NATIONAL HARBOR, Md. — Hanwha Ocean and Leidos Gibbs & Cox are designing a high-capacity vessel capable of carrying up to half a brigade combat team and conducting drone mothership or arsenal ship roles ahead of the company’s plans to expand its American operations.
The South Korean defense firm presented the Global Fast Sealift during their debut at Sea-Air-Space (SAS) 2026. On the surface, the 31,000-ton vessel appears to be a civilian transport vessel with its large container and vehicle storage capacity – amounting up to 800 containers and Car Equivalent Units according to a concept sheet. However, Hanwha and Leidos have also prepared the design to accommodate military missions in the event of conflict.
According to a Hanwha factsheet, the design allows for “optimization for high-capacity commercial shipping during facetime and rapid military sealift during wartime, ensuring both economic and strategic value.”
At SAS 2026, the concept model showcased self-propelled guns and remote-controlled weapon systems aboard the vessel. The base concept highlighted is a fast sealift ship, which Hanwha claims can transport about 50% of a Brigade Combat Team’s vehicles and supplies. Three additional variants push the multi-role class into more direct roles, including a helicopter landing platform with room for up to four rotary-wing aircraft and aviation support facilities. Another concept plans to use the design as a basis for a drone mothership that hosts unmanned aerial, surface and underwater vehicles. Maritime deployment will be from the ship’s two stern ramps, while aerial systems would use the large deck.
Among these proposed missions for the Global Fast Sealift, a “strike support platform” concept effectively turns the multi-purpose vessels into heavily-armed arsenal ships. A Hanwha factsheet shows up to ten Precision Strike Missile-equipped (PrSM) M142 High Mobility Rocket Artillery Systems and ten Mark 70 Payload Delivery Systems – containerized Mark 41 (Mk.41) vertical launching systems (VLS) – on the deck. Naval News understands that this concept is geared toward a recent call for widespread containerized missile systems from the U.S. Navy Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Daryl Caudle.
Hanwha’s proposed loadout envisions up to 20 PrSMs and 40 VLS cells, which can support long-range strike munitions such as Tomahawk cruise missiles and SM-6 or other Mk.41-capable missions on deck at any given time. It is unclear if the design has considerations for the rapid reloading or significant missile storage facilities for these embarked launchers. The combined loadout can support a major maritime strike payload at extended ranges, especially given recent and upcoming PrSM and new Tomahawk variants.
The South Korean shipbuilder’s proposal was unveiled during a memorandum of understanding signing with Leidos Gibbs and Cox, which committed the two firms to “co-developing next-generation naval ship concepts for U.S. and global markets.” These vessels also come amid concerns of a strained and increasingly outdated U.S. logistics fleet. U.S. Indo-Pacific Command chief Adm. Samuel Papero stated that Military Sealift Command’s Combat Logistics Force was “about 60 percent of the actual requirements.”
Source:
www.navalnews.com
