When we talk about sea operation bases, we obviously think of aircraft carriers, but especially helicopter carriers or command ships, which have already been widely used in video games, such as in CoD Ghosts. However, the Expeditionary Sea Bases, which, as their name indicates, are real mobile operational bases, correspond to another concept, much more flexible and discreet, and therefore particularly adapted to special and clandestine operations.
The need to multiply the vectors
Tensions on various seas around the world, the growing importance of Exclusive Economic Zones, rising sea levels due to global warming… Everything suggests that the ability to act militarily at sea, and especially from the sea, will become a necessity of the first order. This is why the US NAVY and USSOCOM have, over the last few years, sought to multiply the means of projecting themselves from the sea.
While several classes of ships and vehicles are already optimized for amphibious operations, navies around the world have always attempted to increase their capabilities tenfold through the use of civilian ships, from 17th century privateers to Chinese ferries discreetly modified for use as troop transports..
It is in this continuity that the US Navy initially developed the ESB concept, wanting to have more flexible ships capable of operating as true mobile maritime bases, while being less expensive and easier to design, since they are based on a civilian architecture.
An ideal vessel for clandestine operations
ESBs are optimized to support a wide variety of missions. They are equipped with mine countermeasures and autonomous aeronautical installations. However, their armament remains light and very discreet. Above all, they are ideal for housing special forces.
Indeed, part of the appeal of ESBs is the stealth of the ship. So it’s no wonder that U.S. Special Forces Command (USSOCOM) itself wanted its own ship.
This is how in 2013, a civilian ro-ro ship named Cragside was transformed in only 7 months into a ship dedicated to special operations.
Today, it is capable of accommodating a crew of 50 sailors and 159 operators, and of operating 4 fast boats, Jet Skis, a Zodiac, 2 helicopters and drones. Now called Ocean Trader, it has been operating in relative clandestinity since then… sometimes letting itself be seen in the waters of the Persian Gulf, not far from theaters such as Yemen, Somalia, or even Iran.
And as a symbol, Iran has decided to copy its American rival by launching its own support ship, the INS Vikran, capable of carrying a large number of fast boats (more like speedboats) and helicopters, making it suitable for use as a base for “techno-guerrilla” actions from the sea.
In the world of video games, we remember some striking scenes on flagship, most often aircraft carriers (Crysis, Battlefield), or more original, the “Mother Base” of Metal Gear Solid V which was made of offshore platforms. At a time when titles like to entrust the player with the development of a hub, ESBs could perfectly play this role, for example in the new “hybrid wars”.
