One of the world's biggest floating cranes was in action on the River Tyne yesterday, as part of a £140m Ministry of Defence (MoD) contract to build two landing craft continued apace.
The Asian Hercules Two, which has a deck the size of a football pitch, was employed to lift the 1,000-tonne superstructure of one of the craft on to its hull.
The Swan Hunter shipyard at Wallsend, North Tyneside, won the contract to build two vessels known as Landing Ship Dock Auxiliaries, which will replace craft in action in the Gulf.
They can carry troops, tanks, helicopters and other equipment to be used as second wave assault vessels. An MoD spokesman said they were also extremely useful for carrying aid for humanitarian efforts.
He praised the skill of the Swan Hunter workforce, saying: ''As demonstrated today, work is proceeding at a pace and the project team are very happy with the way the build is going.''
Swan Hunter owner Jaap Kroese was delighted with the progress on the Largs Bay. He said: ''We will be delivering the ship on time and on budget, which is first class.''
The Asian Hercules Two crane has the power to lift 4,000 cars.
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