Written by Sushant KulkarniPune | October 10, 2025 09:42 PM IST 4 min readCommander of the UK Carrier Strike Group, Commodore James Blackmore (left) and Commander Richard Kemp, Captain of HMS Richmond, pose for a photo on the bridge of HMS Richmond on Friday. (Express photo by Sushant Kulkarni)Commander of the United Kingdom Carrier Strike Group, Commodore James Blackmore said that joint maritime exercise between India and the UK, Exercise Konkan, allowed the Indian Navy and Royal Navy to enhance their ability to integrate as two Blue Water Carrier navies.Commodore Blackmore was speaking to the media in the backdrop of Exercise Konkan, in which the Indian Navy’s carrier strike group led by INS Vikrant and the UK Carrier Strike Group led by HMS Prince of Wales operated together for the first time. Exercise Konkan, named after the strategically crucial region on the Western coast of India, is undertaken every two years to enhance joint maritime and air capabilities between the Indian and UK navies on the high seas.Interacting with the media onboard Anti Submarine Warfare Frigate HMS Richmond, which was docked at Mumbai, Commodore Blackmore said, “We left the UK on April 22, 171 days ago and we have 50 days to go until we complete Operation Highmast. Op Highmast is the UK deployment to the Indo-Pacific in 2025. And it has three key strategic objectives. One is to declare the full operating capability of our research and carrier strike capability. And that comes on the back of our very successful deployment to the region with HMS Queen Elizabeth in 2021, where we declared initial operating capability while working very closely with India during exercises.”“The second is to show our absolute commitment to rules-based international order and a free and open Indo-Pacific. Our four months in the Indo-Pacific region has been to demonstrate that through international cooperation and partnership. Number three is to show our commitment to NATO. But NATO first doesn’t mean NATO only. And the very fact that we brought an international strike group to the Indo-Pacific shows that while we recognise the importance of the Euro-Atlantic, we recognise that what goes on in the Indo-Pacific is absolutely linked to what occurs in the Euro-Atlantic,” he added.“It is really important to recognise that we started our time here with an exercise four months ago where we worked closely with the Indian Navy. And here we are four months later completing our time in the region through Exercise Konkan where for the first time we brought together two Carrier Strike Groups. With the Indian Navy’s newest aircraft with our newest aircraft carrier. It has allowed us to further enhance our interoperability and our ability to operate and integrate as two incredible Blue Water Carrier navies. As we depart the region next week, we reflect on shared partnerships, shared friendships and incredible time working within the region,” Commodore Blackmore said.Blue Water Carrier navies refers to naval forces that possess Carrier Strike Groups and are capable of operating in the deep oceans far from their home shores. Asked about the crucial communication between the two navies operating together, he said, “It was not really challenging because we share a very common language as many of the procedures have been developed over decades of close partnership between the two navies. We have a tradition of Blue Water Navies. It was seamless integration.”When asked about the hallmark of the exercise, Commodore Blackmore said, “The capstone moment for the exercise was bringing two aircraft carriers together along with the associated ships and escorts for an incredible photograph. For me that shows the closeness of the partnership and shows the professional standards as mariners in the shared environments that we can do this safely together. Militarily of course, we were able to undertake air defence and anti-submarine warfare exercises. Many highlights, but all encapsulated in that fantastic picture of Exercise Konkan 25.”Story continues below this adSpeaking about the upcoming joint exercise with the Indian Air Force, Commodore Blackmore said, “It goes to show that we are not only partnered in the maritime domain but also in the air environments as well.”Commander Richard Kemp, Captain of HMS Richmond, said, “Ex Konkan was a great experience. As the anti submarine warfare commander of the Carrier Strike Group, I command the underwater battle. We conducted anti submarine warfare exercise with Indian Navy ships, helicopters and maritime patrol aircraft. It was a very interesting experience. It was great that we can operate seamlessly almost as if we were working with our own navy.”Sushant Kulkarni is a Special Correspondent with The Indian Express in Pune with 12+ years of experience covering issues related to Crime, Defence, Internal Security and Courts. He has been associated with the Indian Express since July 2010. Sushant has extensively reported on law and order issues of Pune and surrounding area, Cyber crime, narcotics trade and terrorism. His coverage in the Defence beat includes operational aspects of the three services, the defence research and development and issues related to key defence establishments. He has covered several sensitive cases in the courts at Pune. Sushant is an avid photographer, plays harmonica and loves cooking. ... Read MoreClick here to join Express Pune WhatsApp channel and get a curated list of our stories© The Indian Express Pvt LtdTags:Mumbai