HMS Queen Elizabeth took part in a task group exercise ahead of coming home after Westlant 19.
HMS Queen Elizabeth took part in a final task to mark the end of Westlant 19. The NATO exercise began in September with Canadian-lead exercise Cutlass Fury and the Queen Elizabeth worked alongside the RFA Tideforce and Norway’s HNoMS Thor Heyerdahl for the final task.
The final exercise of the deployment took the form of combined NATO/anti-submarine warfare training in the Atlantic. The Westlant 19 deployment also marked the first use of F-35 Lightning jets at sea.
Cdre Steve Moorhouse, Commanding Officer of HMS Queen Elizabeth, said: “This has been an extremely successful deployment for HMS Queen Elizabeth. It’s all been about increasing the complexity and tempo of our activity, building the capability of the strike group and testing ourselves in a demanding training environment with our close partners from the US Navy and Marine Corps.”
“Embarking UK F-35B Lightning for the first time and integrating them within the carrier strike group is a significant milestone and we are well set for an equally demanding 2020 and our first operational deployment in 2021.”
The 5 week operational test phase, headed up by the Air Warfare Centre, was designed to provide ‘end-to-end’ testing of the jets and the combined Royal Navy and Royal Air Force personnel who operate and support the squadrons. The tests included: mission briefs; preparation of the jets – including arming them using the ship’s unique automated weapon handling system; launching; fighting the mission (including weapons drops) and returning to Queen Elizabeth.
The training reached its climax with four UK Lightnings launched from the deck within seconds of each other to fight their mission. At the same time USMC F-35s flew to and from the ship, exercising their processes ahead of a detachment deploying alongside UK jets on the carrier’s maiden operational deployment in 2021.
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Post written by: Ciara Houghton
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