royal'' was the first to deploy as the lead ship of Task Group 612, which also included two frigates and three support ships. Harrier jets operating from both carriers saw action, and one was shot down by an enemy surface-to-air missile.

In 2000, the aircraft carrier provided air protection for British forces involved in Operation Palliser, the British military intervention in the Sierra Leone Civil War. She operated as part of a task force which also included two escorts, a helicopter carrier and five support ships. In 2001, ''Illustrious'' also provided air protection to coalition forces during the invasion phase of the War in Afghanistan (2001–2021). She was accompanied by three escorts and eight support ships. In 2003, HMS ''Ark Royal'' participated in the Iraq War as a helicopter carrier, alongside six escorts, eight minehunters, two submarines, a helicopter carrier and numerous support ships.

Operational history

2006–2011

The earliest iteration of the UK Carrier Strike Group originally formed in 2006 with Commodore Alan Richards in command. It centred around either of two s, and . In one of its final deployments, it demonstrated its capabilities alongside the US Navy off the east coast of the United States during Exercise Auriga in 2010. Following the exercise, the captain of ''Ark Royal'' remarked: "Today was a great opportunity for us to demonstrate some of the capabilities that the UK Carrier Strike Group has, particularly the GR9 Harrier and Merlin ASW helicopters operating from HMS Ark Royal". As an example of the size and composition of a UK CSG of that era, the Auriga CSG consisted of the aircraft carrier HMS ''Ark Royal'', along with her air wing of Harrier GR9 strike aircraft, Merlin HM1 anti-submarine warfare (ASW) helicopters and Sea King MK7 airborne surveillance and control (ASaC) helicopters. The aircraft carrier was escorted by the Type 42 destroyer and Type 23 frigate , in addition to French Navy submarine ''Perle'' and US Navy destroyer . of the Royal Fleet Auxiliary provided replenishment.

In 2010, the British government announced that all Harriers would be retired from service, along with HMS ''Ark Royal''. This left ''Illustrious'' serving in a helicopter carrier role whilst replacement aircraft carriers and their associated air wings were procured. The UK Carrier Strike Group dissolved in 2011 with Commodore Simon J. Ancona as its final commander. ''Illustrious'' later went on to decommission in 2014, three years ahead of her replacements' entry into service.

2015–present

In 2015, the UKCSG was re-formed with Commodore Jerry Kyd as its commander. Under his direction, the UK CSG battle staff grew to include 22 core one-star battle staff by 2016. Kyd was later succeeded by Commodore Andrew Betton during the same year, who himself was succeeded in 2018 by Commodore Mike Utley, before the current commander, Commodore Stephan Moorhouse, took command in 2019. Prior to the entry into service of HMS ''Queen Elizabeth'' and her sister ship ''Prince of Wales'', the Royal Navy cooperated with its allies to preserve and develop its skills in carrier strike group operations. This primarily involved Royal Navy ships and personnel training with US Navy and French carrier strike groups.

The current UKCSG assembled at sea for the first time in October 2020 during Exercise Joint Warrior. It comprised a total of nine ships, 15 fighter aircraft (five from the Royal Air Force and 10 from the US Marine Corps), 11 helicopters and 3,000 personnel. The Royal Navy ships included the aircraft carrier HMS ''Queen Elizabeth'' along with two frigates, two destroyers, a replenishment ship and a solid support ship. The US Navy and Royal Netherlands Navy also provided an escort each. The exercise saw the largest number of aircraft on a British aircraft carrier since 1983, in addition to the largest number of F-35Bs at sea across the globe. The exercise was a rehearsal for an operational deployment scheduled for 2021, known as CSG21.

Following Exercise Joint Warrior, the UK CSG reached its initial operating capability (IOC) milestone in January 2021. This milestone marked the successful operation of all components of the CSG and made it available for operational deployments for the first time.

Carrier Strike Group 21 (Operation Fortis, Exercise Steadfast Defender)

On 22 May 2021, following a farewell visit from Queen Elizabeth II, the UK Carrier Strike Group left HMNB Portsmouth on its first operational deployment, a seven-and-a-half month roundtrip to the Pacific, visiting over 40 countries. Joining lead ship HMS ''Queen Elizabeth'' were Type 45 destroyers and , Type 23 frigates and , ''Astute''-class nuclear attack submarine and two Royal Fleet Auxiliary supply ships, and . United States Navy destroyer and of the Royal Netherlands Navy were also assigned to the strike group. In total, approximately 3,700 sailors, aviators and marines from across the three countries were involved with the deployment. The strike group's air component amounted to over 30 aircraft, the majority of which were onboard HMS ''Queen Elizabeth''. These included eight F-35B Lightning multirole combat aircraft from No. 617 Squadron RAF and ten from the United States Marine Corps' VMFA-211 "Wake Island Avengers". Three Merlin HM2 Crowsnest airborne surveillance and control (ASaC) aircraft were also deployed on the type's first operational deployment.

