Mobile Landing Platform The Mobile Landing Platform ( MLP ) is a type of amphibious assault ship being constructed for the United States Navy , with the first ship due to enter service in 2013 . MLP ships are to serve as floating bases for amphibious operations , and operate as a transfer point between large ships and small landing craft . Proof - of - concept testing began in 2005 , with heavy lift ship s serving as substitutes for the MLPs . General Dynamics ' National Steel and Shipbuilding Company was awarded a contract to design and build the first ship in late 2010 , with construction beginning in July 2011 . The United States Navy initially plans to acquire three vessels ( with a possible fourth proposed in 2012 ) , which will be designated the " Montford Point " class . Design . The Mobile Landing Platform concept calls for a large auxiliary support ship to facilitate the ' seabasing ' of an amphibious landing force by acting as a floating base or transfer station that can be prepositioned off the target area . Troops , equipment , and cargo would be transferred to the MLP by large - draft ships , from where it can be moved ashore by shallower - draft vessels , landing craft like the Landing Craft Air Cushion ( LCAC ) , or helicopters . In order to transfer vehicles from the larger ships to the MLP , the vessels were originally to be fitted with a Vehicle Transfer System ; a ramp connecting the two ships alongside , and able to compensate for the movements of both vessels while underway . A preliminary design by General Dynamics envisioned a ship that carried six LCACs , with the ability to turn around ( dock , unload or load , then launch ) two landing craft simultaneously . The MLPs were to host a brigade - size force , sail at , and have a maximum range of . Each ship was to cost US $ 1 . 5 billion to build . However , cutbacks to defense spending planned for the fiscal year 2011 budget forced the downscaling of the design in mid - 2009 . General Dynamics identified the civilian ( built by the subsidiary National Steel and Shipbuilding Company ) as a suitable basis for an " MLP ' Lite ' " , with the design modified into a float - on / float - off vessel that could be built for US $ 500 million per ship . As part of the cost trade - off , the Vehicle Transfer System was scrapped in favor of skin - to - skin mooring of a host ship alongside the MLP , and the LCAC complement was reduced to three . The new design is long , with a beam of , a top speed of , and a maximum range of . Converteam supply an integrated power system and vessel automation system for the MLP . USS " Ponce " . In March 2013 CNO Jonathan Greenert showed Powerpoint of the MLP - Afloat Forward Staging Base ( MLP - AFSB ) , a proposed variant of the MLP with increased accommodation , a hangar and large flightdeck on piers above the semi - submersible deck , This was first proposed in January 2012 , around the time of the sudden announcement that the USS " Ponce " would be converted as an interim AFSB . The MLP - AFSB could be used to support special forces and intelligence gathering as a base for helicopters , MV - 22 Osprey tiltrotors , and even the F - 35B stealth fighter , but the main role of the " Ponce " will be operating minesweeping MH - 53E Sea Dragon helicopters . " a number of variations " of the MLP were being considered ; the AFSB can fulfil many of the roles of a $ 2 . 5bn " big deck " amphibious ship at a quarter of the price . Concept testing . In September 2005 , the United States Navy approved trials of the MLP concept , to test the feasibility of seabasing for an amphibious operation . The heavy lift ship MV " Mighty Servant 1 " served as the substitute for the MLP , while the Roll - on / roll - off vessel played the role of a planned type of transport ship for the United States Maritime Prepositioning Force . The first part of the trial consisted of the two ships transferring cargo between themselves while anchored in Puget Sound . After successfully completing this , the vessels sailed to San Diego , where cargo was transferred from " Watkins " to " Mighty Servant 1 " , then taken ashore by LCACs ; slightly submerging the deck of the heavy lift ship allowed the hovercraft to " ' fly ' aboard " . A second series of tests was conducted off Norfolk , Virginia in September and October 2006 , with and MV " Mighty Servant 3 " . This time , the ships were moored together while underway , during which vehicles drove from " Red Cloud " onto " Mighty Servant 3 " , then embarked aboard LCACs . In February 2010 , " Mighty Servant 3 " joined for further trials in the Gulf of Mexico . During these , personnel and a wide range of vehicles , from Humvee s to M1 Abrams tanks , were transferred to , then launched from " Mighty Servant 3 " , in conditions up to Sea State 4 . Construction . In August 2010 , the National Steel and Shipbuilding Company in San Diego was awarded a US $ 115 million contract to design the Mobile Landing Platform , and build the first ship . Construction on the first vessel began in July 2011 . In January 2011 , the names for the three ships were announced : Orders for the second and third vessels are expected to be made in the 2013 and 2015 fiscal years . The keel for the first " Montford Point " - class Mobile Landing Platform was laid on 19 January 2012 . Construction of " John Glenn " begin on 17 April 2012 , by which time the " Montford Point " was 48 % complete . The " Montford Point " was christened in San Diego on March 2 , 2013 . The first ship is to be operational by 2015 , with the third in service by 2018 . The " Montford Point " completed final contract trials on 13 September 2013 ; the " John Glenn " was floated off on 15 September and construction began on the " Lewis B . Puller " on 19 September 2013 . In March 2012 the USN requested a fourth ship in the FY14 budget of the National Defense Sealift Fund , and proposed that both MLP - 3 and MLP - 4 would be MLP - AFSB variants . Congress rejected both requests on the grounds that the " Ponce " could do the job and AFSB ' s should in any case be funded out of the main Navy account . the Chief of Naval Operations is still planning to buy two MLP and two MLP - AFSB despite the uncertainty caused by the sequester , in fact the late - 2012 " Vision for the 2025 Surface Fleet " by the head of Naval Surface Forces envisages buying more MLP variants as a cheap alternative to traditional amphibious ships .