Marchwood Military Port (MMP) or Marchwood Sea Mounting Centre (SMC) is a military port located in Marchwood, Southampton on the south coast of the UK, and the base of 17 Port & Maritime RegimentRoyal Logistic Corps. The port was built in 1943 to aid in the D-Day assault on Normandy in 1944 and has since been used to support the Falklands War. The port is now used largely by the Royal Fleet Auxiliary, as a base for their ships, including the Tide-class tankers, and it is also still employed for military cargo and personnel movement.
In August 2020, it was announced that the port would be converted to civilian use, with the Ministry of Defence retaining use of an element of the port.
History and facilities
The port in 2004
The port was built in 1943 with the intent that it should be used to aid the Normandy landings in 1944 by shipping men and equipment across to the beaches, the port was also used to support the occupying forces following the success of the landings.[1] At this time the port was relatively small, with just one jetty.[2]
The port now consists of three main jetties.
Falkland Jetty (berths 3 and 4), the largest, is 169 metres (554ft) long and 33 metres (108ft) wide,[1] with two dolphins and is capable of accepting vessels up to 25,000 tonnes. It has two sophisticated class 100 ro-ro link span ramps facility capable of handling vessels with various ramp configurations. There are two 32 tonne cranes with container handling ability. The two berths are maintained to 8 metres (26ft)+ (low water).
Mulberry Jetty (berths 1 and 2), built during World War II, is 115 metres (377ft) long,[1] has rail access and is capable of accepting vessels of up to 8,000 tonnes with limited Ro/Ro facilities. It is named for the mulberry harbours used on the French coast for the post D-Day logistics. The berths are maintained at 4 metres (13ft).
Gunwharf Jetty (berths 5 and 6) is a subsidiary jetty of 116 metres (381ft) that is used to berth military landing craft and smaller vessels. The berths are maintained at 4 metres (13ft) and 3 metres (9.8ft) respectively.[3]
There is also a small ship maintenance facility with a boatlift rated at 225 tonnes.
The waters are dredged to 8 metres (26ft) so the whole complex can accept the majority of ships likely to be used by the Ministry of Defence. Dolphins at the seaward end makes it easier for longer ships to use. The Directorate of Land Service Ammunition (DLSA) has granted the port a licence to handle ammunition/explosives on the main jetty. The port has a limited capacity to handle containerised cargo within the 289-acre estate.[4]
RFA Sir Galahad departing from Marchwood in 1979
The port again found use during the Falklands War, when it was employed to transport men and equipment to the Falkland Islands.[5] The port aided Operation Corporate as a launching point for the Royal Fleet AuxiliariesRound Table classlanding ships, armoured vehicles were also transported from Marchwood to the Europic Ferry via Mexeflote and then on to the Falklands. The port also became a massive assembly area for cargo and armoured vehicles which were subsequently forwarded to Southampton for transportation to the Falklands as required.[2] At the conclusion of the war the port was used to receive 80 war dead, who were kept in the cargo shed, before being processed and returned to their families for funerals.[2]
After the Falklands it became clear to the UK government that the base in Marchwood had been highly important in the war, and so the government spent £18 million on upgrading and improving the base, which only had a single jetty at the time.[4] The Quartermaster General, appointed after the war, commented on the previous makeshift style of the port, saying that when he was assigned the job he was told to "get the Army some decent boots and sort out Marchwood", to which Major Robin Barton replied "At Marchwood, General, we are not too fussed about the boots".[2]
The port was expanded considerably, with administration blocks being put in, as well as the Falklands deep water jetty, and training facilities. The water front is left clear for cargo and loading.[2] The expansion of the port has become subject of a short documentary, meant for civil engineers.[6]
In 2000 proposals were made to implement a separate, civilian, container port and access roads in close proximity to Marchwood. In a Parliamentary question, a Member of Parliament asked the Government whether the Ministry of Defence could accept such building works. The response was "yes," provided the Armed Forces' security and other requirements were taken into account, including in the planning process.[7] The expansion has since been implemented.[2]
The base contains a small standard gauge diesel-powered railway network that transports freight and occasionally passengers around the site. It is connected to the national railway network via the Fawley branch line, allowing freight trains to access the port and is regularly used to transport military vehicles and materiel to and from the port.
