--- title: "British Carrier Joins Forces With U.S. Flattop And Amphibious Assault Ship In Gulf Of Aden" description: "HMS Queen Elizabeth joined American and Dutch warships in the Gulf of Aden, an important maritime crossroads." date: "2021-07-12" modified: "2021-07-13" authors: - name: "Joseph Trevithick" job_title: "Deputy Editor" link: "https://www.twz.com/authors/joseph-trevithick.md" url: "https://www.twz.com/41506/british-carrier-joins-forces-with-u-s-flattop-and-amphibious-assault-ship-in-gulf-of-aden" categories: - "Amphibious Assault Ships" - "Around The Globe" - "Carriers" - "HMS Queen Elizabeth (R08)" - "Middle East" - "Navies" - "News & Features" - "Queen Elizabeth Class" - "Royal Navy" - "Sea" - "U.S. Navy" - "Yemen" tags: - "Aircraft Carriers" - "Carrier Strike Group" - "Cruisers" - "CSG21" - "destroyers" - "Frigates" - "Gulf of Aden" - "HMS Queen Elizabeth" - "Nimitz class" - "Royal Navy" - "USN" - "USS Iwo Jima" - "USS Ronald Reagan" - "Wasp Class" --- # British Carrier Joins Forces With U.S. Flattop And Amphibious Assault Ship In Gulf Of Aden ![]() *www.twz.com* The U.K. Royal Navy's aircraft carrier [HMS *Queen Elizabeth*]() linked up with one of her American counterparts, the *Nimitz* class [USS *Ronald Reagan*](), as well as the *Wasp* class amphibious assault ship [USS *Iwo Jima*](), among other warships, for a large force exercise in the Gulf of Aden today. This was a major demonstration of allied naval power in a body of water that forms a maritime crossroads between a number of strategically significant areas. The U.S. Navy's [*Arleigh Burke* class]() destroyers USS *The Sullivans* and USS *Halsey* and its [*Ticonderoga* class]() cruiser USS *Shiloh*, as well as the *Dutch De Zeven Provinciën* class frigate HNLMS *Evertsen*, also [took part in the drills](). *Evertsen* [is accompanying the *Queen Elizabeth*]() on her maiden operational cruise as part of the U.K.-led multi-national [Carrier Strike Group 21]() (CSG21). U.S. Marine Corps F-35B Joint Strike Fighters [are also embarked]() on the British carrier, along with U.K. Royal air Force F-35Bs and Royal Navy [Merlin helicopters](). ![message-editor%2F1626122017742-queen-elizabeth-reagan-iwo-jima.jpg]() *Top to bottom, the *Nimitz* class aircraft carrier USS *Ronald Reagan,* HMS *Queen Elizabeth*, and the *Wasp* class amphibious assault ship USS *Iwo Jima*., *USN** "Our team was proud to operate alongside the UK Carrier Strike Group during this unique opportunity to hone the full scope of our mutual capabilities," U.S. Navy Rear Admiral Will Pennington, commander of the Ronald Reagan Carrier Strike Group and Task Force 50, [said in a statement](). "By operating together at sea, we deepen our coalition partnerships and extend our global reach throughout the region's critical waterways." “The aircraft carrier is the ultimate expression of global maritime power,” U.K. Royal Navy Commodore Steve Moorhouse, commander of CSG21, added. “*Queen Elizabeth*, *Ronald Reagan*, and *Iwo Jima* symbolize the might of the U.S. and UK partnership, and the ease with which our naval and air forces can combine here in the Gulf of Aden, or anywhere else in the world.” This is actually the second time that CSG21 has worked together with *Iwo Jima* during this deployment, with the two ships and others [taking part in another exercise]() in the Atlantic Ocean in May. *Queen Elizabeth* has also trained with a *Nimitz* class carrier before, the USS *George H.W. Bush*, as part of another drill in the Atlantic [back in 2017](). ![message-editor%2F1626122446564-queen-elizabeth-reagan.jpg]() *USS *Ronald Reagan*, at top, and HMS *Queen Elizabeth.*, *USN** "Participating forces focused on the full spectrum of maritime warfare operations, practicing anti-air warfare (AAW), anti-surface warfare (ASUW), and anti-submarine warfare (ASW) tactics and procedures," according to [an official Navy news item](). "The crews exercised their abilities to conduct precision maneuvering, hunt simulated enemy submarines, provide [layered defense]() against simulated air and surface threats, and conduct long range maritime strikes against simulated adversarial forces." All of these missions sets are relevant for aircraft carriers and their strike groups operating anywhere in the world, but are particularly applicable in the Gulf of Aden and surrounding bodies of water. The Gulf of Aden links to the Red Sea, which is situated to the west through the highly strategic [Bab Al Mandeb Strait](). The Indian Ocean lies the east of the strait. [Yemen]() to the north and [Somalia]() to the south are major hotspots in their own right. Houthi rebels in Yemen have notably attacked ships belonging to a Saudi Arabian-led coalition, as well as [U.S. Navy warships](), with [anti-ship cruise missiles]() and [remote-controlled explosive-laden boats]() in recent years, [causing casualties]() and [serious damage]() to vessels in some instances. From the Gulf of Aden, ships can sail north through the Red Sea to the Mediterranean, via the South Canal. *Queen Elizabeth* just came from that region, where she [launched F-35Bs on combat missions]() in support of the U.S.