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Passing phase: UK Carrier Group links up with Indonesian Navy
1 August 2025
Banda brothers.
Another day, another international link-up for the UK Carrier Strike Group as it continues its eight-month deployment - this time the Indonesian Navy.
Another day, another international link-up for the UK Carrier Strike Group as it continues its eight-month deployment - this time the Indonesian Navy.
The strike group – led by UK flagship HMS Prince of Wales – joined forces with four Indonesian warships as it made its way through the Banda Sea between Timor and Banda Arc island chain in eastern Indonesia.
Known as a PASSEX or passing exercise, it’s a combination of formal greeting between navies and a test of their ability to communicate and cooperate effectively together – the fundamentals of working together at sea in times of war or peace.
In this case, the focus was on manoeuvres and communications – by lamp, semaphore, flag and radio, with verbal comms in English as the international language of the sea.
Among the four Indonesian units taking part were frigate KRI (Kapal Perang Republik Indonesia or Warship of the Republic of Indonesia) Raden Eddy Martadinata and fast patrol ship Kapak, plus a CN-235 maritime patrol aircraft in the sky above the Carrier Strike Group’s progress as it ploughed through waters southwest of Buru Island – a good 1,300 miles east of the Indonesian capital Jakarta.
On the bridge of HMS Prince of Wales was Lieutenant Woolcott, Officer of the Watch 1, who thoroughly enjoyed the chance to work/converse with a Navy few in the Royal Navy regularly deal with.
“It was a great experience working with the Indonesians, especially putting all the methods of communication into practice, such as flag signals and flashing light exercises to overcome any language barriers and work in unison to promote our forces overseas,” said the 27-year-old from Milford.
It was a great experience working with the Indonesians, especially putting all the methods of communication into practice, such as flag signals and flashing light exercises to overcome any language barriers and work in unison to promote our forces overseas.
The Carrier Strike Group currently comprises: HMS Prince Of Wales, destroyer HMS Dauntless, frigate HMS Richmond and tanker RFA Tidespring from the UK, plus frigates HMCS Ville de Québec (Canada), HNoMS Roald Amundsen (Norway, with a Wildcat flight from 815 Naval Air Squadron), and ESPS Méndez Núñez (Spain).
The latter wasn’t present for the PASSEX as she was linking up with the Japanese Maritime Self Defence Force in preparation for the next stage of the Carrier Strike Group deployment.
The group is about to work side-by-side with the JS Kaga, a Japanese helicopter destroyer designed to hunt down hostile submarines, but recently converted to operate F-35B stealth fighters – the same model as flown by British, and occasionally US Marine Corps, pilots from the deck of HMS Prince of Wales.
Having left Australia earlier this week, the current stage of the Operation Highmast deployment is focusing on Asia, leading up to high-profile visits to South Korea and Japan later this month.