Royal Navy aircraft carrier HMS Prince of Wales sets sail as new NATO mission revealed

The Royal Navy's giant aircraft carrier the HMS Prince of Wales has set sail on a new mission to combat Russia . One of the UK's two active carriers, the 65,000-tonne warship dwarfed its surroundings as it left Portsmouth today on the first leg of its journey towards the Arctic Circle. The ship's crew of 900 are set to take part in combined training in British waters, and will briefly stop in Scotland for ammunition. The HMS Prince of Wales will then join a strike group drawn from across the military on NATO’ s upcoming Arctic Sentry mission, which aims to counter increased Russian and Chinese activity around the North Pole. The Operation Firecrest strike group will tasked with protecting undersea infrastructure, and will work closely with allies from US, Canada , France, Germany, and Norway, for the NATO mission. It follows a 30% increase in Russian naval sightings in British waters over the past two years, including 'spy ships' spotted lurking close to vital telecommunications cables. Commander David Mason, the flagship‘s Commander, said: "HMS Prince of Wales ship’s company is looking forward to sailing, for the first time since returning from deployment in 2025, with their headquarters and air wing embarked." Executive Warrant Officer David Wilson added: "After our time alongside the ship’s company is excited and keen to get back to sea." Announcing the UK carrier strike group back in February, Defence Secretary John Healey MP said: "I’m proud that we’re stepping up UK leadership on High North and Atlantic security. This deployment will help make Britain warfighting ready, boost our contribution to NATO, and strengthen our operations with key allies, keeping the UK secure at home and strong abroad." HMS Prince of Wales had been docked at Portsmouth Naval Base since November after completing an eight-month mission to the western Indo-Pacific. It set sail equipped with Merlin & Wildcat helicopters, and hi-tech Malloy drones. Britain's other aircraft carrier, the HMS Queen Elizabeth, will soon be available for operations after finishing maintenance at Rosyth dockyard this week. The two carriers were ordered by Gordon Brown in 2008 to replace the three older Invincible-class ships. HMS Queen Elizabeth officially joined the fleet in 2017, and HMS Prince of Wales two years later.