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. The RFA is one of five RN fighting arms.
RFA Olwen (A122) was an Ol-class "fast fleet tanker" of the Royal Fleet Auxiliary.
RFA Olna (A123) was the third and final of the three Ol-class "fast fleet tanker" of the Royal Fleet Auxiliary. Olna saw service in the Falklands War.
RFA Green Rover (A268) was a Rover-class small fleet tanker of the Royal Fleet Auxiliary (RFA), built by Swan Hunter Shipbuilders on the River Tyne, UK and completed in 1969. After decommissioning in 1992 she was sold to the Indonesian Navy and renamed KRI Arun (903)
The Wave-class tankers are a class of fast fleet tankers in service with the Royal Fleet Auxiliary. The class is tasked with providing fuel, food, fresh water, ammunition and other supplies to Royal Navy vessels around the world. There are two ships in the class, RFA Wave Knight and RFA Wave Ruler. The ships were ordered to replace the aging Ol-class tankers RFA Olna and RFA Olwen. The two vessels have seen service in a number of locations, including anti-drug and hurricane relief operations in the Caribbean Sea, anti-piracy activities around the Horn of Africa, and deterrent patrols in the South Atlantic. As of early 2022, both ships were earmarked for "extended readiness" status.
A replenishment oiler or replenishment tanker is a naval auxiliary ship with fuel tanks and dry cargo holds which can supply both fuel and dry stores during underway replenishment (UNREP) at sea. Many countries have used replenishment oilers.
The Tide class was a series of six replenishment oilers used by the Royal Fleet Auxiliary (RFA), the naval auxiliary fleet of the United Kingdom, the Royal Australian Navy (RAN), and the Chilean Navy.
The Leaf class is a class of support tanker of the Royal Fleet Auxiliary (RFA), the naval auxiliary fleet of the United Kingdom. The class is somewhat unusual as it is an amalgam of various civilian tankers chartered for naval auxiliary use and as such has included many different designs of ship. Leaf names are traditional tanker names in the RFA, and are recycled when charters end and new vessels are acquired. Thus, there have been multiple uses of the same names, sometimes also sharing a common pennant number.
The Rover class is a British ship class of five small fleet tankers, active from 1970 to 2017 with the Royal Fleet Auxiliary (RFA), the naval auxiliary fleet of the United Kingdom. One remains in service, having been sold to Indonesia; the rest have been scrapped or are awaiting disposal, including the one sold to Portugal. They are tasked with the replenishment at sea (RAS) of naval warships with fuel oils and with limited supplies of other naval stores. For RAS tasking, they can refuel a vessel on either beam and a third trailing astern and have a large flight deck to allow vertical replenishment with helicopters.
RFA Wave Knight is a Wave-class fast fleet tanker of the Royal Fleet Auxiliary (RFA) of the United Kingdom tasked with providing fuel, food, fresh water, ammunition and other supplies to Royal Navy vessels around the world.
The Wave class was a class of replenishment oilers built for service supporting the Royal Navy during the later years of the Second World War. They were subsequently transferred to the Royal Fleet Auxiliary after the end of the war, and went on to support British and allied fleet units in Cold War conflicts such as the Korean War.
The Dale class were a class of replenishment oilers taken up for service with the Royal Fleet Auxiliary, supporting the Royal Navy during the inter-war period. They went on to see action during the Second World War and supported British and allied fleet units in Cold War conflicts such as the Korean War.
The Dale class consisted of three tankers chartered for service with the Royal Fleet Auxiliary (RFA), the naval auxiliary fleet of the United Kingdom. In 1967. They served for a number of years supporting Royal Navy and allied fleet operations, during which one, Ennerdale, was lost. The remaining two were returned to their original owners in the mid-1970s.
The Surf class were a class of replenishment oilers taken up for service with the Royal Fleet Auxiliary (RFA), supporting the Royal Navy during the Korean War. Two were commercial tankers under construction in British yards as the war began. A third ship was captured from in the Far East and brought into the RFA as Surf Pilot. She was never utilised however, and was laid up until being scrapped in 1960. The remaining two tankers were laid up at about this time, and were either sold or scrapped by 1970.
The Ol-class tankers were a series of three "fast fleet tankers" used by the Royal Fleet Auxiliary (RFA), the naval auxiliary fleet of the United Kingdom, tasked with providing fuel, food, fresh water, ammunition and other supplies to Royal Navy vessels around the world.
The Eddy-class coastal tankers were a series of eight replenishment oilers used by the Royal Fleet Auxiliary (RFA), the naval auxiliary fleet of the United Kingdom. They were built from 1951–1953 tasked with transporting and providing fuel and other liquids to Royal Navy vessels and stations around the world.
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.
RFA Tidespring is a Tide-class replenishment tanker of the British Royal Fleet Auxiliary (RFA). Built by DSME in 2016, the ship entered service with the Royal Fleet Auxiliary in November 2017.
RFA Tidesurge is a Tide-class replenishment tanker of the British Royal Fleet Auxiliary (RFA). Built by DSME in 2017, she entered service with the RFA on 20 February 2019.
RFA Tideforce is a Tide-class replenishment tanker of the British Royal Fleet Auxiliary (RFA). Launched in 2017, the ship entered service with the RFA in 2019.
Royal Fleet Auxiliary