Navies can be too eager to appear cooperative by offering governments sacrifices before ministers demand them. HMS Albion and HMS Bulwark illustrate an alternative to disposing of useful but crew-intensive ships. The vessels could serve as reserve flagships, supported by an expanded Royal Naval Reserve and a small regular cadre that keeps them ready for activation. Their approximately 1,600 combined billets would be difficult to fill, but amphibious ships normally have more warning before deployment than a vessel expected to sail within minutes. Reserve organization can preserve scarce sealift and command capacity when full-time manning is the binding constraint.
Notable Point · 2:45:35-2:47:39
Reserve amphibious ships can preserve surge capacity
Placing large amphibious ships under a reserve model could retain their wartime utility while reducing the regular-crewing burden.