HMS Prince of Wales sails for Westlant 23 deployment

Almost exactly a year since breaking down at the start of the Westlant 22 deployment, HMS Prince of Wales will sail from Portsmouth tomorrow to resume the Westlant23 programme.

Once in the English Channel, the ship will conduct trials with W Autonomous Systems STOL UAV to assess the feasibility of drones delivering supplies to warships at sea – initially flying in up to 100kg of stores.

When she eventually arrives off the 🇺🇸USA, the ship will embark F-35B jets for Developmental Test Phase (DT-03) conducting advanced flying trials including Shipbourne Rolling Vertical Landing (SRVL) and proving the jet can be operated in heaviest sea states.

Once F-35 flying is completed, she will conduct trials landing a Mojave RPAS (drone) which can carry a 1,500lb ISR payload or weapons.

Finally flying trials with USMC MV-22 Ospreys will be used to test its operating limits from the ship. This will enable greater capacity for joint operations in the future culminating in HMS Prince of Wales global deployment in 2025.

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Видео HMS Prince of Wales sails for Westlant 23 deployment канала Navy Lookout