Royal Navy’s MARS Tanker
The British Royal Fleet Auxiliary's (RFA) new fleet of Tide-class Military Afloat Reach and Sustainability (MARS) tankers comprising Tidespring, Tiderace, Tidesurge and Tideforce will enter service with the Royal Navy to boost its capabilities by delivering fuel, water, spare parts and other supplies serve at least 25 years.
Following completion of a £450m quartet design of the 37,000t ships, Daewoo Shipbuilding and Marine Engineering (DSME) will begin construction on the ships this year in South Korea.
The UK Ministry of Defence (MoD) awarded a contract to DSME in 2012 for the construction of four MARS tankers to replace the existing RFA's single hulled tankers, with the first ship of the class due to be delivered in October 2015, with the final vessel due in April 2017.
