Mother Ship with USV Flotilla Could Boost Coast Guard Capabilities

Researchers from Dalhousie University and the US Naval Postgraduate School presented a concept for an affordable mother ship with a flotilla of uncrewed surface vessels (USVs) capable of providing coast guard services at the ISCRAM2025 Conference (Information Systems for Crisis Response and Management) in Halifax, Canada, last month.

The concept could provide a persistent, on-water presence which could assist with search and rescue response, response to shore-based emergencies, maritime domain awareness, critical underwater infrastructure surveillance and protection, interdiction of illegal products, and more.

The mother ship and USVs could be operable for extended periods, unlike aircraft and aerial drones, and the researchers, Adjunct Professor John Dalziel and Dr Ronald Pelot of Dalhousie and Dr Shelley Gallup of the US Naval Postgraduate School, highlight the relatively lower costs that would be involved compared to building and crewing traditional coast guard ships.

A U.S. Navy version is armed and intended to protect the sea lanes of communication (trading routes) in the island chains of the Pacific Ocean. This warship concept is called the Lightly Manned Automated Combat Capability (LMACC).

These needs point to the inability of many countries to build government vessels quickly. The current Canadian flagship icebreaker, the Louis