Tri-Service

Military life through a lens: The most striking defence images from the past 12 months

19th August 2026 at 11:56am

Thousands of spectators braved a wet and blustery morning on Horse Guards Parade today as the Household Division and the King's Troop Royal Horse Artillery completed the Colonel's Review (Picture: MOD)

19082026 A husband embraces his wife after her return from an eight month deployment on HMS Prince of Wales in Portsmouth Nov 2025 pic MOD — A husband embraces his wife after her return from an eight-month deployment on HMS Prince of Wales in Portsmouth (Picture: MOD)

19082026 A Royal Navy Merlin Mk2, a Royal Air Force 22 Squadron Chinook HC.MK 6, two Army Air Corps AH-64E, and two Army Air Corps Wildcat AH.1's during Exercise Hades Warrior Pic MOD — A Royal Navy Merlin Mk2, a Royal Air Force 22 Squadron Chinook HC.MK 6, two Army Air Corps AH-64Es, and two Army Air Corps Wildcat AH.1's during Exercise Hades Warrior (Picture: MOD)

19082026 A member of the British Army is seen here crawling through a ditch of muddy water as part of the Sniper Operators Course (SOC) at the Combined Arms Manoeuvre School in Warminster pic MOD — A soldier crawls through a ditch of muddy water as part of the Sniper Operators Course (SOC) at the Combined Arms Manoeuvre School in Warminster (Picture: MOD)

19082026 aA CH-47 Chinook at Royal Air Force (RAF) Benson operated by 28 Squadron, departing for a training tasking during the Solar Eclipse pic MOD — A CH-47 Chinook at RAF Benson operated by 28 Squadron, departing for a training tasking during the solar eclipse (Picture: MOD)

19082026 Darwin residents go horseback riding in the shallows as HMS Prince of Wales approaches Darwin Harbour in Australia, during the UK Carrier Strike Group deployment, Operation Highmast pic MOD — Darwin residents go horseback riding in the shallows as HMS Prince of Wales approaches Darwin Harbour in Australia, during the UK Carrier Strike Group deployment, Operation Highmast (Picture: MOD)

19082026 An RAF ATLAS C.1, A400M aircraft, flying over Buckingham Palace in London to celebrate The King's Birthday Parade, also known as Trooping the Colour pic MOD — An RAF ATLAS C.1 A400M aircraft flying over Buckingham Palace in London to celebrate The King's Birthday Parade, also known as Trooping the Colour (Picture: MOD)

19082026 iconic Spitfire TR9 “K5054”, flying alongside a Texan from MOD St Athan in the UK as part of the Spitfire90 tour Pic MOD — An iconic Spitfire TR9 'K5054' flying alongside a Texan from MOD St Athan in the UK as part of the Spitfire90 tour (Picture: MOD)

19082026 RAF 1310 Flight Chinook in the hover, filling a firefighting bucket at the start of Wildfire season in Cyprus pic MOD — An RAF 1310 Flight Chinook in the hover, filling a firefighting bucket at the start of wildfire season in Cyprus (Picture: MOD)

19082026 RFA Tidespring seen from the cockpit of its embarked 814 NAS Merlin Mk2 Helicopter during the UK Carrier Strike Group deployment, Operation Highmast pic MOD — RFA Tidespring seen from the cockpit of its embarked 814 NAS Merlin Mk2 helicopter during the UK Carrier Strike Group deployment, Operation Highmast (Picture: MOD)

19082026 Soldiers and horses from the Household Cavalry Mounted Regiment at Hayling Island beach pic MOD — Soldiers and horses from the Household Cavalry Mounted Regiment at Hayling Island beach (Picture: MOD)

19082026 The Royal Air Force Aerobatic Team, the Red Arrows, conduct a display practice at Chalkoutsi in Greece as part of Exercise SpringHawk 2026 pic MOD — The Royal Air Force Aerobatic Team, the Red Arrows, conduct a display practice at Chalkoutsi in Greece as part of Exercise SpringHawk 2026 (Picture: MOD)

19082026 Soldiers and Officers from the King’s Gurkha Artillery formed up for a formal group shot after KGA Formation parade on Thursday 4 June 2026 Pic MOD — Soldiers and officers from the King's Gurkha Artillery formed up for a formal group shot after their KGA formation parade (Picture: MOD)

19082026 A Commando from 42 Commando Royal Marines as he conducts force protection duties onboard UK Flagship HMS Prince of Wales, as the ship transits through the Suez Canal pic MOD — A Commando from 42 Commando Royal Marines as he conducts force protection duties onboard UK Flagship HMS Prince of Wales, as the ship transits through the Suez Canal (Picture: MOD)

Thousands of spectators braved a wet and blustery morning on Horse Guards Parade today as the Household Division and the King's Troop Royal Horse Artillery completed the Colonel's Review (Picture: MOD)

19082026 A husband embraces his wife after her return from an eight month deployment on HMS Prince of Wales in Portsmouth Nov 2025 pic MOD

19082026 A Royal Navy Merlin Mk2, a Royal Air Force 22 Squadron Chinook HC.MK 6, two Army Air Corps AH-64E, and two Army Air Corps Wildcat AH.1's during Exercise Hades Warrior Pic MOD

19082026 A member of the British Army is seen here crawling through a ditch of muddy water as part of the Sniper Operators Course (SOC) at the Combined Arms Manoeuvre School in Warminster pic MOD

19082026 aA CH-47 Chinook at Royal Air Force (RAF) Benson operated by 28 Squadron, departing for a training tasking during the Solar Eclipse pic MOD

19082026 Darwin residents go horseback riding in the shallows as HMS Prince of Wales approaches Darwin Harbour in Australia, during the UK Carrier Strike Group deployment, Operation Highmast pic MOD

19082026 An RAF ATLAS C.1, A400M aircraft, flying over Buckingham Palace in London to celebrate The King's Birthday Parade, also known as Trooping the Colour pic MOD

19082026 iconic Spitfire TR9 “K5054”, flying alongside a Texan from MOD St Athan in the UK as part of the Spitfire90 tour Pic MOD

19082026 RAF 1310 Flight Chinook in the hover, filling a firefighting bucket at the start of Wildfire season in Cyprus pic MOD

19082026 RFA Tidespring seen from the cockpit of its embarked 814 NAS Merlin Mk2 Helicopter during the UK Carrier Strike Group deployment, Operation Highmast pic MOD

19082026 Soldiers and horses from the Household Cavalry Mounted Regiment at Hayling Island beach pic MOD

19082026 The Royal Air Force Aerobatic Team, the Red Arrows, conduct a display practice at Chalkoutsi in Greece as part of Exercise SpringHawk 2026 pic MOD

19082026 Soldiers and Officers from the King’s Gurkha Artillery formed up for a formal group shot after KGA Formation parade on Thursday 4 June 2026 Pic MOD

19082026 A Commando from 42 Commando Royal Marines as he conducts force protection duties onboard UK Flagship HMS Prince of Wales, as the ship transits through the Suez Canal pic MOD

From dramatic exercises and aircraft in flight to quieter moments of service life, photography gives us a unique window into the Armed Forces.

To mark World Photography Day, BFBS Forces News brings together some of the most striking defence imagery from the past 12 months, showcasing the people, equipment, operations and moments that have defined military life.

Scroll through our gallery to see the skill, scale and human stories captured by photographers across the services – from the battlefield and training areas to ships, skies and homecomings.

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