HMS QUEEN ELIZABETH EMBARKED WITH F35-B FIGHTER JETS. PICTURED:A USMC F35-B TAKING OFF. HMS Queen Elizabeth has embarked two squadrons of F-35B stealth jets: the UK’s 617 Sqn and US Marine Corps fighter attack squadron 211. With a total of fifteen F-35B’s an HMS Queen Elizabeth has embarked two squadrons of F-35B stealth jets: the UK’s 617 Sqn and US Marine Corps fighter attack squadron 211. With a total of fifteen F-35B’s and eight Merlin helicopters, it’s the largest air group to operate from a Royal Navy carrier in more than thirty years, and the largest air group of fifth generation fighters at sea anywhere in the world. This month’s Group Exercise (GROUPEX) will see HMS Queen Elizabeth joined by warships from the UK, US and the Netherlands, which will accompany HMS Queen Elizabeth on her first global deployment in 2121. However before then, the newly formed Carrier Strike Group will be put through its paces off the North East coast of Scotland as part of Joint Warrior, NATO’s largest annual exercise.