Whilst in the Mediterranean, the carrier strike group exercised with the Italian Navy and Air Force, the and its accompanying strike group, as well as other NATO navies during Exercise Steadfast Defender. The strike group also carried out its first ever combat operations, launching F-35B Lightning multirole combat aircraft on strike sorties against Islamic State in Iraq and Syria. Whilst these missions were underway, HMS ''Defender'' and HNLMS ''Evertsen'' detached from the strike group and headed into the Black Sea to carry out Freedom of Navigation Operations (FONOPs). Whilst transiting from Odesa, Ukraine to Batumi, Georgia, HMS ''Defender'' entered the waters around Crimea, the centre of a Russian-Ukrainian sovereignty dispute, which resulted in the Russian authorities firing warning shots. Elsewhere in the Black Sea, HNLMS ''Evertsen'' also faced mock attacks by the Russian Air Force. To further monitor the strike group, Russia deployed strike bombers equipped with Kh-47M2 Kinzhal anti-ship ballistic missiles to an airbase in Syria. By 7 July 2021, both HMS ''Defender'' and HNLMS ''Evertsen'' had rejoined the strike group and it left the region via the Suez Canal. HMS ''Diamond'' was no longer part of the strike group, having suffered a defect.

In the Gulf of Aden, the carrier strike group met with two US Navy task groups, Carrier Strike Group 5 headed by and 's Amphibious Ready Group. The carrier strike group then exercised with the Indian Navy in the Bay of Bengal before exercising with the navies of Singapore, Malaysia and Thailand in the Strait of Malacca. Finally, in the Indo-Pacific region, the strike group exercised with the Japanese Maritime Self-Defence Force and Republic of Korea Navy.

During its return trip, the strike group exercised with the Italian Navy in the Mediterranean; HMS ''Queen Elizabeth'' set a record by hosting jets from three different nations on a single flightdeck. During its time in the Mediterranean, HMS ''Queen Elizabeth'' suffered its first loss of an F-35B when one crashed into the sea following an aborted takeoff. The pilot ejected safely but the aircraft was a complete loss and was subsequently recovered from the seabed two weeks later. The strike group returned to the UK and concluded its deployment on 9 December 2021.

The CSG21 deployment was covered by documentary filmmaker Chris Terrill in a BBC series, named ''The Warship: Tour of Duty''. It aired on 22 January 2023.

Carrier Strike Group 22 (Operation Achillian)

Following the conclusion of CSG21, a 2022 deployment was planned with the involvement of both aircraft carriers. However, HMS ''Prince of Wales'' suffered a starboard propeller malfunction in August 2022. The deployment was subsequently downscaled as HMS ''Queen Elizabeth'' was diverted to the United States to replace ''Prince of Wales'' in hosting the Atlantic Future Forum. After returning from the US, ''Queen Elizabeth'' embarked eight F-35 jets and seven helicopters. The strike group participated in Operation Achillian with NATO forces in the North Sea to validate NATO's fifth-generation strike capability. Anti-submarine warfare exercises were also carried out alongside RAF P-8 Poseidons operating from RAF Lossiemouth in Scotland.

Carrier Strike Group 23 (Operation Firedrake, Exercise Standfast Defender)

In September 2023, HMS ''Queen Elizabeth'' sailed as the centrepiece of the CSG23 deployment, codenamed Operation Firedrake. The carrier strike group consisted of ''Queen Elizabeth'', with a wholly British air group, alongside and Norway's HNoMS ''Otto Sverdrup''. In October, and later , joined the carrier group. The group operated in European waters alongside ships from a number of other navies, including France, Germany, the Netherlands, Belgium and Norway. Part of the deployment saw the carrier strike group operating under the direct command of NATO for the first time.

Carrier Strike Group 24 (Exercise Steadfast Defender)

In January 2024, the UK announced its participation in Steadfast Defender 2024, the largest NATO military exercise since the end of the Cold War, involving assets from all three armed services, including the Royal Navy's Carrier Strike Group, headed by HMS ''Queen Elizabeth''. Prior to sailing, routine checks of ''Queen Elizabeth'' revealed faults with the ship's starboard propeller shaft and so the ship was pulled from the exercise. Sister ship ''Prince of Wales'', which was in maintenance and normally at 30 days notice to sail, was hastily readied and deployed as her replacement in just eight days. The carrier strike group comprised four British ships, namely ''Prince of Wales'', a Type 23 frigate (initially reported as but later confirmed as ) and two ''Tide''-class tankers. They were joined in the North Sea by the frigate of the Royal Canadian Navy, the destroyer ''Cristobal Colon'' of the Spanish Navy and the frigate HDMS ''Niels Juel'' of the Royal Norwegian Navy. As part of the UK-led Exercise Joint Warrior, the CSG operated off the Norwegian coast alongside more than 30 ships, four submarines and multiple aircraft from NATO allies. The CSG then participated in the next phase of the exercise, the Norwegian-led Exercise Nordic Response, which culminated in a 15-ship formation, led by ''Prince of Wales'', combining the UKCSG with a NATO Amphibious Task Group. HMS ''Queen Elizabeth'', meanwhile, underwent repairs and eventually returned to sea in July 2024.

