Mistral-class amphibious assault ship

The Mistral class is a class of five landing helicopter docks built by France. Also known as helicopter carriers, and referred to as "projection and command ships" (French: bâtiments de projection et de commandement or BPC) and "porte-hélicoptères amphibie" (PHA) since 2019, a Mistral-class ship is capable of transporting and deploying 16 NH90 or Tiger helicopters, four landing craft, up to 70 vehicles including 13 Leclerc tanks, or a 40-strong Leclerc tank battalion, and 450 soldiers. The ships are equipped with a 69-bed hospital, and are capable of serving as part of a NATO Response Force, or with United Nations or European Union peace-keeping forces.
Three ships of the class are in service in the French Navy: Mistral, Tonnerre, and Dixmude. A deal for two ships for the Russian Navy was announced by then French President Nicolas Sarkozy on 24 December 2010, and signed on 25 January 2011. On 3 September 2014, French President François Hollande announced the postponement of delivery of the first warship, Vladivostok, in response to the Russia–Ukraine crisis. On 5 August 2015, President Hollande and Russian president Vladimir Putin announced that France would refund payments and keep...