The repair dock would have new modern steel ballast pontoons tanks that could be flooded with water to submerge the dock or pumped dry to raise a ship in need of repair.

The stern could be closed with bottom-hinged flap gate, that was operated by hydraulic rams.

This stern gate could lowered for ship entrance into the submerged dock and then closed to keep out wave.

The ARD was raised by pumping water out of the ballast compartments and the main ship basin.

The need to repair large ships and subs meant the following ARDs were designed somewhat larger.

A few of the ships repaired in ARD-1: On 21 October 1946 ARD-1 was decommissioned and moved back to the United States.