Army’s new Landing Craft Heavy announced

Defence has selected a design by Damen Shipyards Group as the preferred option for the Army’s landing-craft heavy.

CAPTION: Landing Ship Transport 100 (LST100) concept. Supplied by Damen Shipyards Group.

This announcement is a significant step in the establishment of a littoral manoeuvre fleet and is the next stage in the transformation of the Australian Army to one focused on littoral manoeuvre and long-range strike.

Damen Shipyards Group’s Landing Ship Transport 100 (LST100) will provide a capability that is essential to the restructure and re-posture of the Army.

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Along with landing-craft medium and amphibious vehicles, this new vessel will support a strategy of denial which includes deploying and sustaining land forces with long-range land and maritime strike capabilities in littoral environments.

Eight landing-craft heavy, based on the LST100, will be built by Australian shipbuilder Austal at the Henderson Shipyard in Western Australia, subject to acceptable commercial negotiations and demonstrated performance.

LST100 has a 3900-tonne displacement, is 100 meters long and 16 meters wide.

It will be capable of operating with other vessels to undertake a range of tasks including troop insertion and extraction, logistics movements and humanitarian assistance and disaster relief.

The vessel will be capable of carrying more than 500 tonnes of military vehicles and equipment.

It is intended to carry six Abrams tanks or 11 Redback Infantry Fighting Vehicles or 26 HIMARS – and will be fitted with self-defence weapon systems and Australian military communications.

Construction of the first Landing Craft Heavy is expected to start in 2026.

Minister for Defence Industry and Capability Delivery Pat Conroy said funding for the new littoral manoeuvre vessels was part of the Integrated Investment Program (2024-34), which was helping to grow the Australian industrial base and supply chains, and create highly skilled, well-paid jobs.

“This project is an important part of our plans for continuous naval shipbuilding in both South Australia and Western Australia, which is creating thousands of well-paid and high-skilled jobs,” Mr Conroy said

“Importantly, these vessels will be built in Australia, from Australian steel.

“This not only underscores the government’s commitment to keep Australians safe, but also to a safer future made in Australia.”

 

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