Largest Warship Ever Seen In Iceland, In Reykjavik Harbour

The HMS Prince of Wales, British aircraft carrier, sailed into Reykjavik harbour Monday and will be in Reykjavik until Friday morning.

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Four tugboats and two pilot boats took part in mooring the aircraft carrier, which is the largest warship ever to arrive in Iceland, accompanied by the Frigate Richmond. The Prince of Wales is only in its first year out at sea, and is therefore still considered to be on a trial voyage. The British Navy expects it to be fully operational by next year.

Unlike the two German frigates, Sachsen and Schleswig-Holstein which arrived last week, it is not here to participate in the Norður-Víkingur defense exercises. The ship arrived from the Norwegian coast, where it participated in its first military exercise, the NATO exercise Cold Response. It is hosted by Norway biannually; this year’s event was announced around eight months ago and has no link to the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

Along with its sister ship, Queen Elisabeth, the Prince of Wales is the largest and most advanced warship ever built for the British Navy. It is 280 meters long and has a maximum width of 73 meters.

If you’re interested in seeing the ships, they will be by the pier in Sundahöfn until Friday morning.