The Royal Navy formally welcomed RFA TIDESURGE A 138 her newest fleet replenishment tanker, in a ceremony at Greenock’s Ocean Terminal on Wednesday, February 20th.
She’s a Tide Class Replenishment ship of the Royal Fleet Auxiliary (RFA). The 39,000-tonne vessel is the third of a planned four TIDE Class Military Afloat Reach and Sustainability (MARS) tankers built for the Royal Navy by South Korea’s Daewoo Shipbuilding and Marine Engineering (DSME) under the 450M£ (US$588M) MARS Tanker programme. She was ordered in 2012 and was officially named on 29th August 2017. She was accepted off contract on 15th November 2017. She arrived at A&P Falmouth in Cornwall on 27th March 2018 for final fitting out with sensitive military equipment prior to UK sea trials and commissioning.
Like her sisters, RFA TIDESURGE A 138 will also be able to undertake secondary maritime operations such as policing of shipping lanes and humanitarian relief.
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