Well dock

The structure is seen in ships with a substantial air assault role such as the USS Tarawa.The term "well deck" is still used for the newer structure in the U.S. Navy,[1] while other naval usage appears to be more commonly "well dock"[3][4] that more clearly separates traditional usage from modern naval function.

Previous barge carriers were of similar design to the military ships with a large stern well deck.

Earlier capsules such as Gemini and Apollo had to be lifted aboard their recovery vessels by crane.

USS Portland was assigned as the recovery ship for the Orion capsule of the Artemis 1 uncrewed Moon-orbiting mission, successfully completed on 11 December 2022.

The spacecraft's Orion capsule was floated into the flooded well deck at the stern of the vessel off the coast of Baja California.