Carrier Strike Group 25 (Operation Highmast)

In December 2023, the UK government announced it would be deploying a carrier strike group to the Pacific Ocean in 2025. These plans were reconfirmed by the newly-elected Labour government in December 2024. The deployment began on 22 April 2025, code-named Operation Highmast, with the involvement of the aircraft carrier HMS ''Prince of Wales'', destroyer , frigate and an Astute class attack submarine. RFA Tidespring was also deployed to provide underway replenishment. ''Prince of Wales'' will embark up to 24 F-35B Lightning jets — the largest maritime deployment of the type to date. The carrier strike group also involves ships from foreign navies; Canada and Spain deployed a frigate each ( HMCS ''Ville de Québec'' and ''Méndez Núñez'', respectively) for the majority of the deployment, while two Norwegian ships, the frigate and support ship , were to be involved for the whole duration. However, in June it was reported that ''Maud'' had left the task force and returned to the Mediterranean.

In the Mediterranean, the carrier strike group participated in the large-scale NATO exercise Neptune Strike 25. The exercises were supported by the Marine Services vessel SD Northern River. The task group then sailed through the Red Sea crisis area to conduct exercises in the Indo-Pacific with Australia, Japan, India Singapore, Malaysia and the United States. Whilst in the region, two Australian destroyers, and , and one New Zealand frigate, , will join the strike group.

While it was initially reported that the submarine assigned to the task group was , she was reported to have returned to the U.K. from Gibraltar in June meaning that another submarine from the ''Astute''-class was possibly deployed with the task group.

Unlike CSG21, there are no dedicated solid support ships attached to the strike group, such as RFA ''Fort Victoria'', which is currently awaiting refit. Instead, the CSG will rely on the limited solid stores support provided by ''Tidespring'' and ''Maud'', as well as a number of Malloy T150 heavy lift cargo drones deployed with the task group. The RAF has also pre-positioned supplies along the route.

The carrier strike group was initially expected to deploy 18 F-35B fighters (increasing to 24 during the course of the deployment) as well as a mixed fleet of 16 Wildcat HMA2 and Merlin HM2/HC4 helicopters, mostly on HMS ''Prince of Wales'' but also deployed on other vessels of the task group. Nine of the Merlin HM2s from 820 Squadron were specifically assigned to ''Prince of Wales'', six in the ASW role and three in the AEW role. Three flights of UAVs were also embarked with the task group including the T-150 heavy-lift drones as well as Puma surveillance UAVs.

The CSG arrived in the Ionian Sea on 4 May in preperation for Exercise Med Strike with the Italian Navy. During its transit through the western Mediterranean, the CSG was shadowed by Russian intelligence ship ''Viktor Leonov''.

On 9 and 10 June, the Carrier Strike Group conducted a Passage Exercise (PASSEX) with the Indian Navy which involved , a submarine and a Boeing P-8I Neptune maritime patrol aircraft as well as HMS ''Prince of Wales'' and HMS ''Richmond''. The exercises, held in Northern Arabian Sea, showcased synchronised tactical manoeuvres and unified helicopter control operations highlighting the interoperability of the forces.

On 14 June 2025, a Royal Navy F-35B operating from HMS ''Prince of Wales'' made an emergency landing at the Thiruvananthapuram International Airport of Kerala, India at 9:28 pm IST. Reportedly, after multiple failed attempts to land on the aircraft carrier, the jet began running low on fuel, prompting the pilot to issue a distress signal requesting permission to land at the airport. In response, a full-scale emergency was declared at the airport to ensure all necessary precautions were in place. The jet made a safe landing, and the aircraft was subsequently taxied to and parked in an isolated bay. The British authorities subsequently changed the aircraft crew and ferried in another pilot via helicopter from the aircraft carrier at around 5 pm the following day. The aircraft was to take off from the airport later that day after the Indian Ministry of Defence grants it clearance. The Indian Air Force confirmed the incident and that the aircraft was operating outside India's Air Defence Identification Zone (ADIZ) but was later detected and identified by India's Integrated Air Command and Control System (IACCS) and was cleared to land.

References

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Naval units and formations of the United Kingdom
Expeditionary units and formations