The 50m, six-person ship from the Italian shipbuilder carries swappable, containerised payloads instead of a fixed mission, reflecting a shift that is becoming increasingly evident.
HMCS Victoria and HMCS Windsor could return from their current deep maintenance, but unconfirmed operational timelines leave questions over patrol capacity before the first CPSP arrives.
A wide-ranging report on the state of Irish defence capabilities has proposed that Dublin invests in more modern equipment, especially across the air and sea domains.
Under its Force Design 2030, the USN and USMC envisage a fleet of 24-35 Light Amphibious Warships that can operate in regions such as the Indo-Pacific for up 30 days at a time.
Textron Systems believes surface effect ship technology could be used to provide specialised performance capabilities that traditional monohull vessels cannot.