The port is now used largely by the Royal Fleet Auxiliary, as a base for their ships, including their amphibious ships, but it is also still employed for military cargo and personnel movement.[5]
The site is named McMullen Barracks and the operating unit is 17 Port and Maritime Regiment, Royal Logistic Corps.
In October 2010, it was reported that the port was to be sold to a private operator, but that no firm decision had been made regarding the future use of the port by the military.[8] In August 2020, it was announced that the port would be converted to civilian use, with the Ministry of Defence retaining use of an element of the port.[9]
Based units
The following based units and ships are based at the port:
RFA Sir Galahad (L3005) was a landing ship logistics (LSL) of the Royal Fleet Auxiliary, later in service with the Brazilian Navy as the Garcia D'Avila.
The Royal Fleet Auxiliary (RFA) is a naval auxiliary fleet owned by the UK's Ministry of Defence. It is a component of His Majesty's Naval Service and provides logistical and operational support to the Royal Navy and Royal Marines. The RFA ensures the Royal Navy is supplied and supported by providing fuel and stores through replenishment at sea, transporting Royal Marines and British Army personnel, providing medical care and transporting equipment and essentials around the world. In addition the RFA acts independently providing humanitarian aid, counter piracy and counter narcotic patrols together with assisting the Royal Navy in preventing conflict and securing international trade. They are a uniformed civilian branch of the Royal Navy staffed by British merchant sailors.
RFA Sir Bedivere (L3004) was a Landing Ship Logistic of the Round Table class. She saw service in the Falklands War, the Persian Gulf and Sierra Leone. In 2009, she was commissioned into the Brazilian Navy and renamed NDCC Almirante Saboia (G-25), where she saw service in Haiti.
RFA Sir Percivale (L3036) was a Round Table class landing ship logistics (LSL) vessel belonging to the Royal Fleet Auxiliary of the United Kingdom.
RFA Fort Austin is a retired British Fort Rosalie-class dry stores ship of the Royal Fleet Auxiliary.
HMAS Choules (L100) is a Bay-class landing ship that served with the Royal Fleet Auxiliary (RFA) from 2006 to 2011, before being purchased by the Royal Australian Navy (RAN). The vessel was built as RFA Largs Bay by Swan Hunter in Wallsend, Tyne and Wear. She was named after Largs Bay in Ayrshire, Scotland, and entered service in November 2006. During her career with the RFA, Largs Bay served as the British ship assigned to patrol the Falkland Islands in 2008, and delivered relief supplies following the 2010 Haiti earthquake.
RFA Lyme Bay is a Bay-class auxiliary landing ship dock of the British Royal Fleet Auxiliary (RFA). Ordered from Swan Hunter in 2000, the ship was launched in 2005. However, cost overruns and delays saw the shipbuilder removed from the project, and the incomplete ship was towed to Govan for finishing by BAE Systems Naval Ships. Lyme Bay entered service in late 2007; the last ship of the class to join the RFA.
RFA Sir Geraint (L3027) was a Landing Ship Logistic of the Round Table class. She saw service in the Falklands War and Sierra Leone.
The Bay class is a ship class of four dock landing ships built for the British Royal Fleet Auxiliary (RFA) during the 2000s. They are based on the Dutch-Spanish Royal Schelde Enforcer design, and replaced the Round Table-class logistics ships. Two ships each were ordered from Swan Hunter and BAE Systems Naval Ships. Construction work started in 2002, but saw major delays and cost overruns, particularly at Swan Hunter's shipyard. In mid-2006, Swan Hunter was stripped of work, and the incomplete second ship was towed to BAE's shipyard for completion. All four ships, Largs Bay, Lyme Bay, Mounts Bay, and Cardigan Bay had entered service by 2007.
Standing Royal Navy deployments is a list of operations and commitments undertaken by the United Kingdom's Royal Navy on a worldwide basis. The following list details these commitments and deployments sorted by region and in alphabetical order. Routine deployments made by the Navy's nuclear-powered submarines and their location of operations is classified.
His Majesty's Naval Service is the United Kingdom's naval warfare and maritime service. It consists of the Royal Navy, Royal Marines, Royal Fleet Auxiliary, Royal Naval Reserve, Royal Marines Reserve and Naval Careers Service. The term Naval Service should be distinguished from the "UK Naval Services", which consist of the Naval Service and the Merchant Navy. The Naval Service as a whole falls under the command of the Navy Board, which is headed by the First Sea Lord. This position is currently held by Admiral Sir Ben Key. The Defence Council delegates administration of the Naval Service to the Admiralty Board, chaired by the Secretary of State for Defence.
