HMS Bulwark (L15)

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For other ships with the same name, see HMS Bulwark.
HMS Bulwark.jpg
HMS Bulwark
History
United Kingdom
Name: HMS Bulwark
Operator: Royal Navy
Ordered: 18 July 1996
Builder: BAE Systems Marine, Barrow-in-Furness, England
Laid down: 27 January 2000
Launched: 15 November 2001
Sponsored by: Lady Walker
Commissioned: 10 December 2004
Refit: 2010–2011
Homeport: HMNB Devonport, Plymouth
Motto: "Under thy wings I will trust"
Status: in active service, as of 2024
Badge: HMS Bulwark badge.gif
General characteristics
Class & type: Albion-class amphibious transport dock
Displacement: 19,560 tonnes (19,250 long tons; 21,560 short tons)
Length: 176 metres (577 ft)
Beam: 28.9 metres (95 ft)
Draught: 7.1 metres (23 ft)
Propulsion:
  • 2 × Wärtsilä Vasa 16V 32E diesel generators
  • 2 × Wärtsilä Vasa 4R 32E diesel generators
  • 2 × electric motors
  • Bow thruster
Speed: 18 knots (21 mph; 33 km/h)
Range: 8,000 miles (7,000 nmi; 13,000 km)
Boats & landing
craft carried:
Capacity: 67 vehicles
Troops: 405 Royal Marines (710 overload)[1][2]
Crew: 325
Sensors and
processing systems:
  • 2 × Type 1007/8 I-band radars
  • 1 × Type 996 E/F band radar
  • 1 × Type 997 E/F-band radar (from 2016)
Armament:
Aviation facilities: Two landing spots for helicopters up to the size of a Chinook.
File:HMS Bulwark in the Mediterranean Sea MOD 45158763.jpg
Migrant rescue duty in the Mediterranean Sea, August 2014
File:HMS BULWARK, French frigate FS Courbet (F 712) and the German frigate FGS SCHLESWIG-HOLSTEIN (F 216). MOD 45158375.jpg
Escorted by FS Courbet & FGS Schleswig-Holstein during IMCMEX14 in the Persian Gulf

HMS Bulwark is the second ship of the Royal Navy's Albion-class assault ships. She is one of the United Kingdom's two newest amphibious transport docks designed to put Royal Marines ashore by air and by sea.

Although launched in 2001, delays caused the delivery date to be put back, and the ship entered service in December 2004. Together with Albion, Ocean, and other amphibious ships, she provides a larger and more effective amphibious capability than the previous Fearless-class vessels. Between October 2011 and June 2015 she was the fleet flagship of the Royal Navy.[3][4] The ship is designed to send large numbers of troops and vehicles to shore as quickly as possible. Bulwark supports a permanently embarked Royal Marines landing craft unit, 4 Assault Squadron Royal Marines.[5] The rear of Bulwark opens and floods a compartment, allowing the boats inside to be launched. The 64 metre flight deck is able to take two Sea King HC4 or Merlin medium-lift helicopters and stow a third. The deck can also support two Chinook heavy-lift helicopters, one down the side of the flight deck and one at the rear of the flight deck. Although the Albion design does not have a hangar, the ship has sufficient equipment to support helicopter operations.

Bulwark was launched at the BAE Systems shipyard at Barrow-in-Furness, Cumbria, on 15 November 2001. She is, to date, the most recent surface vessel to have been constructed at Barrow with the yard currently specialising in submarine construction.

Operational history

Bulwark departed the UK in January 2006 for a six-month East of Suez maiden deployment. She conducted counter-terrorist and counter-piracy tasks in waters off the Horn of Africa. Bulwark then headed for the northern Persian Gulf to become the flagship of Task Force 158, providing security for Iraqi oil platforms.

