The case for a large helicopter-and-missile cruiser

Would a large helicopter-carrying guided-missile cruiser be viable in the 21st century?

It could be useful as an intermediate deterrent asset: more influential than a lone destroyer or frigate, but less demanding than a carrier battle group.

The answer argues that present-day frigates and destroyers have already grown toward the size and function of earlier light cruisers. An 18,000- to 25,000-ton missile-and-helicopter cruiser could sit between a local escort and the commitment of an entire carrier group. Its value is not merely greater combat efficiency, but a visible concentration of guns, missiles, sensors, and aviation that may deter a crisis from becoming a war. That military measure of success can justify a ship that looks less efficient under a narrow business-procurement calculation.