Australia begins sea trials of Stern Landing Vessel Matilda 1 for U.S. Indo-Pacific operations.

The Australian-built Matilda 1 Stern Landing Vessel (SLV) has entered contractor sea trials ahead of U.S. military employment in the Indo-Pacific under a three-year charter arrangement.

As reported by the Australian Defence Magazine on February 11, 2026, the Australian company SeaTransport has commenced sea trials of the 73-meter Stern Landing Vessel (SLV) Matilda 1 off Batam, Indonesia. The trials precede a three-year charter to the U.S. military forces for Indo-Pacific expeditionary operations. The vessel, which possesses a 550-tonne beaching load, 4,000-nautical-mile range, and diesel-electric propulsion, will likely inform the U.S. Marine Corps' future littoral logistics and Landing Ship Medium requirements.
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SeaTransport states that its SLV concept, which includes small modifications to its commercial designs, can achieve 90% of the logistic requirements of similarly sized naval vessels at less than a quarter of the capital cost. (Picture source: SeaTransport)

SeaTransport commenced the sea trials of the 73-meter Stern Landing Vessel (SLV) Matilda 1 in the littoral and archipelagic waters off Batam, Indonesia, ahead of a three-year charter with the United States military intended to inform expeditionary requirements and concepts of operations. The vessel was launched in late January in Batam and is scheduled to enter service following completion of trials, becoming the first true Stern Landing Vessel design adopted by any defense force worldwide, despite more than 20 SLVs already operating commercially. The charter has been arranged through Sealease, an affiliate of SeaTransport, and the ship is expected to begin activities in northern Australian waters and the surrounding region before broader Indo-Pacific employment. The Matilda 1 SLV has a 73-meter overall length, a 550-tonne beaching load, and a 4,000 nautical mile range in Sea State 4.

According to available information, the Matilda 1 incorporates a quad-screw diesel-electric propulsion system with four diesel generators cross-connected to four electric motors driving independent shafts, arranged in a twin skeg hull configuration. The vessel combines a ship-shaped bow for blue-water transit with a stern ramp allowing reverse beaching, enabling discharge of vehicles and cargo directly onto unprepared shores without height restrictions on loads. The deadweight is cited at 1,500 tonnes, with the 550-tonne figure corresponding to actual beaching load rather than theoretical maximum displacement. The 670 square meter cargo deck supports representative loads including 20 Joint Light Tactical Vehicles (JLTVs), 18 HIMARS rocket launchers, 16 MTVR 6x6 trucks, or 12 Amphibious Combat Vehicles (ACV) of 32 tonnes each. For container operations, the deck provides 42 ground slots with sufficient stability margins to permit double stacking for a total of 84 twenty-foot ISO containers.

The Stern Landing Vessel (SLV) concept originated approximately 30 years ago in Australia to resupply remote mining operations and coastal communities, and more than 22 units are currently operating commercially, transporting passengers, vehicles, livestock, containers, and bulk cargo. The hull employs a shallow V form with two side pods, off-center shafts, and a protective aft skeg arrangement to shield propulsion and steering gear during beaching and de-beaching. Unlike conventional bow-ramp landing craft that require saltwater ballast to maintain propeller immersion, the SLV trims primarily by shifting fuel, reducing ballast system complexity. The stern-first approach is intended to address common landing craft issues, including head-sea performance limitations, poor stability, difficulty in de-beaching due to suction effects, and constrained ramp geometry. The ramp width is approximately twice that of similarly sized bow-loading craft, with no vertical restrictions for oversized loads.

The military configuration includes reinforced plating to withstand rocky shorelines as well as sandy beaches, and distributed machinery below the waterline to improve watertight subdivision and system separation. The vehicle deck is separated from the bow by multiple watertight compartments and a collision bulkhead to reduce vulnerability to free-surface flooding in the event of hull penetration. Fuel is stored in isolated bullet-style containers mounted in shock-resistant compartments equipped with self-contained fire suppression systems and redundant fuel pumps. Bow thrusters can maintain position in confined waters such as fjords where anchor deployment is not possible, and variants can incorporate launch and recovery systems for smaller landing craft or raiding craft. Optional configurations include the addition of a flight deck aft of the superstructure for unmanned aerial systems, or extended flight decks for helicopter operations at the expense of cargo flexibility.

The U.S. Marine Corps began exploring stern landing vessel concepts in 2020 under Force Design 2030, seeking connectors smaller than traditional amphibious ships but larger than existing ship-to-shore craft to support Marine Littoral Regiments in contested environments. An earlier prototype, the HOS Resolution, was converted from an offshore support vessel with the addition of a large stern ramp, reinforced deck, landing legs, and protection for propellers and rudders, and entered Marine Corps testing phases beginning in March. That vessel participated in experimentation, including Project Convergence Capstone 4, where ramp gradients, beach impact, jacking leg employment, and compatibility with nearly all Marine Corps vehicle types were evaluated. The Marine Corps indicated funding for two additional prototypes, with one potentially purpose-built for comparison and another potentially sourced from SeaTransport, with the intent to identify the most suitable design as a bridging solution ahead of the Landing Ship Medium program planned for contract award in fiscal year 2025.

SeaTransport has positioned the SLV within a broader portfolio of naval designs supplied to military customers, stating that its vessels operate with the Royal Australian Navy, the Royal Thai Navy, and the Indian Navy in various configurations, including hydrographic survey vessels and landing craft heavy derivatives. Examples cited include a 54-meter Landing Craft Heavy for the Thai Navy with dimensions 54 m x 11.2 m x 1.5 m, six 53-meter hydrographic survey vessels for the Indian Navy with 3,000 nautical miles range, 18-knot maximum speed, and 57 crew, and three 36.6-meter hydrographic survey vessels for the Australian Navy with 12-knot speed. The SLV design is characterized as buildable at commercial shipyards capable of meeting class rules, with construction timelines cited at approximately 18 months for commercial variants, subject to increases with military customization. The company states that modifications to commercial hulls can achieve up to 90% of the logistic requirements of similarly sized naval vessels at less than a quarter of the capital cost, and that deck capacity can be extended up to 1,800 tonnes in certain variants.

In parallel to the diesel-electric configuration, a separate 73-meter SLV concept has been developed in collaboration with Lloyd’s Register and Deployable Energy to integrate modular micro reactors within containerized units. The proposed configuration incorporates two Unity nuclear batteries rated at 1 MW each, designed to fit within standard 20-foot shipping containers and installed within three days, with an operating interval of eight to ten years without refueling. The concept targets transit speeds of 14 knots under reactor power and includes the ability to carry 84 container units convertible into medical stations, sleeping areas, and sanitary facilities for up to 750 people, while supplying power to Pacific islands affected by cyclones or remote communities seeking to reduce diesel dependence. Cost targets associated with the nuclear battery concept cite $0.05 per kWh and an ambition to deploy 100,000 units by 2040, with Lloyd’s Register providing approval in principle to the finalized design.

Written by Jérôme Brahy

Jérôme Brahy is a defense analyst and documentalist at Army Recognition. He specializes in naval modernization, aviation, drones, armored vehicles, and artillery, with a focus on strategic developments in the United States, China, Ukraine, Russia, Türkiye, and Belgium. His analyses go beyond the facts, providing context, identifying key actors, and explaining why defense news matters on a global scale.