Mighty US and Royal Navy carrier force operates in the Timor Sea

A mighty allied naval force with US and Royal Navy aircraft carriers at its heart is operating in the Timor Sea as the largest military exercise ever staged in Australia moves up a gear.

HMS Prince of Wales is leading the UK Carrier Strike Group in Exercise Talisman Sabre, which involves some 35,000 personnel from 19 nations spread over a vast area spanning the Northern Territory and Queensland from Darwin to Brisbane.

As allies demonstrate their commitment to the collective security of the Indo-Asia-Pacific region, the US Navy’s George Washington Carrier Strike Group joined up with the UK Carrier Strike Group for dual carrier operations in the Timor Sea – between the Australian mainland and Timor-Leste and Indonesia.

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.

In the double carrier formation was: US Navy Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS George Washington (CVN 73), US Navy Ticonderoga-class guided-missile cruiser USS Robert Smalls (CG 62), US Navy Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Shoup (DDG 86), Royal Navy Queen Elizabeth-class aircraft carrier HMS Prince of Wales (R09), Royal Navy Daring-class air-defence destroyer HMS Dauntless (D33), Royal Fleet Auxiliary Tide-class tanker RFA Tidespring (A136), Royal Australian Navy Hobart-class air warfare destroyer HMAS Sydney (DDG 42), Royal Norwegian Navy Fridtof Nansen-class frigate HNoMS Roald Amundsen (F311), and Royal Canadian Navy Halifax-class frigate HMCS Ville de Québec (FFH 332).

All three of the UK Armed Forces are involved in Talisman Sabre 2025. Aside from the Carrier Strike Group, UK Commando Forces will be heavily engaged throughout the exercise, alongside a Ranger Battalion from the Army and RAF Voyager aircraft.

In addition, Space Command, cyber and electronic warfare specialists and military medics have deployed to Australia.

UK flagship HMS Prince of Wales with her F-35B Lightning jets, Merlin and Wildcat helicopters provides the carrier strike element, supported by her escort warships.

The task group patrols waters off the northern coast of Australia, while amphibious raids are carried out in northern Queensland and Shoalwater Bay, some 400 miles up the coast from Brisbane.

Top to Bottom – United States Warships USS Robert Smalls, USS Shoup and British Ship RFA Tidespring. 18th July 25 – HMS Prince of Wales sails alongside US Carrier USS George Washington as the UK Carrier Strike Group integrates with US Navy forces during Exercise Talisman Sabre 25. This powerful demonstration of allied naval strengths highlights the deep operational ties between partner nations, uniting carrier aviation and advanced maritime capabilities from the United Kingdom, USA, Australia, Canada and Norway in a dynamic display of readiness across the Indo-Pacific. Spread over a vast area spanning the Northern Territory and Queensland from Darwin to Brisbane, the Australian-US led Exercise Talisman Sabre involves around 35,000 military personnel from 19 nations. Now in it’s 11th iteration, the goal of the exercise is to demonstrate the commitment of allies and partners to the collective security of the Indo-Asia Pacific region. UK Flagship HMS Prince of Wales with her F-35B Lightning jets, Merlin and Wildcat helicopters provides the carrier strike element, supported by her escorts, frigate, HMS Richmond and Destroyer HMS Dauntless, and international frigates HNoMS Ronald Amundsen (Norway), HMCS Ville de Quebec (Canada), SPS Mendez Nunez (Spain) and HMNZS Te Kaha (New Zealand). Tanker RFA Tidespring is keeping the force – and other allied ships – on station by supplying them with fuel. The UK Commando Forces will be heavily engaged throughout the exercise, alongside a Ranger Battalion from the Army and RAF Voyager aircraft.

Canadian Warship – HMCS Vill De Quebec. 18th July 25 – HMS Prince of Wales sails alongside US Carrier USS George Washington as the UK Carrier Strike Group integrates with US Navy forces during Exercise Talisman Sabre 25. This powerful demonstration of allied naval strengths highlights the deep operational ties between partner nations, uniting carrier aviation and advanced maritime capabilities from the United Kingdom, USA, Australia, Canada and Norway in a dynamic display of readiness across the Indo-Pacific. Spread over a vast area spanning the Northern Territory and Queensland from Darwin to Brisbane, the Australian-US led Exercise Talisman Sabre involves around 35,000 military personnel from 19 nations. Now in it’s 11th iteration, the goal of the exercise is to demonstrate the commitment of allies and partners to the collective security of the Indo-Asia Pacific region. UK Flagship HMS Prince of Wales with her F-35B Lightning jets, Merlin and Wildcat helicopters provides the carrier strike element, supported by her escorts, frigate, HMS Richmond and Destroyer HMS Dauntless, and international frigates HNoMS Ronald Amundsen (Norway), HMCS Ville de Quebec (Canada), SPS Mendez Nunez (Spain) and HMNZS Te Kaha (New Zealand). Tanker RFA Tidespring is keeping the force – and other allied ships – on station by supplying them with fuel. The UK Commando Forces will be heavily engaged throughout the exercise, alongside a Ranger Battalion from the Army and RAF Voyager aircraft.

