''Galicia'' (L51) is a (LPD) of the

Spanish Navy The Spanish Navy or officially, the Armada, is the maritime branch of the Spanish Armed Forces and one of the oldest active naval forces in the world. The Spanish Navy was responsible for a number of major historic achievements in navigation, ...

and is the seventh ship to bear this name. She is the

lead ship The lead ship, name ship, or class leader is the first of a series or class of ships all constructed according to the same general design. The term is applicable to naval ships and large civilian vessels. Large ships are very complex and may ...

in her class. The vessel was constructed in Ferrol, Spain and launched in 1997 and commissioned in 1998. ''Galicia'' is tasked with transporting Spanish marines, humanitarian aid missions and general logistic support. The LPD has taken part in actions against piracy in the Indian Ocean and off the Somalian coast, provided humanitarian aid following hurricanes and tsunamis and provided support during the

COVID-19 pandemic in Spain The COVID-19 pandemic in Spain has resulted in confirmed cases of COVID-19 and deaths. The virus was first confirmed to have spread to Spain on 31 January 2020, when a German tourist tested positive for SARS-CoV-2 in La Gomera, Canary Island ...

Design and description

The project began in the Netherlands in 1990 as that country sought a solution to their LPD requirements. Spain joined the project in July 1991 and the definition stage was completed by December 1993. The ''Galicia'' class spawned from the joint

Enforcer Enforcer or enforcers may refer to: Arts, entertainment and media Comics * Enforcer (comics), a Marvel Comics character * Enforcers (comics), a Marvel Comics team * New Enforcers, another Marvel Comics team Film and television * ''The Enforcer ...

design with Spain's

being authorised on 29 July 1994. The LPDs were designed to transport a

battalion A battalion is a military unit, typically consisting of 300 to 1,200 soldiers commanded by a lieutenant colonel, and subdivided into a number of companies (usually each commanded by a major or a captain). In some countries, battalions a ...

marines Marines, or naval infantry, are typically a military force trained to operate in littoral zones in support of naval operations. Historically, tasks undertaken by marines have included helping maintain discipline and order aboard the ship (refle ...

and disembark them offshore and general logistic support. Vessels of the class have a

full load displacement The displacement or displacement tonnage of a ship is its weight. As the term indicates, it is measured indirectly, using Archimedes' principle, by first calculating the volume of water displaced by the ship, then converting that value into wei ...

of . The vessels measure

long overall __NOTOC__ Length overall (LOA, o/a, o.a. or oa) is the maximum length of a vessel's hull measured parallel to the waterline. This length is important while docking the ship. It is the most commonly used way of expressing the size of a ship, an ...

and

between perpendiculars Length between perpendiculars (often abbreviated as p/p, p.p., pp, LPP, LBP or Length BPP) is the length of a ship along the summer load line from the forward surface of the stem, or main bow perpendicular member, to the after surface of the ster ...

with a beam of and a draught of . The LPDs are powered by four Bazan/ Caterpillar 3612

diesel engine The diesel engine, named after Rudolf Diesel, is an internal combustion engine in which ignition of the fuel is caused by the elevated temperature of the air in the cylinder due to mechanical compression; thus, the diesel engine is a so-ca ...

s in two sets initially creating though this was later increased to , and an electric generator tied to reduction gear. Each vessel has two shafts with , five-bladed variable pitch propellers. The ships also mount one

bow thruster Manoeuvering thruster (bow thruster or stern thruster) is a transversal propulsion device built into, or mounted to, either the bow or stern, of a ship or boat to make it more manoeuvrable. Bow thrusters make docking easier, since they allow th ...

initially capable of but was later improved to . This gives the ships a maximum speed of and a range of at . The ships have a electric plant comprising four diesel generators capable of creating and an emergency generator. Buque de Asalto Anfibio Clase Galicia (L-51) Spanish Navy (6784578215)

Buque de Asalto Anfibio Clase Galicia (L-51) Spanish Navy (6784578215)

The ''Galicia'' class have a

flight deck The flight deck of an aircraft carrier is the surface from which its aircraft take off and land, essentially a miniature airfield at sea. On smaller naval ships which do not have aviation as a primary mission, the landing area for helicopte ...

capable of operating

helicopter A helicopter is a type of rotorcraft in which lift and thrust are supplied by horizontally spinning rotors. This allows the helicopter to take off and land vertically, to hover, and to fly forward, backward and laterally. These attributes ...

s. The vessels have

hangar A hangar is a building or structure designed to hold aircraft or spacecraft. Hangars are built of metal, wood, or concrete. The word ''hangar'' comes from Middle French ''hanghart'' ("enclosure near a house"), of Germanic origin, from Frankish ...

area for four heavy or six medium helicopters. The LPDs usually sail with six AB 212 or four SH-3D helicopters embarked. They have a

well deck In traditional nautical use, well decks were decks lower than decks fore and aft, usually at the main deck level, so that breaks appear in the main deck profile, as opposed to a flush deck profile. The term goes back to the days of sail. Late-20 ...

