In World War II, small ‘jeep carriers’ protected convoys and helped win battles. Eight decades later, their descendants may return – carrying drones, not piston-engined aircraft.
Best known for anti-submarine work in the Atlantic and delivering replacement aircraft in the Pacific theater, small escort carriers, designated CVEs, were also called on to provide Combat Air Patrol (CAP) for ships at sea and Close Air Support (CAS) during amphibious operations. Their finest hour came during the Battle of Leyte Gulf, when a task unit of six CVEs faced off against a vastly superior Japanese surface fleet.
Naval and amphibious forces now face a new threat in the form of suicide drones and cruise missiles from traditional adversaries and insurgent groups. Autonomous drones are increasingly becoming an integral part of naval forces, flying reconnaissance, anti-submarine and anti-surface missions. But as current conflicts drive the rapid evolution of warfare, ships and troops are being targeted by unmanned weapons. New mission roles will undoubtably be assigned to naval drones to counter these threats in the air and on the sea. As low-cost drones and cruise missiles saturate defenses, the Navy needs equally low-cost sea-based counters. A new class of ships dedicated to operating drones at sea could provide a cost-effective approach to protecting friendly forces. The answer may look less like an aircraft carrier or destroyer, and more like a converted oilfield support ship.
How much smaller could a CVE have been designed if it were dedicated to only carrying unmanned air assets? Much smaller, it turns out, given the small size of modern drones compared to World War-era naval aircraft, and the elimination of flight crew accommodations. A study case is presented here.
The majority of naval drones are already runway-independent, relying on either Vertical Take Off and Landing (VTOL) capability or dedicated launch and recovery equipment. A drone vessel does not therefore need to be a through-deck carrier. But it does need to maximize deck space, suggesting a design that has all of the superstructure located near either the bow or the stern. One type of ship that could serve as a design basis for a drone carrier is the Offshore Support Vessel (OSV) used to supply offshore energy installations. Most OSVs have their superstructure and pilot house located in the bow, with the rest of the ship dedicated to a long cargo deck. The 78-meter-long Armada 7801/7802 OSV class was chosen here as the basis for a drone carrier concept, as shown below. It displaces 3,500 tons fully loaded.
Figure 1: Drone carrier concept based on the Armada 7801 OSV.
In this concept, side walls were added to the cargo deck to support a flight deck. This converts the cargo deck into a spacious hangar deck and provides area above that for at least two 15-meter-wide landing spaces, with refueling stations. Note that the drone carrier need not embark helicopters, but would need to receive helicopters for logistics purposes. The result is a small vessel that can nonetheless accommodate a useful complement of VTOL drones. The example here would embark eight to twelve large jet-powered drones, or a mix of large and small drones.
Figure 2: Drone carrier shown next to UK Type 26 frigate with Westland Lynx helicopters for scale.Figure 3: Hangar deck with eight drones in a folded wing storage configuration.
That concept already echoes in Navy circles, as the proposed Stern Landing Vessel (SLV) may also be based on OSV designs. A subclass of the SLV outfitted with landing pads above the cargo deck would be equivalent to the drone carrier described here.
The drone carrier would be attached to surface action groups and expeditionary groups to supplement point defense systems in areas susceptible to drone attack. Armed drones operating hundreds of miles from the vessel could intercept air and surface threats before they reach the group, using low-cost munitions like Stinger missiles and AGR-20 guided rockets.
Figure 4: Drone carriers would operate in the company of other naval vessels to provide force protection at stand-off ranges.
The drone carrier would also be an attractive option for U.S. allies that lack aircraft carriers, providing a low-cost solution to intercepting air and surface targets at sea. This could be particularly useful in the Indo-Pacific region. And those ships need not be new builds. Used OSVs are readily available for purchase and can be converted into drone carriers. A look at websites like shipselector.com shows a number of suitable vessels available for under $10 million price range, as shown in the table below. Companies that normally convert OSVs into expedition yachts can perform the basic overhaul work and removal of commercial equipment, like cranes, then a defense contractor can install military mission systems and weapons. Thus a useful naval asset can be acquired for much less than a new build. At $25 million or less per hull post-conversion, (author’s estimate), a squadron of ten could be fielded for less than the cost of one Littoral Combat Ship.
Table 1: A sample of used OSVs listed at shipselector.com at the time of this writing. Note that DWT (Deadweight Tonnage) refers to the ship’s useful payload, not its displacement.
Year Built
DWT (t)
Asking Price (USD)
Length (m)
2025
2500
$2,000,000
59
2025
2500
$2,500,000
59
1998
3115
$4,750,000
67
1999
2396
$5,200,000
68
The drone carrier concept is not entirely new. News reports of China and Iran developing drone carriers have circulated for several years. And the Damen Shipyards Group in the Netherlands offering their Multi-Purpose Ship through-deck carrier, with versions displacing 7,000 and 9,000 tons (Damen New Multi-Purpose Support Ship to Meet Defense & Security Challenges). It is time for the U.S. Navy to start a program.
