Why India retains smaller landing craft

The Mark IV is described as able to carry troops or armour across useful distances while remaining modest in scale and cost. For island operations around the Nicobars and the wider Indian Ocean, a fleet of smaller craft can provide the practical movement between dispersed landing points that a single large deck ship cannot supply alone. Its guns and portable air-defence weapons also give the craft more utility than an unarmed transport. The example shows why larger amphibious flagships do not eliminate the need for numerous small connectors tailored to local geography.