Austal USA has developed a self-funded design for an Emergency Medical Ship (EMS) derived from its Expeditionary Fast Transport (EPF) design, after taking a clean-sheet look at what a modern medical ship capability would require.
Describing the origin of EMS to Shephard, Austal USA VP for business development and external affairs, Larry Ryder, said: 'We've been looking for several years at the need for a replacement for the current hospital ships that the US Navy has, the Comfort and the Mercy TAH's.
'They're old ships, they've been around for a while, they're steam plants, they're slow, and they're expensive to