And in the meantime, the US have just awarded the production contract for the first LHA-R.
DID:
The USA's New LHA-R Ship Class: Carrier Air + Amphibious Assault
Modern U.S. Navy Amphibious Assault Ships project power and maintain presence by serving as the cornerstone of the Amphibious Readiness Group (ARG) / Expeditionary Strike Group (ESG). A key element of the Seapower 21 doctrine pillars of Sea Strike and Sea Basing, these ships transport, launch, and land elements of the Marine Expeditionary Brigade (MEB) via a combination of LCAC hovercraft, amphibious transports and vehicles, helicopters, and aircraft.
Designed to project power and maintain presence, this LHA-R large deck amphibious assault ships (also known as LH-X) will replace the LHA-1 Tarawa Class. They're based on the more modern LHD Wasp Class design, but are almost 80 feet longer, 10 feet wider, and weigh in at 50,000t fully loaded rather than 42,000t; this is larger than France's nuclear powered aircraft carrier, the 45,000t FNS Charles De Gaulle. Aviation and communications capabilities in particular will be enhanced....
In addition to its complement of Marines in their new Expeditionary Fighting Vehicles et. al., LHA-R ships will also support amphibious operations with a mix of MV-22 Osprey tilt-rotors; CH-53E/K heavy transport, MH-60R/S multi-role utility, and AH-1W/Z attack helicopters; plus 8-20 fixed wing F-35B Lightning II STOVL aircraft, depending on the chosen force mix for the mission. The current ranges under discussion would give the LHA-R a balanced carrying capability for about 30-35 aircraft, or less if more MV-22s or CH-53s are chosen. The lead LHA-R is planned for delivery to the U.S. Navy in 2013.....
