But strong arm rivals threaten choppy waters ahea,d as the CSG travels
through five seas and oceans and visits 40 countries in the months to come,
and now just hours after leaving port two russian spy ships positioned in
waters off northern Scotland have intercepted the vessel, desperate to
harvest any intelligence as HMS Queen Elizabeth bristling with its
state-of-the-art F-35B jets.
The auxiliary general intelligence gathering vessels believed to belong to
russia's northern fleet in bristling with listening and interception
equipment, were spotted by a US Navy P8 maritime patrol aircraft, based at
RAF Lossiemouth south of Iceland heading towards steaming towards the west
coast of Scotland.
Russia is believed to have planted other spy ships along the CSG's route,
with the ivankers, a project 18280 intelligence collection ship spotted in
Port Sudan. Moscow is aware however that two vessels from the carrier strike
group will be peeling to spend some time in Putin's backyard in the black
sea during a short NATO supporting deployment.
While royal naval sources were unconcerned about russian surveillance with
one suggesting a nuclear submarine under their hulls is often enough to move
them on trouble of a different type lies ahead once the group eventually
leaves the Suez Canal and reaches the red sea with intelligence reports
warnings of a potential suicide attack by hote rebels.
Last week Saudi forces destroyed a bomb-laden boat in the red sea two miles
off a refinery hub at Yanbu last week in warnings that iranian-backed houti
rebels are about to mount an offensive in the busy waterway.
To counter this threat british special forces acting as the cgs forward eyes
and ears are to mount a top-secret intelligence gathering mission of their
own. Arriving some three weeks ahead of the CSG a detachment of SBS
Commandos will join saudi forces in an operation to sweep the red sea using
drones in fast patrol boats as the carrier leaves the Suez and heads towards
the Gulf of Aden.
In 2017 hote rebels attacked a saudi warship killing two crew members and
last year the saudi-led coalition in Yemen said that it had recently
detected and destroyed 171 sea mines dispatched into red sea waters by the
iran-backed insurgents.
Such as the risk to shipping financial markets reported that the cost of
providing cover for merchant ships through the Red Sea was to rise once
again.
This is a route that royal navy ships have taken for many years but it is
clear that the threat has risen. Reconnaissance has been made and we will
have been on the ground as well as air assets, said a source last
night.
This is a very dangerous part of the world Houthi have planted mines,
attacked saudi ships and use drones in these waters and our people will be
deployed to counter the threats, both from suicide attacks and mines. It is
as the CSG approaches the south china sea that things may become tenser
however.
China dispatched a frigate and two helicopters to challenge the presence of
HMS Albion. Though both sides remained calm during the encounter they said
it would take necessary measures to safeguard its sovereignty.
Recently commander tom sharp, former captain of a type 23 frigate told the
henry jackson society to think tank, "We can guarantee china will overfly
the group with aircraft and test its responses and close in with surface
ships, we may also be met by a chinese submarine east of Suez."
"If they want to cause real mischief they may try to repeat what they did in
2007 when an undetected song-class chinese submarine emerged in the middle
of a US fleet," he added.
HMS Queen Elizabeth's first task will be to join the naval part of exercise
joint warrior. UK led war games in which 10 nations take part with 31
warships, 3 submarines, 150 aircraft and around 13,400 military personnel
involved.
Before sailing HMS Qeen Elizabeth took delivery of 924 pallets of food in
F-35B jet engines worth 20 million pounds each in preparation for its 25,000
nautical mile voyage which will see it visiting 40 countries and taking part
in 70 engagements. It will carry 32 helicopters and jets and its complement
will include 250 u.s marines.