The escort carrier protected friendly forces in World War 2. If history is any guide, the small carrier will again prove indispensable, this time, carrying drones instead of Avengers and Wildcats.
Edward Barocela is the CEO of Albacore Aerospace LLC.
The views expressed in this piece are the sole opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of the Center for Maritime Strategy or other institutions listed.
Center for Maritime Strategy
By Edward Barocela
In World War II, small ‘jeep carriers’ protected convoys and helped win battles. Eight decades later, their descendants may return – carrying drones, not piston-engined aircraft.
Best known for anti-submarine work in the Atlantic and delivering replacement aircraft in the Pacific theater, small escort carriers, designated CVEs, were also called on to provide Combat Air Patrol (CAP) for ships at sea and Close Air Support (CAS) during amphibious operations. Their finest hour came during the Battle of Leyte Gulf, when a task unit of six CVEs faced off against a vastly superior Japanese surface fleet.
Naval and amphibious forces now face a new threat in the form of suicide drones and cruise missiles from traditional adversaries and insurgent groups. Autonomous drones are increasingly becoming an integral part of naval forces, flying reconnaissance, anti-submarine and anti-surface missions. But as current conflicts drive the rapid evolution of warfare, ships and troops are being targeted by unmanned weapons. New mission roles will undoubtably be assigned to naval drones to counter these threats in the air and on the sea. As low-cost drones and cruise missiles saturate defenses, the Navy needs equally low-cost sea-based counters. A new class of ships dedicated to operating drones at sea could provide a cost-effective approach to protecting friendly forces. The answer may look less like an aircraft carrier or destroyer, and more like a converted oilfield support ship.
How much smaller could a CVE have been designed if it were dedicated to only carrying unmanned air assets? Much smaller, it turns out, given the small size of modern drones compared to World War-era naval aircraft, and the elimination of flight crew accommodations. A study case is presented here.
The majority of naval drones are already runway-independent, relying on either Vertical Take Off and Landing (VTOL) capability or dedicated launch and recovery equipment. A drone vessel does not therefore need to be a through-deck carrier. But it does need to maximize deck space, suggesting a design that has all of the superstructure located near either the bow or the stern. One type of ship that could serve as a design basis for a drone carrier is the Offshore Support Vessel (OSV) used to supply offshore energy installations. Most OSVs have their superstructure and pilot house located in the bow, with the rest of the ship dedicated to a long cargo deck. The 78-meter-long Armada 7801/7802 OSV class was chosen here as the basis for a drone carrier concept, as shown below. It displaces 3,500 tons fully loaded.
In this concept, side walls were added to the cargo deck to support a flight deck. This converts the cargo deck into a spacious hangar deck and provides area above that for at least two 15-meter-wide landing spaces, with refueling stations. Note that the drone carrier need not embark helicopters, but would need to receive helicopters for logistics purposes. The result is a small vessel that can nonetheless accommodate a useful complement of VTOL drones. The example here would embark eight to twelve large jet-powered drones, or a mix of large and small drones.
That concept already echoes in Navy circles, as the proposed Stern Landing Vessel (SLV) may also be based on OSV designs. A subclass of the SLV outfitted with landing pads above the cargo deck would be equivalent to the drone carrier described here.
The drone carrier would be attached to surface action groups and expeditionary groups to supplement point defense systems in areas susceptible to drone attack. Armed drones operating hundreds of miles from the vessel could intercept air and surface threats before they reach the group, using low-cost munitions like Stinger missiles and AGR-20 guided rockets.
The drone carrier would also be an attractive option for U.S. allies that lack aircraft carriers, providing a low-cost solution to intercepting air and surface targets at sea. This could be particularly useful in the Indo-Pacific region. And those ships need not be new builds. Used OSVs are readily available for purchase and can be converted into drone carriers. A look at websites like shipselector.com shows a number of suitable vessels available for under $10 million price range, as shown in the table below. Companies that normally convert OSVs into expedition yachts can perform the basic overhaul work and removal of commercial equipment, like cranes, then a defense contractor can install military mission systems and weapons. Thus a useful naval asset can be acquired for much less than a new build. At $25 million or less per hull post-conversion, (author’s estimate), a squadron of ten could be fielded for less than the cost of one Littoral Combat Ship.
Table 1: A sample of used OSVs listed at shipselector.com at the time of this writing. Note that DWT (Deadweight Tonnage) refers to the ship’s useful payload, not its displacement.
The drone carrier concept is not entirely new. News reports of China and Iran developing drone carriers have circulated for several years. And the Damen Shipyards Group in the Netherlands offering their Multi-Purpose Ship through-deck carrier, with versions displacing 7,000 and 9,000 tons (Damen New Multi-Purpose Support Ship to Meet Defense & Security Challenges). It is time for the U.S. Navy to start a program.
The escort carrier protected friendly forces in World War 2. If history is any guide, the small carrier will again prove indispensable, this time, carrying drones instead of Avengers and Wildcats.
Edward Barocela is the CEO of Albacore Aerospace LLC.
The views expressed in this piece are the sole opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of the Center for Maritime Strategy or other institutions listed.