UK Carrier Strike Group Returns from Arctic Deployment, Conducted NATO Air Policing Against Russian Aircraft
HMS Prince of Wales returned to Portsmouth on July 24, 2026, after a three-month deployment on NATO's Northern Flank under Operation Firecrest. The carrier strike group, including destroyer HMS Duncan and tanker RFA Tidespring, conducted NATO's Iceland air policing mission from its deck for the first time by a European carrier, intercepting Russian aircraft near the Arctic. The group also participated in Exercise Neptune Strike, with F-35B jets from 809 Naval Air Squadron reaching as far as Poland using aerial refueling from RAF and Italian tankers. The deployment involved 19 allied nations, exercises including Ramstein Flag, Dynamic Mongoose, and Tamber Shield, and port visits to Iceland, Norway, Denmark, and Scotland. The second phase of the deployment is scheduled for autumn in northern European waters.
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