US and UK Aircraft Carriers Team Up in the Pacific
The UK and US navies conducted joint exercises during Talisman Sabre 2025, marking an expansion of interoperability efforts with F-35s, despite aircraft compatibility limitations between carriers.
The Royal Navy’s flagship aircraft carrier and the United States Navy’s only forward-deployed nuclear-powered supercarrier took part in joint drills off the northern coast of Australia as part of the ongoing Exercise Talisman Sabre 2025. The multilateral event has drawn together 19 nations and partners, and this year marked the first time a Royal Navy flattop took part.
HMS Prince of Wales and Carrier Strike Group 2025 (CSG25) took part as part of the larger Operational Highmast, just the second deployment of a Royal Navy carrier to the Pacific this century. The warship departed from Portsmouth, England, in April and has already participated in a NATO training exercise in the Mediterranean, as well as carried out joint drills with the Indian Navy.
The Royal Navy flagship operated with the US Navy’s Nimitz-class carrier USS George Washington (CVN-73). It was the first bilateral exercise for the American carrier since it returned to Japan last November after completing its mid-life Refueling and Complex Overhaul (RCOH) in 2023.
“This powerful demonstration of naval power brings together advanced capabilities and carrier aviation, including HMS Prince of Wales’ air group of F-35B Lightning jets,” the Royal Navy said in a statement to the media, per USNI News.
What Is Exercise Talisman Sabre 2025?
This year marked the 11th iteration of the Australian-hosted military exercises, which this year is seeing participation from the Canada, Fiji, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Japan, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, Norway, the Philippines, Singapore, South Korea, Thailand, Tonga, the United Kingdom, and the United States.
Malaysia and Vietnam sent observers for the first time and have expressed interest in participating in future drills.
The exercises are spread over 5,300 kilometers (3,300 miles), with a total of seven live-fire exercises planned. The wargames are being conducted at more than 80 Australian training bases. For the first time, events are also being carried out in Papua New Guinea, according to the Asian Military Review.
What Did the American and British Aircraft Carriers Do?
The two flattops carried out the joint exercises, but they didn’t include any cross-deck operations due to a lack of compatibility with the air wings. The Royal Navy’s flagship is currently embarked with 17 Lockheed Martin F-35Bs, the short takeoff and vertical landing (STOVL) variant of the Joint Strike Fighter. It had departed Portsmouth with 18 of the fifth-generation multirole stealth fighters; however, one of the aircraft suffered a mishap and was forced to land at the Thiruvananthapuram International Airport in India last month.
By contrast, USS George Washington operates the F-35C, the carrier-based version of the Lightning II, along with the Boeing F/A-18 Super Hornet. Neither of those aircraft can land on HMS Prince of Wales due to its design, which features a ski jump ramp rather than a catapult system for launching aircraft, and lacks arrested landing or trap recovery capabilities.
The F-35B is capable of a vertical takeoff, but it uses additional fuel, which is why the UK’s Queen Elizabeth-class carriers were fitted with the ski jump ramp on the flight deck to aid in aircraft launches.
Australian Forces Join American and British F-35 Joint Exercises
It wasn’t just the F-35s from the two carriers that have been taking part in the ongoing Exercise Talisman Sabre 2025, as an undisclosed number of Royal Australian Air Force’s (RAAF’s) F-35As, the conventional takeoff and landing model, and US Marine Corps F-35Bs from Marine Fighter Attack Squadron 242 (VMFA-242), the “Bats” embarked on the US Navy’s amphibious assault ship USS America (LHA-6) have also carried out joint flight drills.
According to USNI News, “Two VMFA-242 F-35Bs conducted landings, refueling, and take-offs” on HMS Prince of Wales earlier this month in advance of the multinational exercise.
In addition, the Royal Norwegian Air Force (RNoAF) had “planned to send seven F-35As” to take part in the drills, but it was canceled due to a lack of aerial tanks to support the long flight to the land down under. However, the Royal Norwegian Navy is participating, as its frigate HNoMS Roald Amundsen (F311) is part of CSG 25.
About the Author: Peter Suciu
Peter Suciu has contributed over 3,200 published pieces to more than four dozen magazines and websites over a thirty-year career in journalism. He regularly writes about military hardware, firearms history, cybersecurity, politics, and international affairs. Peter is also a Contributing Writer for Forbes and Clearance Jobs. He is based in Michigan. You can follow him on Twitter: @PeterSuciu. You can email the author: Editor@nationalinterest.org.
Image Credit: Wikimedia Commons/Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Samuel Souvannason.
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