![]() So why has the United Kingdom bet big on carrier strike? And what does its return after a decade of capability gaps mean for the future of maritime airpower-not just for the United Kingdom, but also for the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) and key allies such as Norway? Role and Significance of Carrier Strike ![]() Concerns have similarly been raised about the burdens that a CSG places on the wider Navy, affecting the United Kingdom's ability to generate sufficient crew and platform availability for other tasks given its limited fleet of ships and subs. Questions have also been asked about the survivability of large and 'exquisite' platforms such as aircraft carriers in a fast-changing threat environment. This includes doubts over affordability, especially at a time when the United Kingdom is also recapitalising much of its surface fleet, military aircraft, and nuclear deterrent. It has also not been without its share of controversy. Rebuilding this capability has consumed a large portion of the RN's bandwidth and resources. The fanfare also celebrated a return to UK carrier operations after a decade-long 'capability holiday'-the RN having been forced to scrap its Invincible-class light carriers and Harrier jump jets in 2011 amid sharp cuts to defence spending in the austerity years that followed the 2008 financial crisis. While the United Kingdom continues to invest in new capabilities-including acquiring more F-35Bs-and further develop its operating concepts, both for individual platforms and for the CSG at large, this deployment represented the culmination of years of procurement, testing, and preparation. These were joined by unmanned systems and target drones, including the jet-powered, parachute-recovered Banshee. ![]() Marine Corps' VMFA-211 Squadron-along with 4 Wildcat maritime attack helicopters from 815 Naval Air Squadron, 7 Merlin Mk2 anti-submarine and airborne early warning helicopters from 820 Naval Air Squadron, and 3 Merlin Mk4s from 845 Naval Air Squadron (part of the Commando Helicopter Force, which supports the Royal Marines). This included 18 F-35B Lightning II fighters-8 from the Royal Air Force's 617 Squadron, 10 from the U.S. ![]() Between them, they carried 3,700 personnel, including Royal Marines from 42 Commando, as they headed on a 28-week deployment that would take them to 40 countries and the waters of the Mediterranean, Red Sea, Arabian Sea, Indian Ocean, Philippine Sea, and South China Sea.Īs hailed by the Defence Secretary, Ben Wallace MP, this was the “largest concentration of maritime and air power to leave the United Kingdom in a generation.” For the next six months, the flight deck of the £3.2 billion (37 billion NOK) carrier would be home to a small menagerie of aircraft from a mix of squadrons, services, and nations. On, the United Kingdom's Carrier Strike Group (CSG) sailed from Portsmouth and embarked on its maiden operational deployment (CSG 21) led by HMS Queen Elizabeth, which at 65,000 tonnes and 280 metres in length, is the largest warship ever built for the Royal Navy (RN).Įscorting this new flagship were two Type 45 air warfare destroyers, two Type 23 frigates, the American destroyer USS The Sullivans, the Dutch ship HNLMS Evertsen, two Royal Fleet Auxiliary support ships and an Astute-class nuclear attack submarine.
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