Julian Lewis – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Julian Lewis on 2015-12-07.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, which individual ships will fulfil the roles currently carried out by HMS Ocean when she is withdrawn from service; and what numbers of (a) amphibious forces and (b) helicopters are carried by (i) HMS Ocean and (ii) the substitute ships.

Mr Philip Dunne

As stated in the Strategic Defence and Security Review (Cm9161), we will enhance a Queen Elizabeth Class (QEC) aircraft carrier to support our amphibious capability. Together with existing amphibious ships of the Royal Navy and Royal Fleet Auxiliary, this will provide the capacity and capability to deploy our amphibious forces.

HMS OCEAN can carry up to 690 Embarked Military Forces (EMF) – Royal Marines and Aviation Group personnel – in addition to her ship’s company. She can deploy a variety of helicopter types in multiple combinations as required by her mission and role.

The QEC aircraft carriers can embark up to 900 EMF, in addition to their ship’s company, in support of their missions and tasks and a flexible mix of helicopters subject to the operational tasking.