HMS Queen Elizabeth fends off submarine 'attack' during exercise with Norwegian navy

HMS Queen Elizabeth has been taking part in a joint exercise with a Norwegian submarine that had been attempting to 'sink' her while playing the enemy and testing her defences.

Norwegian sub HNoMS Utstein was confronted by Royal Navy helicopters from 820 Naval Air Squadron, while RAF P-8A Poseidon maritime patrol aircraft also protected the aircraft carrier from attack.

820 NAS posted on social media site X: "SUB HUNT We've been up against HNoMS Utstein. Her mission: sink @HMSQNLZ. Our mission: stop her.

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"The exercises tested our crews' efficiency, skill and tactical decision-making. We also got to stretch our legs fighting alongside @RoyalAirForce P8 Poseidons."

The crew of HMS Queen Elizabeth made a similar post on X, formerly Twitter, showing several images of the exercise. 

The images include HMS Queen Elizabeth, HNoMS Utstein, a Merlin helicopter from 820 NAS and an F-35B jet taking off from the carrier.

HNoMS Utstein and the crew of the Merlin also carried out a submarine-to-helicopter transfer by winch. The personnel of 820 NAS like to keep themselves up to scratch with these tricky manoeuvres in case they need to evacuate a casualty from a boat on patrol.

The exercise took place after HMS Queen Elizabeth returned to the North Sea following her brief stop in Portsmouth for a logistics resupply and short period of maintenance.

The carrier and her aircraft have been taking part in a range of training exercises off the Norwegian coast as part of her autumn deployment.

The Royal Navy said the activity came as the UK Carrier Strike Group, led by HMS Queen Elizabeth, ramped up its work alongside its Joint Expeditionary Force (JEF) allies.

The JEF is a UK-led defence cooperation framework involving 10 countries.

The coalition comprises Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Iceland, Latvia, Lithuania, the Netherlands, Norway, Sweden and the UK, and is primarily intended to be used for operations in the Baltic Sea area, North Atlantic and the Arctic.