SUPPORTERS CLUB
ROYAL NAVY PHOTO/CROWN COPYRIGHT
The Royal Fleet Auxiliary has introduced a fleet of four modern Tide-class tankers whose primary role is to support the Queen Elizabeth-class (QEC) aircraft carriers. Simon Michell talks to the managing director of A&P Group to find out how they were customised for this role.
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upporting Royal Navy (RN) ships at sea became a major priority with the transition from sail to steam power at the turn of the last century. The engines that drove RN ships from continent to continent consumed huge amounts of coal, which needed restocking on a regular basis. And, hence, since the introduction of engines, the Royal Navy has been shadowed at sea by Royal Fleet Auxiliary (RFA) support ships capable of replenishing sailors with food, water, ammunition, and, of course, fuel. Manned by civilians, and owned by the Ministry of Defence (MOD), the RFA is far more than a floating mobile pitstop service. The organisation supports the RN during peacetime and in times of conflict. It also undertakes deployments by itself, with its ships operating independently on the nation’s behalf offering reassurance to British Overseas Territories, contributing to disaster relief operations, and playing a part in counter-piracy
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HMS Prince of Wales
Aircraft carrier HMS Queen Elizabeth and new supply ship RFA Tidespring met up for the first time in February 2018 to undertake a Replenishment at Sea (RAS), refuelling whilst underway at sea, in what was the first complete RAS between the new ships.
and anti-narcotics operations. The impressive fleet includes replenishment vessels and tankers for dry stores and liquid fuel, a 100-bed casualty ship (RFA Argus) and three Bay-class floating docks that can transfer personnel, stores, and equipment from ship to shore during beach assault operations. Although the RFA has had to play its part in the austerity measures brought on by the financial crisis, it has also very nearly completed the process of refreshing its support fleet with four brand-new double-hulled Tide-class tankers to replace the single-hulled vessels that no longer
