Six months working side-by-side on the UK’s premier military deployment have laid the perfect foundations for combined Anglo-Norwegian naval operations.
The Norwegian frigate Roald Amundsen has been a mainstay of the UK’s Carrier Strike Group deployment, part of the protective ‘ring of steel’ drawn around flagship HMS Prince of Wales.
Throughout the Amundsen has been home to a Royal Navy Wildcat helicopter, crewed and maintained by personnel from 815 Naval Air Squadron from RNAS Yeovilton in Somerset.
Normally found on a Royal Navy frigate or destroyer, the Wildcat Flight have lived, breathed, eaten and occasionally spoken Norwegian since the spring, supporting the Amundsen’s mission through the Mediterranean, Middle East and Indian Ocean to the western Pacific Rim, including Australia, Japan and South Korea.
Brits and Norwegians alike are delighted with how Operation Highmast has gone, saying it bodes well for closer integration between the two navies in the future.
Oslo has ordered five UK-built Type 26 frigates, which will join their Royal Navy counterparts on patrols safeguarding the North Atlantic, supported by British and Norwegian P8 maritime patrol aircraft.
“Working with the crew from the 815 Squadron has so far been a real pleasure, and is truly a proof of concept for Norwegian-UK cooperation,” said Commander Senior Grade Stian Schnelle, the Amundsen’s Commanding Officer.
“They are true professionals and make a decisive contribution to make Roald Amundsen a credible and effective contribution to the Carrier Strike Group and our mission.
“The team spirit that has developed over the last few months has created a huge momentum for our navies respectively as we collectively move towards the Type 26 era, operating as ‘one navy’.”
UK Carrier Strike Group Commander Commodore James Blackmore said the interaction with the Norwegians had been “seamless” (in addition to the Amundsen, tanker/support vessel Maud accompanied the naval force for the first few weeks of the mission).
Cdre Blackmore continued: “Their professionalism, skill and commitment to collective defense make them an integral part of the team. The integration of our Norwegian partners not only strengthens the group operationally but also demonstrates our collective resolve to uphold the security and stability of the North Atlantic as allies.”