dismantled for the maintenance work. Invincible was in a better state of readiness, but her crew were on leave. The Royal Navy's two landing platform dock (LPD) ships, and , were also at Portsmouth, where the former was acting as an officer training ship and the latter was being mothballed, having been earmarked to be paid off under the terms of the 1981 Defence White Paper though that decision had been reversed only weeks prior to the outbreak of hostilities in the South Atlantic. She was hastily recommissioned, and her crew reassembled from their new postings. Each LPD carried four Landing Craft Utility (LCU) in its dock, and four of the smaller Landing Craft Vehicle Personnel (LCVP) on davits. The rest of the Royal Navy's amphibious capability consisted of six Round Table-class landing ship logistics (LSL) ships. Four were immediately available: and were at HMNB Devonport, while and were at the Marchwood Military Port. The other two were further away: was in Belize, and could meet up with the fleet on its way south; but was in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, and would not be immediately available. It was therefore decided to use the stores ship , which was also in reserve at Portsmouth, as an LPD in the initial stages, after which she would revert to her normal role. Stromness departed on 7 April with 358 Royal Marines and 7,500 rations on board. As vital as they were, these ships were insufficient for the logistics needs of a task force operating from home. Civilian ships could be obtained by charter or by requisition; but there was no time to allow ships to complete the deliveries of their cargo or meet their existing passenger booking obligations. The British government therefore resorted to requisitioning, a practice last exercised during the Suez Crisis in 1956. An Order in Council was issued on 4 April allowing any British ship to be requisitioned, along with anything on board. Civilian ships acquired became known as ships taken up from trade (STUFT). Half were requisitioned; the rest were chartered. Some companies, such as P&O, insisted on requisitioning, as it allowed them to break existing contracts. Government policy was that only British-flagged vessels could be requisitioned, and only British nationals could serve as crewmen. British crewmen were retained, and a 150 per cent bonus was paid to those who entered the South Atlantic, considerably more than the