The Royal Navy aircraft carrier HMS Prince of Wales (R-09) arrived at Marina Bay Cruise Centre, Singapore, on 23 June, marking a key stop in its participation in Operation Highmast 2025.
This deployment underlines the United Kingdom’s strategic commitment to the Indo-Pacific region, in concert with allies and strategic partners.
The vessel, carrying Lockheed Martin F‑35B Lightning II fighters and Augusta/Westland Merlin helicopters, arrived with a crew of 1,600 personnel. It forms the core of the Royal Navy’s most expansive Indo-Pacific deployment for the year.
HMS Prince of Wales is accompanied by a multinational Carrier Strike Group, consisting of several escort vessels. These include the Type 45 destroyer HMS Dauntless (D‑33), the replenishment ship RFA Tidespring (A‑136), and Norway’s Fridtjof Nansen-class frigate HNoMS Roald Amundsen (F‑311).
As of this week, the New Zealand Anzac-class frigate HMNZS Te Kaha (F‑77) has joined the formation. The frigate previously took part in security patrols and counter-narcotics operations in the Indian Ocean alongside the Royal Navy.
Further extending the operation’s multinational dimension, two additional ships—the Type 23 frigate HMS Richmond (F‑239) and Spain’s Álvaro de Bazán-class frigate Méndez Núñez (F‑104)—visited Jakarta, approximately 500 miles from Singapore. Meanwhile, Canada’s Halifax-class frigate HMCS Ville de Québec (FFH‑332) made a port call in Kuala Lumpur.
Speaking at the Singapore port arrival, Captain Will Blackett, commander of HMS Prince of Wales, said, “The entire Carrier Strike Group is looking forward to the upcoming port visits, which are vital for advancing defence diplomacy in support of economic and strategic objectives.”
The United Kingdom opted to have HMS Prince of Wales dock at the Marina Bay Cruise Centre rather than Changi Naval Base to enhance the carrier’s visibility, accessibility, and engagement with the public—especially as the UK and Singapore mark 60 years of diplomatic relations.
UK High Commissioner to Singapore, Nik Mehta, stated during a press briefing on Thursday, “We could have put the carrier into Changi Naval Base, and that is what every other country does, but we wanted to do something different. We wanted to make it more accessible, more visible, and more engaging.”
The operation has not been without incident. One of the carrier’s F‑35B fighters was forced to make an emergency landing at Thiruvananthapuram International Airport in India.
According to the Indian Air Force, the aircraft was tracked by the Integrated Air Command and Control System (IACCS) and granted immediate clearance to land. Support was provided on the ground for repairs before the fighter returned to the carrier.
Operation Highmast 2025 is a complex and lengthy mission, underscoring the UK’s aim to strengthen ties with Indo-Pacific partners while ensuring the security of vital sea lanes.
This extended deployment also facilitates exercises with other navies, enhancing interoperability and collective response capabilities in a geopolitically critical region.
According to the UK Ministry of Defence, the operation aligns with the broader Global Britain agenda, aimed at projecting influence, protecting maritime trade routes, and promoting international stability.
HMS Prince of Wales and its accompanying group are expected to conduct a series of combined exercises with regional navies in the coming weeks, reinforcing shared security objectives in the Indo-Pacific.
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