Albion - class landing platform dock The " Albion " - class landing platform dock ( known also as an " assault ship " ) is the newest type of amphibious warfare ship in service with the Royal Navy . The class consists of two vessels , and , ordered in 1996 to replace the ageing " Fearless " class . Both ships were built by BAE Systems Marine at the former Vickers Shipbuilding and Engineering Ltd yard in Barrow - in - Furness . " Albion " was commissioned in 2003 and " Bulwark " in 2004 . Each of the ships has a crew of 325 and can accommodate up to 405 troops . Thirty - one large trucks and thirty - six smaller vehicles and main battle tanks can be carried inside the vehicle deck . To disembark troops and vehicles , the vessels are equipped with eight landing craft . Development . The value of the two " Fearless " class landing platform dock ships was highlighted during the Falklands War . Not only did the ships transport troops and vehicles to the South Atlantic , the commanders of the landing operations at San Carlos were aboard , and once they arrived their flight decks were used to support airborne operations by helicopters and Sea Harrier jets . As these ships were built in the 1960s , on 18 July 1996 the British Ministry of Defence awarded a £450 million contract for their replacements to Vickers Shipbuilding and Engineering Ltd ( VSEL ) in Barrow - in - Furness . The ships ' roles are " to act as the afloat command platform for the Royal Navy ’ s Amphibious Task Force and Landing Force Commanders when embarked " and " to embark , transport , deploy and recover troops with their equipment and vehicles which form part of an amphibious assault force " . They are larger and more capable than the " Fearless " class , and formed part of a modernization programme of the British amphibious fleet , which includes the helicopter carrier , the " Bay " - class landing ship s of the Royal Fleet Auxiliary and the " Point " - class sealift ship s . Extended readiness . To cut the running costs of the Royal Navy , the 2010 Strategic Defence and Security Review concluded that one of its two " Albion " class LPDs should be placed into extended readiness , or docked , while the other is held at high readiness for operations . The vessels will alternate between extended readiness and high readiness throughout their service lives . It was confirmed that " Albion " would be the first of the two vessels to be placed at extended readiness , for a cost of £2 . 5 million , as " Bulwark " had recently finished a major refit . Running costs while in extended readiness are estimated to be £300 , 000 per annum to keep the vessel available for reactivation at short notice . HMS " Albion " will re - enter high readiness when HMS " Bulwark " is put into extended readiness , expectedly around 2016 . The running costs of one of the " Albion " class vessels at high readiness ranged from £17 . 7 million to £38 . 6 million per annum from 2007 to 2011 . Characteristics . The " Albion " class LPDs have a length of , a breadth of , and a draught of . They have a normal displacement of , at full load and when the dock is flooded . The ships have a crew of 325 and can accommodate up to 405 troops , including their vehicles and combat supplies , in overload conditions . Propulsion is provided by two Wärtsilä Vasa 16V 32E diesel generators , two Wärtsilä Vasa 4R 32E diesel generators , driving two electric motors , two shafts , and a bow thruster . This is the first diesel electric propulsion system to be used in a Royal Navy surface ship . It reduces the engine room crew by about 66 per cent compared with the preceding " Fearless " class of ships . The diesel electric system can propel the ships to a maximum speed of 18 knots and have a range of . The aft flight deck has two landing spots for aircraft the size of Royal Air Force Chinooks . Below the flight deck is the dock and vehicle deck . The latter has the capacity to hold thirty - one large trucks and thirty - six smaller vehicles or six Challenger 2 tanks and thirty armoured personnel carrier s . The dock can hold four Landing Craft Utility MK10 , each large enough to carry vehicles up to main battle tank size , which are then launched by flooding of the dock area . Four smaller LCVP MK5 that can carry thirty - five men or two light trucks are carried on davits , two each side of the ships superstructure . Each ship also carries a fifty - two Long ton tracked beach recovery vehicle for assisting with landing craft recovery , as well as two tractors : one that can lay a track - way across a landing beach , and the second fitted with an excavating bucket and forks . Weapons and sensors . For defence against missile attack , the " Albion " class LPDs have two 30 mm Goalkeeper CIWS s mounted fore and aft on the superstructure and two 20 mm guns . Defensive countermeasures include the Outfit DLJ decoys , eight Seagnat radar reflection / infra - red emitting decoy launchers and a BAE Systems DLH off - board decoy . When commissioned , the ships were fitted with two Kelvin Hughes Type 1007 / 8 I - band radars , for navigation and aircraft control . For air and surface search , a Selex Sensors and Airborne Systems Radar Type 996 E / F band radar was fitted . From 2013 on , RT996 will be gradually replaced by the BAE Systems Maritime Services Artisan 3D E / F - band ( designated RT997 ) . HMS Iron Duke will be the First of Class and RT997 will be fitted to " Albion " and " Bulwark " by 2015 . There is also an ADAWS 2000 combat data system and a UAT / 1 - 4 Electronic support measures ( ESM ) system . Ships of the class . HMS " Albion " . HMS " Albion " was launched at Barrow - in - Furness on 9 March 2001 . After completing sea trials , " Albion " was commissioned in June 2003 and became fully operational in April 2004 . Her home port is HMNB Devonport on the south coast of England . In December 2010 , it was announced that " Albion " would be the next Royal Navy flagship after . She was deployed with the Response Force Task Group to the Gulf of Sidra off Libya to assist the ongoing NATO - led operation , and then moved into the Indian Ocean in June 2011 to assist with anti - piracy operations off the Horn of Africa . In 2011 she entered a state of " extended readiness " . HMS " Bulwark " . HMS " Bulwark " , the second and last ship in the class , was launched at Barrow - in - Furness in November 2001 , entered service in December 2004 , and was commissioned on 28 April 2005 . One of the " Bulwark " s first missions was Operation Highbrow in the Mediterranean in July 2006 . Docking in Beirut , the ship evacuated around 1 , 300 United Kingdom nationals . In May 2010 , she entered dry - dock at HMNB Devonport for a £30 million refit . In October 2011 , " Bulwark " , having just completed an eight month refit , became the flagship of the fleet . The refit improved her machinery and magazines , converted her to full night - vision tactical ability for landing craft and aircraft , and gave her the ability to operate two Chinook helicopters from the flight deck at the same time .