Harland & Wolff, Belfast, whose owner Navantia UK also has shipyards across the Irish Sea, has laid the keel of RFA Resurgent at its Appledore shipyard in North Devon, England.
The event, which took place on UK Merchant Day, also marked the formal start of the assembly of the first of three new Fleet Solid Support (FSS) and replenishment vessels for the UK’s Royal Fleet Auxiliary (RFA), which will serve the requirements of the Royal Navy’s global operations.
The milestone was marked by the lowering of the first block, a section of RFA Resurgent’s bow, onto the custom-built barge, the Seahorse, as Afloat reported, built at Navantia’s Methil yard in the Firth of Fife, Scotland. The non-propelled pontoon barge will carry completed modular blocks from Appledore to Belfast, where Afloat highlights will be the final assembly location of the newbuild trio.
In keeping with shipbuilding tradition, for good fortune, a commemorative coin was placed beneath the keel-laid section of RFA Resurgent.
The operation was initiated by apprentices from Navantia UK Appledore and the Royal Fleet Auxiliary, reflecting the central role that skills and the next generation of shipbuilders and seafarers will play in delivering the programme. The ceremony took place yesterday, on Merchant Navy Day, which celebrates the UK’s civilian seafarers, including the men and women of the Royal Fleet Auxiliary.
The keel laying represents the latest major milestone for Fleet Solid Support, following the start of test block construction at Appledore in August 2025, completion of the Critical Design Review in October 2025, and the cutting of the first steel at Appledore in December 2025.
Since the programme began in 2023, it has remained on schedule and on budget while progressing through a series of major design and construction milestones.
The three Fleet Solid Support ships will provide munitions, stores, and provisions to Royal Navy task groups at sea, enabling ships, including the Queen Elizabeth-class aircraft carriers (see related L.E. George Bernard Shaw story), to remain deployed for longer and operate at greater distances from their home ports.
At around 39,000 tonnes each and 216 metres long, the vessels will be the largest ships in UK military service after the 65,000-tonne aircraft carriers, also built by the modular block process, with final assembly by Babcock at their Rosyth yard, also on the Firth of Forth.
Construction of ship modules is now taking place at Appledore yard, along with Harland & Wolff and Navantia’s yards in Spain. Final assembly, integration, and trials of the ships will take place at their largest UK shipyard, Harland & Wolff.
RFA Resurgent is due to enter service in the early 2030s, and Afloat adds that the other newbuilds are to be named RFA Reliant and RFA Resourceful and are to follow suit, respectively.
Commodore Sam Shattock, Commodore Royal Fleet Auxiliary, said, "Today's keel laying marks another important step in the delivery of RFA Resurgent and the wider Fleet Solid Support programme. Seeing construction progress here in Appledore demonstrates the momentum behind a project that will provide the Royal Fleet Auxiliary with world-class capabilities to sustain Royal Navy operations across the globe, including the carrier strike group.
”The commemorative coin placed beneath the keel continues a proud maritime tradition, linking this modern programme with generations of shipbuilders and seafarers who have gone before us. I am delighted that apprentices from both Navantia UK and the Royal Fleet Auxiliary have been part of this occasion, representing the future of UK shipbuilding and of the RFA.”
Irish Naval Service
The event's announcement included referencing another significant milestone moment in the regeneration of Appledore, which is undertaking its first shipbuilding activity since the completion of the Irish Naval Service offshore patrol vessel (OPV), LÉ George Bernard Shaw (P64) was floated out in 2018 and commissioned the next year. As Afloat adds, the OPV was the last of a quartet of P60 class for the Naval Service and was noted offshore of Dun Laoghaire Harbour recently.
Navantia UK is delivering an investment programme of around £15 million at Appledore, including a new roof, plasma-cutting equipment, and a new pipe shop, as part of more than £157 million being invested across the company’s four UK yards, which together employ around 1,300 people.
The Appledore workforce has grown to 210 people, including 40 apprentices, with a further 20 apprentices starting this week as part of an intake of 121 new apprentices across Navantia UK. The yard works closely with nearby North Devon College to develop the skilled workforce required for future programmes.
