Overview

• The Royal Navy opened the carrier to reporters at Tokyo International Cruise Terminal on August 28, with a public tour scheduled for August 31 and departure expected around September 2.
• Carrier strike group commander James Blackmore said cooperation with the Japan Maritime Self‑Defense Force was historic and announced a joint UK–Japan memorial at the 1941 sinking site off the Malay Peninsula.
• The JMSDF destroyer Akebono is expected to accompany the memorial visit during the carrier’s return voyage, according to Blackmore.
• The deployment follows multinational exercises in the Western Pacific that included F‑35B operations to and from the JMSDF’s JS Kaga alongside U.S. and other partners.
• HMS Prince of Wales measures about 280 meters in length, carries roughly 1,600 personnel, can host more than 30 F‑35s, and officers say it can launch four F‑35Bs every three minutes.