Singapore navy's new force multiplier

Unmanned drones on multi-role combat vessels expand area that ships can oversee

- Andrew Wong

The Republic of Singapore Navy (RSN) will acquire six new multirole combat vessels (MRCVs) to replace its ageing fleet of Victoryclass missile corvettes (MCVS), which have been in service since 1989.

The newer vessels will not be a like-for-like replacement, said the RSN.

"The MCV was designed for the 1980s and served its purpose very well. But the threat environment in the 1980s versus the threat environment in 2040 will be very different," said RSN Major James Lim, the operations lead of the MRCV project, in a media briefing on April 27.

Here are five things to know about the new MRCVS:

1 INTEGRATING UNMANNED SYSTEM CAPABILITIES

In addition to being capable fighting ships, the MRCVs will act as a mothership for unmanned systems.

They function as a force multiplier for the navy fleet, as unmanned drones positioned on the ship expand the area that the ship can oversee.