Defiant-class numbers for carrier escort

How many Defiant-class ships would the US Navy need to make that force viable around its carriers?

The example uses roughly 22 to 24 ships, with about half of a 24-ship fleet available at a time; its result depends on how many carriers are operating.

The exchange uses two large escorts per deployed carrier as its planning assumption. It considers 22 ships against a nominal 11-carrier fleet, then uses 24 ships to illustrate extra availability margin. About 12 of those 24 are assumed available at a time, so the arithmetic depends on the number of carriers actually operating. These are illustrative force-generation figures in the discussion, not an announced construction schedule. The comparison with roughly 35 earlier cruisers names the Ticonderoga, Virginia, and California classes.