Another Mothership Possibility

Check out this picture of Ocean Force unloading the USS Avenger (MCM 1) in Sasebo. Nice picture of USS New Orleans (LPD 18) in the background as well.


Ocean Force has a hold deck 85m long, 15m wide, and goes around 7.85m deep. I think it is important to think about that, because Ocean Force is a Flo/Flo that displaces ~6700 tons. I am not certain, but I believe she is very similar (maybe slightly larger) to Condock V, another MSC charter often seen hauling MCMs around the world as well.

No question chartering Flo/Flo's is a good deal, but there are only 20 in the world. I also wonder how much it would cost to build a US Navy Flo/Flo with a hold deck 134m long and 20m wide, which is slightly wider than the size of a Whidbey Island class well deck.

Why the extra beam? Because with a 20m hold deck, that Flo/Flo could carry 4 PCs the size of the Cyclone class at a time. Something like that would make a great PC tender, and would have the space to double as a LCS tender for module swaps.