The ramped craft logistic (RCL) is a type of landing craft operated by 17 Port and Maritime Regiment RLC of the Royal Logistic Corps of the British Army. From the early 1980s onwards it was deployed to replace the RPL. One of their first roles was to provide logistical support during the setting up of the garrison in the Falkland Islands immediately after the Falklands War - this role was conducted by the two first of class, Arromanches and Antwerp, later stationed at the military port at Marchwood, near Southampton, RCLs were originally procured for UK, Cyprus and Hong Kong. The two based at the British base at Akrotiri, Cyprus, Andalsnes and Akyab were operated as 417 Troop of 17 Port and Maritime Regiment RLC. They were sold in 2014
Mare Harbour, known colloquially as East Cove Port, is a small settlement on East Falkland, on Choiseul Sound. It is mostly used as a port facility and depot for RAF Mount Pleasant, as well as a deepwater port used by the Royal Navy ships patrolling the South Atlantic and Antarctica, which means that the main harbour of the islands, Stanley Harbour tends to deal with commercial transport.
The 1982 British military campaign to recapture the Falkland Islands depended on complex logistical arrangements. The logistical difficulties of operating 7,000 nautical miles from home were formidable. The Argentine invasion of the Falkland Islands came at a time when the Royal Navy was experiencing a reduction in its amphibious capability, but it still possessed the aircraft carriers HMS Hermes and Invincible, the landing platform dock (LPD) ships HMS Fearless and Intrepid, and six landing ship logistics (LSL) ships. To provide the necessary logistic support, the Royal Navy's ships were augmented by ships taken up from trade (STUFT).
The Port of Southampton is a passenger and cargo port in the central part of the south coast of England. The modern era in the history of the Port of Southampton began when the first dock was inaugurated in 1843. After the Port of Felixstowe, Southampton is the second largest container terminal in UK, with a handled traffic of 1.5 million twenty-foot equivalent units (TEU). It also handles cruise ships, roll-on roll-off, dry bulk, and liquid bulk.
The Mexeflote is a landing raft used by the United Kingdom's Royal Logistic Corps and the Royal Australian Navy to move goods and vehicles between ship and shore. It was first used by British military in the 1960s. It was used during the Falklands conflict, and has been used in humanitarian aid missions. The system is very similar to the Rhino ferry.
The Port of Duqm, also known as Duqm Port, is a seaport and road terminal located at Duqm in the Al Wusta governorate of Oman. Duqm Port, integrated in the Special Economic Zone at Duqm (SEZAD), and located 550 kilometres south of capital Muscat, is equipped with a ship repair yard and dry dock facility. Overlooking the Arabian Sea and the Indian Ocean, the Port of Duqm is a joint-venture between ASYAD Ports and Consortium Antwerp Port. Although operating since 2012, it was not officially opened until 4 February 2022, by Mr. Asa'ad bin Tariq Al Said, Deputy Prime Minister for International Relations and Cooperation Affairs and Personal Representative of His Majesty the Sultan of Oman.
The Tide-class tanker (formerly the Military Afloat Reach and Sustainability (MARS) project) is a class of four fast fleet tankers that entered service with the British Royal Fleet Auxiliary from 2017. The 37,000 t ships provide fuel, food, fresh water, ammunition and other supplies to Royal Navy vessels around the world. Norway ordered a similar 26,000 t version with a 48-bed hospital and greater solid stores capacity, but reduced liquid capacity; it was delivered in November 2018 as HNoMS Maud two years after originally planned. The two classes are very similar but are not directly comparable due to large variance in capabilities delivered.
17 Port and Maritime Regiment is a regiment of the British Army's Royal Logistic Corps. The unit is the Army's only regular Port & Maritime capability, though it is twinned with 165 Port and Maritime Regiment RLC, of the Army Reserve.
A fleet solid support ship is a type of Royal Fleet Auxiliary (RFA) ship designed to supply solids, such as ammunition, explosives and food, to Royal Navy ships at sea. The term can also refer to the programme to replace the RFA's existing solid support ships, the Fleet Solid Support Ship Programme.
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