UK to retire Albion-class amphibious assault ships, one Type 23 frigate, and Wave-class tankers by March 2025

UK Royal Navy Albion-class amphibious assault ship HMS Albion (L 14). (Michael Nitz)

The UK government has announced plans to retire Royal Navy (RN) Albion-class amphibious assault ships HMS Albion (L 14) and HMS Bulwark (L 15), the Duke-class (Type 23) frigate HMS Northumberland (F 238), and the Royal Fleet Auxiliary (RFA) Wave-class large fleet tankers RFA Wave Knight (A 389) and RFA Wave Ruler (A 390).

In a 20 November oral statement to the House of Commons and associated written ministerial statement, Secretary of State for Defence John Healey announced the decision to retire the ships, as part of a broader range of equipment retirements. Northumberland is now scheduled to be decommissioned in March 2025, with the Albion and Wave classes to be decommissioned by the end of the same month.

Healey said that Albion and Bulwark have not been to sea since 2023 and 2017 respectively and are in a reduced readiness state, with no plans for a return to sea ahead of their originally scheduled out of service dates of 2033 and 2034. He added that the ships “had, in effect, been mothballed, but were still costing the taxpayer around £9m [USD11.3 million] per year to maintain”. Most of the ships' companies have already been reassigned, he said, with the remainder to be reassigned once the ships are decommissioned.

Damage limitation

Healey said the ships are to be replaced by the planned Multirole Support Ships (MRSS), with the UK's Commando Force to be supported by three Bay-class Landing Ship Dock Auxiliaries, and the primary casualty receiving ship RFA Argus