After recently providing air defence and escort duties to a French carrier strike group, HMS Duncan has moved on to join 200,000 tonnes of naval might as she works simultaneously with two American aircraft carriers in the Mediterranean.
The Portsmouth-based destroyer joined the USS John C Stennis and USS Abraham Lincoln carrier battle groups, honing skills needed to work with Britain’s new Queen Elizabeth-class flagships.
The Stennis is making her way home to Norfolk, Virginia, after operations in the Middle East while her older sister USS Abraham Lincoln is in the early stages of a deployment which will take her to the Gulf and Pacific before arriving at her new home of San Diego.
After recently providing air defence and escort duties to a French carrier strike group, @HMSDuncan has moved on to join 200,000 tonnes of naval might as she works with two American aircraft carriers in the Mediterranean. @USNavy
Find out more: https://t.co/PpVAz7exbH pic.twitter.com/SDLJS2HYZO
— Royal Navy (@RoyalNavy) April 26, 2019
Both nuclear-powered warships, displacing 100,000 tonnes each, are home to upwards of 6,000 sailors, marines and aviators, some 60 fast-jets – mostly F/A-18 Hornet strike fighters – plus intelligence gathering Hawkeyes and around 20 helicopters.
They can launch more than 120 sorties a day during intensive operations – including catapulting more than 20 F/A-18s skywards one after another in rapid succession.
HMS Duncan is now heading for Italy as she continues her six-month deployment to the Mediterranean. Next up is a large-scale NATO exercise.
Via The Royal Navy