and are capable of operating six landing craft vehicle and personnel (LCVP) or four landing craft mechanized (LCM) or one

landing craft utility A Landing Craft Utility (LCU) is a type of boat used by amphibious forces to transport equipment and troops to the shore. They are capable of transporting tracked or wheeled vehicles and troops from amphibious assault ships to beachheads or piers ...

and one LCVP. Normally, they operate with four LCM-1E craft. Within the ship there is of parking space for up to 130 armoured personnel carriers (APCs) or 33

main battle tank A main battle tank (MBT), also known as a battle tank or universal tank, is a tank that fills the role of armor-protected direct fire and maneuver in many modern armies. Cold War-era development of more powerful engines, better suspension sys ...

s (MBTs). However, a maximum of 170 vehicles can be carried depending on size. Both ships have capacity for of ammunition and stores spread out within the of cargo space between the storerooms, flight deck and hangar. ''Galicia'' can transport 543 fully-equipped troops and 72 staff and aircrew. The LPDs are armed with two Oerlikon Contraves cannon but can be fitted with four. They also mount six Sippican Hycor SRBOC MK36 chaff launchers. The ''Galicia'' class is equipped with KH 1007 air/surface search

radar Radar is a detection system that uses radio waves to determine the distance ('' ranging''), angle, and radial velocity of objects relative to the site. It can be used to detect aircraft, ships, spacecraft, guided missiles, motor vehicles, we ...

and AN/TPX-54 (V) Mk-XII (mode 4) identification friend or foe. ''Galicia'' has a complement of 115 with capacity for an additional 12 personnel.

Construction and career

Ordered on 29 July 1994, the vessel's

keel The keel is the bottom-most longitudinal structural element on a vessel. On some sailboats, it may have a hydrodynamic and counterbalancing purpose, as well. As the laying down of the keel is the initial step in the construction of a ship, in Br ...

was

laid down Laying the keel or laying down is the formal recognition of the start of a ship's construction. It is often marked with a ceremony attended by dignitaries from the shipbuilding company and the ultimate owners of the ship. Keel laying is one o ...

on 31 May 1996 at the

Empresa Nacional Bazán Navantia is a Spanish state-owned shipbuilding company, which offers its services to both military and civil sectors. It is the fifth-largest shipbuilder in Europe and the ninth-largest in the world with shipyards around the globe. The heir to ...

shipyards in Ferrol. Named ''Galicia'' for the

autonomous community eu, autonomia erkidegoa ca, comunitat autònoma gl, comunidade autónoma oc, comunautat autonòma an, comunidat autonoma ast, comunidá autónoma , alt_name = , map = , category = Autonomous administra ...

of Spain, the LPD was launched on 21 July 1997 and was commissioned by the

(''Armada Española'') on 30 April 1998. She is the sister ship to and is home ported at

Naval Station Rota Naval Station Rota, also known as NAVSTA Rota ( es, Base Naval de Rota, links=no), is a Spanish-American naval base commanded by a Spanish Rear Admiral. Located in Rota in the Province of Cádiz, NAVSTA Rota is the largest American military c ...

. ''Galicia'' performed humanitarian aid operations to Central America following

Hurricane Mitch Hurricane Mitch is the second-deadliest Atlantic hurricane on record, causing over 11,000 fatalities in Central America in 1998, including approximately 7,000 in Honduras and 3,800 in Nicaragua due to cataclysmic flooding from the slow motion ...

from November 1998 to January 1999. The vessel took part in the cleanup following the wreck of the tanker and the resulting oil spill from December 2002 to February 2003. From January to April 2005, ''Galicia'' was deployed to provide humanitarian aid in Iraq. ''Galicia'' took part in Operation Respuesta Solidaria in Banda Aceh after the

tsunami A tsunami ( ; from ja, 津波, lit=harbour wave, ) is a series of waves in a water body caused by the displacement of a large volume of water, generally in an ocean or a large lake. Earthquakes, volcanic eruptions and other underwater exp ...

in northwestern Sumatra. This was followed by Operation Libre Hidalgo in support of

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be a centre for harmoniz ...

peacekeeping in Lebanon. The LPD made two deployments, one in 2010 and another in 2011, as part of

Operation Atalanta Operation Atalanta, formally European Union Naval Force (EU NAVFOR) Somalia, is a current counter-piracy military operation at sea off the Horn of Africa and in the Western Indian Ocean, that is the first naval operation conducted by the Eu ...

fighting

piracy Piracy is an act of robbery or criminal violence by ship or boat-borne attackers upon another ship or a coastal area, typically with the goal of stealing cargo and other valuable goods. Those who conduct acts of piracy are called pirates, v ...

in the Indian Ocean and off the coast of Somalia. In April 2020, ''Galicia'' was deployed to Melilla, Spain to aid the city in the fight against

COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by a virus, the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The first known case was identified in Wuhan, China, in December 2019. The disease quickly ...

Notes

Citations

References

External links

Buque de Asalto Anfibio Clase Galicia L-51 y Castilla L-52 (In Spanish)

Landing Platform Docks LPD / In Spanish Buque de Asalto Anfibio (In Spanish)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Galicia (L51) 1997 ships Amphibious warfare vessels of Spain Galicia-class landing platform docks Ships built in Spain