At the start of the summer of 2006 Bulwark was near Spain. Due to the 2006 Israel–Lebanon crisis, on 15 July 2006 she was ordered to divert to Lebanon and to support operations evacuating British citizens from the conflict area.[6] On 20 July, she evacuated approximately 1,300 people from Beirut in the biggest British evacuation.[7] On completion of her extended deployment the ship returned to the United Kingdom. At the start of June 2007 Bulwark was berthed at Sunderland on the River Wear.[8]

In October 2008, Bulwark was at the Tail of the Bank in the Firth of Clyde together with Ark Royal and the French ship Tonnerre, taking part in Exercise Joint Warrior 2008.[9]

On 18 February 2009, Bulwark sailed from Devonport as flagship to Commander UK Amphibious Task Group, Commodore Peter Hudson, on the Taurus 09 deployment. She was joined by Landing Platform Helicopter (LPH) Ocean, Type 23 frigates Argyll and Somerset and four ships of the Royal Fleet Auxiliary.[10]

In May 2010, she entered a dry-dock at HMNB Devonport to refit,[11] eventually rejoining the fleet in March 2011,[12] and then took over as fleet flagship from her sister ship Albion in October 2011.[13] She made a five-day visit to London on 16 March 2011.[14]

Bulwark undertook Operational Sea Training at the end of June 2011 in preparation to take up the role of fleet flagship of the Royal Navy.[15] Bulwark was on standby as leading ship of the UK's recently formed Response Force Task Group. In October she participated in Exercise Joint Warrior in Loch Eriboll, the largest war games staged in the UK, involving the French Marines and other NATO forces.[16]

On 15 February 2012, Bulwark made an unscheduled stop in Kiel, Germany, after ice on the Elbe river prevented her from entering the city of Hamburg as originally planned.[17] At the end of February, Bulwark visited the Polish port of Gdynia, carrying out exercises with two Polish frigates, ORP Generał Kazimierz Pułaski and ORP Generał Tadeusz Kościuszko. She also hosted onboard over 4,000 people from the city.[17] The vessel had entered the Baltic Sea to prepare for Exercise 'Cold Response', a NATO winter war games exercise due to take place in northern Norway in March 2012.[18]

In April 2012, she also took part in Exercise 'Joint Warrior' with several other British and foreign vessels including HMS Illustrious off the coast of Scotland.[19] She was part of the COUGAR 13 task group, with the Commander UK Task Group and his staff embarked on board.[20] She was visited by the Commander of Naval Striking and Support Forces at NATO.[21]

At the end of May 2014, Bulwark visited Greenwich in London, where the public were able to visit the ship for tours conducted by the crew, and she also took part in celebrations marking the 350th anniversary of the formation of the Royal Marines.[22]

In late 2014 Bulwark was deployed for the COUGAR 14 Response Force Task Group annual exercise and the International Mine Counter Measures Exercise (IMCMEX).[23][24]

Between April and July 2015 Bulwark was allocated to Operation Weald, the upgraded search and rescue operation off the Italian coast for migrants crossing from Libya. She was assisted by three Merlin HM.2 helicopters from 814 Naval Air Squadron.[25] Bulwark rescued over 2,900 migrants from the sea during the operation.[26]

Bulwark assisted in providing security for the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting held in Malta in November 2015.[27] This duty was completed in December 2015.[28]

Bulwark is due to be withdrawn from her current role and enter extended readiness in 2016 when she will switch roles with her sister ship Albion.[29]

In the media

Bulwark is the featured ship in the second series of Warship originally shown on television channel Five in the UK. The season followed her during the Taurus 09 deployment.[30]

Commanding officers

  • 2004–2005: Captain Jeremy Stanford RN
  • 2005–2006: Captain Clive Johnstone RN
  • 2006–2008: Captain Jeremy Blunden RN
  • 2008–2009: Captain Wayne Keble RN
  • 2009–2010: Captain Gavin Pritchard RN
  • 2010–2012: Captain Alexander Burton RN
  • 2012–2013: Captain Andrew Burns RN
  • 2014–2015: Captain Dean Bassett RN
  • 2015 onwards: Captain Nick Cooke-Priest RN

Affiliations

HMS Bulwark supports the following affiliations:[31]

References

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  31. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  32. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.

External links

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