Heard of the UK’s new carrier HMS Queen Elizabeth and the F-35B Lightning II fighter, but what about a UK carrier air wing? Ian Harding has, and visited Royal Naval Air Station Culdrose to see it in action
MILITARY ROYAL NAVY CARRIER AIR WING
With a new era of carrier aviation on the horizon, Royal Naval Air Station Culdrose in Cornwall recently launched its first exercise to ensure the station is carrier ready. Held between November 13 and 22, 2017, Exercise Kernow Flag (Kernow is Cornish for Cornwall) was a ten-day exercise aimed at preparing it further for operations on board HMS Queen Elizabeth (R08), the Royal Navy’s brand-new flagship aircraft carrier. Kernow Flag was staged while HMS Queen Elizabeth was underway during two months of sea trials.