Oliver Hazard Perry frigates made mass visible

A moving single-arm launcher had an emotional visibility that flush VLS cells often lack, even if the latter are technically superior. The Perry design was ruthlessly economical, yet its boxy silhouette and visible launcher still announced that the United States had arrived. Later discussion considers single-, twin-, or multi-arm launchers as one way to retain at-sea missile replenishment after fixed VLS cells are empty. Seventy ships across American and allied fleets made industrial capacity part of the deterrent message. Because a Perry was capable but not a capital ship, it could show interest and resolve without immediately imposing the escalatory weight of the navy's heaviest combatants.