A proposed rail-and-gantry arrangement would fold into the deck and lift spent and replacement VLS canisters. Permanent shipboard handling gear would avoid transferring temporary loading equipment from a replenishment ship before work could begin. Several launcher banks and several ships could reload in parallel. Crews could pre-stage spent canisters, letting the replenishment ship collect them and deliver replacements before moving on while the warship continued loading.
Notable Point · 1:12:39-1:14:40
Built-in handling could shorten VLS reloading at sea
A built-in rail-and-gantry system could let destroyers replace VLS canisters while the replenishment ship moves on, shortening a difficult reload evolution.