Bay-class landing ship

RFA Mounts Bay leaving Portsmouth
Class overview
BuildersSwan Hunter and BAE Systems Naval Ships
Operators
Preceded byRound Table class
Succeeded byMulti Role Support Ship (planned)
Cost
  • £596 million for 4 units
  • £149 million per unit
  • BAE ships cost £127 million[1] per unit to build
Built28 January 2002-26 November 2007
In commission13 July 2006-present
Completed4
Active4
General characteristics
TypeLanding ship dock
Displacement16,160 tonnes (15,900 long tons)
Length579.4 ft (176.6 m)
Beam86.6 ft (26.4 m)
Draught19 ft (5.8 m)
Propulsion
  • 2 × Wärtsilä 8L26 generators, 6,000 hp (4.5 MW)
  • 2 × Wärtsilä 12V26 generators, 9,000 hp (6.7 MW)
  • 2 × azimuthing thrusters
  • 1 × bow thruster
Speed18 knots (33 km/h; 21 mph)
Range8,000 nmi (15,000 km; 9,200 mi) at 15 kn (28 km/h; 17 mph)
Boats & landing
craft carried
Capacity1,150 linear metres of vehicles (up to 24 Challenger 2 tanks or 150 light trucks) Cargo capacity of 200 tons ammunition or 24 TEU containers
Troops356 (standard), 700 (overload)
Crew70 (RFA, core only), 158 (RAN)
Armament
Aviation facilitiesFlight deck for helicopters up to Chinook-size; temporary hangar can be fitted
NotesDerivative of the Enforcer ship design

The Bay class is a ship class of four dock landing ships built for the British Royal Fleet Auxiliary (RFA) during the 2000s. They are based on the Dutch-Spanish Royal Schelde Enforcer design, and replaced the Round Table-class logistics ships. Two ships each were ordered from Swan Hunter and BAE Systems Naval Ships. Construction work started in 2002, but saw major delays and cost overruns, particularly at Swan Hunter's shipyard. In mid-2006, Swan Hunter was stripped of work, and the incomplete second ship was towed to BAE's shipyard for completion. All four ships, Largs Bay, Lyme Bay, Mounts Bay, and Cardigan Bay had entered service by 2007.

Since entering service, the Bay-class ships have been used for amphibious operations, training of the Iraqi Navy in the Persian Gulf, counter-drug deployments in the Caribbean, and relief operations following the 2010 Haiti earthquake. In 2010, Largs Bay was removed from service as part of the Strategic Defence and Security Review. She was sold to the Royal Australian Navy (RAN) in 2011, who operate her as HMAS Choules.

Since 2020, the RFA has used the ships for littoral warfare as part of Littoral Response Groups. The ships are expected to serve with the RFA into the 2030s, after which they are expected to be replaced by new Multi-Role Support Ships.

  1. ^ Cite error: The named reference NAO07 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  2. ^ "The all-rounder – the 30mm Automated Small Calibre Gun in focus". Navy Lookout. 13 January 2021. Retrieved 29 March 2023.
  3. ^ "Last ditch defence – the Phalanx close-in weapon system in focus". Navy Lookout. 10 August 2020. Retrieved 29 March 2023.
  4. ^ "In focus: the Fleet Solid Support ship design". Navy Lookout. 28 February 2023. Retrieved 14 April 2023.