How would you design a modern sloop for a globally involved Western navy?
Short answerStart with a River-class-like OPV and add a tightly governed StanFlex-style modular system for wartime sensors and weapons.
NotesThe River-class OPV already performs many peacetime sloop duties, but it lacks the wartime flexibility associated with a true multipurpose escort. StanFlex offers a model in which standardized modules can change the ship's mission. Denmark enforced common interfaces by removing suppliers that tried to make other systems dependent on their proprietary equipment. Its success depended as much on firm government control of interfaces and suppliers as on the physical module design, a contrast with the troubled US Littoral Combat Ship approach.