HMS Fearless (L10)

HMS Fearless off North Carolina, 9 May 1996
History
United Kingdom
NameFearless
BuilderHarland and Wolff, Belfast
Laid down25 July 1962
Launched19 December 1963
Sponsored byLady Hull, wife of Field Marshal Sir Richard Hull
Commissioned25 November 1965
Decommissioned18 March 2002
Identification
Motto
  • Explicit Nomen
  • ("The name says it all")
FateScrapped Ghent harbour (BE) 2008
General characteristics
Class & typeFearless-class landing platform dock
Displacement12,120 tons (full load)
Length520 ft (160 m)
Beam80 ft (24 m)
Draught21 ft (6.4 m)
Propulsion2 × English Electric 2 shaft geared steam turbines. 22,000 shp (16,000 kW) total
Speed21 knots (39 km/h)
Complement580
Armament
Aircraft carriedLanding platform for up to 5 Sea King helicopters.

HMS Fearless (L10) was a Royal Navy amphibious assault ship that served from 1965 until 2002. One of two Fearless-class landing platform docks, she was based in HMNB Portsmouth and saw service around the world over her 37-year life. She was the last steam-powered surface ship in the Royal Navy.

The ship featured a floodable internal dock, accessed via a ramp at the stern for vehicles to embark, at sea, the stern would be partially submerged, allowing landing craft to load or unload vehicles and personnel directly from the deck. She carried four Landing Craft Utility (LCU)s in the well dock and four smaller Landing Craft Vehicle Personnel (LCVP) mounted on davits along the superstructure. Accommodation was provided for up to 400 embarked troops, which could be increased to 700.