Wars are decided definitively through the occupation of an enemy's
territory. This is a task for military forces, which may have to be
transported by sea. In extreme cases, as in the Pacific War of 1941-45,
this may involve trans-oceanic passages. Thus is created the conflicting
requirement for ships sufficiently large to undertake lengthy voyages,
together with craft small enough to put an army and its equipment on to
a beach that may be defended by a determined enemy. In the sailing navy,
ships landed military contingents in special 'flatboats', the direct
descendents of which were the 1940 LCAs, carried under davits by an LSI.
In these were typified the two major categories of amphibious warfare
vessel: the 'ship', travelling from shore to shore, and the 'craft',
moving from ship to shore. This authoritative book details the
development of amphibious warfare and, through the use of historical
examples, illustrates its great range of scale, from raiding to
full-scale invasion. It highlights the many coordinated activities
necessary for a successful operation, from surveying and minesweeping to
fire support, fighter direction and tri-service control. An illustrated
directory of landing ships covers the ocean-going vessels that transport
personnel, cargo or vehicles. It includes the most important amphibious
vessels of today: float-on, float-off welldeck ships that are designed
to operate landing craft large enough to handle main battle tanks. The
next part of the book is a directory of landing craft, the majority of
which, depending upon voyage length, will have been transported aboard
specialist ships. World War II saw basic ramped craft joined by tracked
amphibious vehicles. The imperatives of the nuclear age have seen the
introduction of helicopters and high-speed air-cushion landing craft.
This instructive volume, containing 530 photographs from museums,
libraries and other historical sources, provides enthusiasts with a
lively and engaging guide to this fascinating subject.Charts the
complete history of amphibious warfare, including operations in
Gallipoli, Dieppe, the Pacific, Normandy, Leyte Gulf, Iwo Jima, Vietnam,
the Falklands and the Middle East Features a directory of landing ships,
detailing conventional personnel and cargo carriers, welldeck ôdock
shipsö and modern multi-function ships, accommodating helicopters,
landing craft, military personnel, their vehicles and equipment Also
features a directory of landing craft, from ramped beaching craft to
present-day high-speed air-cushion craft, including amphibious tracked
landing vehicles and peripheral activities such as minesweeping and
obstacle clearance Specification boxes provide at-a-glance information
about each vessel's country of origin, displacement, dimensions,
armament, machinery, power and endurance Includes a glossary explaining
naval acronyms, abbreviations and key terminology, and illustrated with
more than 530 archive photographs
