Over eight months since the launch of Operation Highmast, the Royal Air Force can finally welcome home all of those who have participated and reflect on a deployment that has spanned continents, strengthened partnerships, and demonstrated the UK’s global reach.
From the Mediterranean to the Indo-Pacific, Operation Highmast has been a defining example of the RAF’s ability to project air power worldwide, integrating with Royal Navy, British Army, and Allied forces across three continents.
Global Operation, United Purpose
Over the course of eight months, the Carrier Strike Group (CSG) led by HMS Prince of Wales travelled thousands of miles on a journey that linked Europe, the Middle East, and the Indo-Pacific.
At its peak, more than 4,500 personnel took part - including around 600 from the RAF, 900 from the British Army, and 2,500 from the Royal Navy and Royal Marines, supported by a network of international partners.
The task group included HMS Dauntless, HMS Richmond, an Astute-class submarine, and Allied escorts from Canada, Spain, and Norway, including HMCS Ville de Québec, Méndez Núñez, HNoMS Roald Amundsen and HNoMS Maud.
Together, they formed a visible demonstration of Allied resolve and unity at sea.
Air Power Integration
At the heart of Operation Highmast was the RAF’s huge contribution linking Carrier Strike, Combat Air, Air Mobility, and ISTAR (Intelligence, Surveillance, Target Acquisition, and Reconnaissance) into one global force.
For the first time, two full UK F-35B Lightning squadrons embarked aboard HMS Prince of Wales, operating alongside Typhoon, P-8 Poseidon, and the Air Mobility Force (AMF).
From Voyager tankers providing essential air-to-air refuelling, to A400M Atlas and C-17 Globemaster aircraft delivering personnel, equipment and humanitarian support, AMF kept the mission moving, sustaining the Carrier Strike Group wherever it operated.
This level of integration of assets including 4th- and 5th-generation aircraft underpinned the RAF’s vision of a connected, multi-domain Future Force.
Operational Highlights
Operation Highmast included some of the most complex and far-reaching exercises ever undertaken by the Carrier Strike Group:
- Exercise Med Strike: 21 warships, 3 submarines, 41 fast jets and over 8,000 personnel combined across the Mediterranean.
- Exercise Talisman Sabre: RAF personnel joined 17 partner nations in Australia, demonstrating interoperability across air, land and sea domains.
- Middle East Surge: AMF tankers forward-based at RAF Akrotiri enabled sustained air operations across the Red Sea and Gulf.
- Agile Combat Employment (ACE): RAF engineers worked alongside Australian and Malaysian colleagues at RMAF Kuantan to service a UK F-35B - proving rapid, flexible sustainment in the Indo-Pacific on Ex Bersama Lima.
- Exercise Bersama Lima: RAF personnel worked alongside nations from the Five Powers Defence Arrangement at Royal Malaysian Air Force Kuantan.
- Operation Hightower: The RAF exercised with the Republic of Korea and Japan in advance of the CSG’s arrival.
- Exercise Falcon Strike: The RAF reunited with Harrier and Tornado’s to exercise with the Italian Air Force.
Each phase reflected a growing ability to operate at distance - quickly, decisively and alongside trusted partners.
People Behind the Power
Behind every aircraft movement, deck launch and mission brief were the men and women who made it happen, the aircrew, engineers, logisticians, communicators and support staff who embody the spirit of the RAF.
Their professionalism, adaptability and teamwork kept the operation on tempo across time zones and climates, proving once again that people remain the RAF’s greatest asset.
Looking Ahead
Eight months on, Operation Highmast stands as a benchmark for global integration and Allied cooperation.
It has tested concepts, built trust and demonstrated that the RAF working as part of the Carrier Strike Group can project credible air power anywhere in the world.
As the Carrier Strike Group returns home, the lessons and partnerships forged on Highmast will shape the RAF’s next chapter of global operations, from Europe to the Indo-Pacific and beyond.
