HMS Prince of Wales will depart Portsmouth today for an eight-month mission across the Indo-Pacific.
The deployment, known as Operation Highmast, is part of the Government's commitment to invest in British defence.
As the warship departs, thousands are expected to line Portsmouth's historic waterfront to wave off their loved ones.
The Carrier Strike Group includes Type 45 destroyer HMS Dauntless, Norwegian tanker HNoMS Maud and frigate HNoMS Roald Amundsen.
Captain Will Blackett, Commodore James Blackmore RN and Captain Colin McGannity onboard HMS Prince of Wales docked at HM Naval Base Portsmouth
PA
Royal Navy frigate HMS Richmond and Canadian frigate HMCS Ville de Québec will depart from Plymouth, while Royal Fleet Auxiliary tanker RFA Tidespring will join in the Channel.
The Indo-Pacific is a critical trade-point for the UK, with imports and exports passing through the region worth £286billion - almost 20 per cent of all British trade.
Defence Secretary John Healey MP said: "Operation Highmast exemplifies our unwavering commitment to the security and stability of our nation.
"As one of only a few nations capable of leading a deployment of this scale, the Royal Navy is once again demonstrating that UK defence is strong, modern, and ready."
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Commodore James Blackmore, who will lead the UK Carrier Strike Group, said: "Working closely with partners from across the globe, Operation Highmast will demonstrate credible deterrence and our support to Nato.
"This will reaffirm that the UK is secure at home and strong abroad."
The deployment will begin with around 2,500 military personnel, composed of roughly 2,100 Britons, 200 Norwegians and a similar number of Canadians, and Spanish. The number will rise to over 4,500 for key exercises as the force reaches the Indo-Pacific.
In the first few days after sailing, the group will embark F-35B fifth-generation strike fighters and squadrons of attack, troop-carrying and anti-submarine helicopters.
Commodore James Blackmore will lead the UK Carrier Strike Group
PA
Group Captain John Butcher said this deployment demonstrates the F-35B has "truly come of age".
"I am incredibly proud of my team who have worked tirelessly to prepare for this historic deployment," said Captain Will Blackett, Commanding Officer of HMS Prince of Wales.
He added: "We will deliver this mission together and look forward to reuniting when the job is done."
The Carrier Strike Group will immediately work for NATO, with its first exercise off France testing aerial defences.
The force will then move into the Mediterranean to work with an Italian-led carrier force before heading east of Suez via the Red Sea.
