Amphibious warfare ship

For the more specific article on the LHA, LHD and LPH ships, see Amphibious assault ship.

Three US amphibious warfare ships - a landing helicopter dock leading a landing platform dock (rear) and a landing ship dock (fore)

An amphibious warfare ship (or amphib) is an amphibious vehicle warship employed to land and support ground forces, such as marines, on enemy territory during an amphibious assault.

Specialized shipping can be divided into two types, most crudely described as ships and craft. In general, the ships carry the troops from the port of embarkation to the drop point for the assault and the craft carry the troops from the ship to the shore. Amphibious assaults taking place over short distances can also involve the shore-to-shore technique, where landing craft go directly from the port of embarkation to the assault point. Some tank landing ships may also be able to land troops and equipment directly onto shore after travelling long distances, such as the Ivan Rogov-class landing ship.