French Equipment manufacturer CNIM has received a contract to build and deliver 14 new standard amphibious landing craft (EDA-S) to the French Navy.

The company will work in partnership with Socarenam, Mauric and CNN MCO to build the landing craft over a period of ten years.

The new vessels are set to replace the French Navy’s existing landing craft.

They are said to be complementary to the CNIM-designed EDA-R craft, which are already in service in the French Navy, in terms of mission capabilities and speed.

The EDA-S, along with the four existing EDA-R landing craft, will be carried aboard BPC amphibious assault ships.



CNIM board member Philippe Demigné said: “Winning this European tender reasserts CNIM’s status as experts in amphibious craft design. CNIM is to replace the French Navy’s existing landing craft with 14 new Standard Amphibious Landing Craft, also called EDA-S.”

The EDA-S vessels are designed to conduct amphibious operations from the well decks aboard Mistral-class amphibious assault ships, carrying troops, military equipment or vehicles.

"CNIM is to replace the French Navy’s existing landing craft with 14 new Standard Amphibious Landing Craft, also called EDA-S."

They can be deployed to support logistics operations and evacuation of citizens and recovery of air-dropped equipment during humanitarian missions.

Of the 14 EDA-S crafts to be delivered under the contract, eight will be allocated to the amphibious flotilla (FLOPHIB) based in Toulon to replace the existing equipment transport barges (CTM).

The remaining six landing craft will be assigned in support of overseas operations, replacing various logistics barges. Two of them will be based in Djibouti, while one each will be deployed in Mayotte, Nouméa, Fort-de-France, and Kourou.

Designed to carry 65t in its nominal load configuration, the EDA-S has a maximum load of 80t and has the ability to perform amphibious operations in very shallow water.

Mauric will assist CNIM with engineering services to help deliver the contract, while Socarenam shipyard in Saint-Malo will build and fit out the EDA-S, and CNN MCO will provide maintenance services for the landing craft.