-led coalition fighting ISIS in Iraq and Syria. The ships of CSG21 also played a [game of cat-and-mouse]() with Russian warships and warplanes, including [Tu-22M3 bombers and MiG-31K]() combat jets armed with anti-ship and hypersonic missiles, respectively. The Mediterranean is notably [a hotbed]() of [submarine activity](), as well. https://youtube.com/embed/-b5_0Igcvl8 Continuing east from the Gulf of Aden would take *Queen Elizabeth* and the rest of CSG21 into the Arabian Sea. *Ronald Reagan*, which is forward-deployed in Japan and recently [began a rare deployment]() to the Middle East, had been operating in the North Arabian Sea to help provide cover for the [ongoing U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan](). U.S. officials said last week that this drawdown is already [more than 90 percent complete](). In May, First Sea Lord Admiral Tony Radakin, the Royal Navy's top officer, talked about how *Queen Elizabeth* could, in principle, [launch F-35Bs into Afghanistan]() from the North Arabian Sea, which would require [them to fly over Pakistan](), but it's unclear if any such strikes are in CSG21's future. Last week, U.K. Prime Minister Boris Johnson disclosed that the majority of British forces in Afghanistan [had also departed the country](). ![message-editor%2F1626122834419-queen-elizabeth-f-35.jpg]() *HMS *Queen Elizabeth* sails in the Gulf of Aden on July 12, 2021. A total of 13 F-35B Joint Strike Fighters, as well as a Merlin helicopter, are visible on her flight deck., *USN** *Queen Elizabeth* will eventually continue on to the Indo-Pacific region. There the carrier and the rest of CSG21 will almost certainly integrate again with warships from the United States, as well as the United Kingdom's other allies and partners. Many of those countries have already been [stepping their own naval activity]() across this broad part of the world with a particular eye toward [challenging China's]() vast and almost universally disputed territorial claims and increasing general regional influence. Just today, the U.S. Navy [denied]() that Chinese forces had chased the *Arleigh Burke* class destroyer USS *Benfold* away from the waters around the Paracel Islands in the South China Sea, which authorities in Beijing claim almost all of despite competing claims from other countries. This so-called Freedom of Navigation Patrol (FONOP) came on the [occasion of the fifth anniversary]() of a ruling from the international Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Netherlands rejecting Chinese claims to the bulk of the South China Sea. There has been [much discussion already]() about whether *Queen Elizabeth* or other ships from CSG21 will take part [in their own FONOPs]() around Chinese-claimed areas in the Pacific. Regardless, *Queen Elizabeth* joining *Ronald Reagan* and *Iwo Jima*, as well as the other ships, in the Gulf of Aden underscores how the Royal Navy is likely to conduct carrier operations in many cases in the future, broadly, as part of larger multi-national coalitions. This could be beneficial for the United Kingdom, which has a [limited number of surface escorts]() with which form its own independent carrier strike groups, and for allies looking to bolster [their own naval aviation capacity]() during combined operations. As already noted, the entire task force that took part in this exercise today presented an impressive display of shared naval power. ![message-editor%2F1626122968815-queen-elizabeth-reagan-task-force.jpg]() **USN** All told, the exercise in the Gulf of Aden is another significant milestone in the *Queen Elizabeth*'s first operational deployment, but it won't be the last. *Contact the author: joe@thedrive.com* ## Author Joseph is *TWZ’s* Deputy Editor, helping to oversee the site’s highly experienced and dedicated team, while also writing informative and impactful defense and national security content. He lives right in the thick of it in the Washington, D.C. area. ### Author social links [Twitter]() [Bluesky]()