The keel laying of the amphibious vessel (LPD - Landing Platform Dock) ordered to Fincantieri by the Qatari Ministry of Defence within the national naval acquisition program, took place at the Palermo shipyard.

The ceremony, held in a restricted format and in full compliance with anti-contagion requirements, was attended by Brigadier Ahmad Al Hammadi, Qatari Emiri Naval Forces Head of Project Control Office-Italy, and Marcello Giordano and Umberto Aloi, respectively Fincantieri Palermo shipyard Director and Vice President Export Programs.

The LPD is designed consistent with the RINAMIL (rules for naval ships classification) rules to ensure extremely efficient land-air-marine connections. It will be highly flexible and capable of fulfilling different kinds of tasks, from humanitarian interventions to support the Armed Forces and land operations.

The ship will be about 143 meters long, 21.5 meters wide and it will be able to accommodate about 550 persons on board, equipped with two vehicle ramps and an internal floodable dock, capable of accommodating a ready-to-go LCM (Landing Craft Mechanized) that can also be stored on garage deck, and can be deployed using a system of davits. Furthermore, the flight deck is sized for hosting NH90 helicopter.

Fincantieri is one of the world’s largest shipbuilding groups, the only one active in all high-tech marine industry sectors. It is leader in the construction and transformation of cruise, naval and oil & gas and wind offshore vessels, as well as in the production of systems and component equipment, after-sales services and marine interiors solutions. Thanks to the expertise developed in the management of complex projects, the Group boasts first-class references in infrastructures, and is a reference player in digital technologies and cybersecurity, electronics and advanced systems.

With over 230 years of history and more than 7,000 ships built, Fincantieri maintains its know-how, expertise and management centres in Italy, here employing 10,000 workers and creating around 90,000 jobs, which double worldwide thanks to a production network of 18 shipyards operating in four continents and with over 20,000 employees.