Top to Bottom – United States Aircraft Carrier, USS George Washington and UK Aircraft Carrier, HMS Prince of Wales. 18th July 25 – HMS Prince of Wales sails alongside US Carrier USS George Washington as the UK Carrier Strike Group integrates with US Navy forces during Exercise Talisman Sabre 25. This powerful demonstration of allied naval strengths highlights the deep operational ties between partner nations, uniting carrier aviation and advanced maritime capabilities from the United Kingdom, USA, Australia, Canada and Norway in a dynamic display of readiness across the Indo-Pacific. Spread over a vast area spanning the Northern Territory and Queensland from Darwin to Brisbane, the Australian-US led Exercise Talisman Sabre involves around 35,000 military personnel from 19 nations. Now in it’s 11th iteration, the goal of the exercise is to demonstrate the commitment of allies and partners to the collective security of the Indo-Asia Pacific region. UK Flagship HMS Prince of Wales with her F-35B Lightning jets, Merlin and Wildcat helicopters provides the carrier strike element, supported by her escorts, frigate, HMS Richmond and Destroyer HMS Dauntless, and international frigates HNoMS Ronald Amundsen (Norway), HMCS Ville de Quebec (Canada), SPS Mendez Nunez (Spain) and HMNZS Te Kaha (New Zealand). Tanker RFA Tidespring is keeping the force – and other allied ships – on station by supplying them with fuel. The UK Commando Forces will be heavily engaged throughout the exercise, alongside a Ranger Battalion from the Army and RAF Voyager aircraft.

Left to right: Norwegian warship HNoMS Roald Amundsen, HMS Prince of Wales, HMS Richmond, Australian Warship HMAS Sydney. 11 July 2025 – Ships from the UK Carrier Strike Group formed up and sailed together off the coast of western Australia. The Carrier Strike Group is the Royal Navy’s key deployment of 2025. Led by UK flagship HMS Prince of Wales and involving a dozen nations, the eight-month mission – known as Operation HIGHMAST – will take the task group to the western Pacific Rim via the Mediterranean and Middle East with a series of large-scale exercises with Britain’s allies and partners. More than 3,000 British forces are taking part in the largest military exercise Australia has ever hosted, as the UK’s Carrier Strike Group (CSG25) demonstrates Britain’s unwavering commitment to Indo-Pacific security. The Carrier Strike Group is in Australia as part of Operation Highmast, the major global deployment that demonstrates Britain’s strategic commitment to the Indo-Pacific. From British Gurkhas to US Marines to Australian Defence Force amphibious specialists, Exercise Talisman Sabre 25 serves as one of the deployment’s key moments, bringing together multinational forces to strengthen and test how nations can work together to safeguard global trade routes and maintain regional stability. Spanning a vast area across Western Australia, the Northern Territory, Queensland, and New South Wales, the Australian-US led biennial exercise is bigger than ever, involving over 35,000 military personnel from 19 nations – making Talisman Sabre the largest exercise of the CSG’s deployment and one of the largest military exercises in the world this year. For the first time, offshore activities will also be conducted in Papua New Guinea. *** Local Caption ***

U.S. Navy aircraft, attached to Carrier Air Wing (CVW) 5, fly over U.S. Navy George Washington Carrier Strike Group, as it participates in dual carrier operations alongside U.K. HMS Prince of Wales Carrier Strike Group while underway in the Timor Sea, as part of Talisman Sabre, July 18, 2025. U.S. Navy Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS George Washington (CVN 73) sails in formation with U.S. Navy Ticonderoga-class guided-missile cruiser USS Robert Smalls (CG 62), U.S. Navy Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Shoup (DDG 86), U.K. Royal Navy Queen Elizabeth-class aircraft carrier HMS Prince of Wales (R09), U.K. Royal Navy Daring-class air-defence destroyer HMS Dauntless (D33), U.K. Royal Navy Duke-class frigate HMS Richmond (F239), British Royal Fleet Auxiliary Tide-class tanker RFA Tidespring (A136), Royal Australian Navy Hobart-class air warfare destroyer HMAS Sydney (DDG 42), Royal Norwegian Navy Fridtof Nansen-class frigate HNoMS Roald Amundsen (F311), and Royal Canadian Navy Halifax-class frigate HMCS Ville de Québec (FFH 332). Talisman Sabre is the largest bilateral military exercise between Australia and the United States advancing a free and open Indo-Pacific by strengthening relationships and interoperability among key allies and partners, while enhancing our collective capabilities to respond to a wide array of potential security concerns. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Tyler Crowley)