Brief on Sea Control Ship/Interim Sea Control Ship Program

The primary mission of the U.S. Navy's new Sea Control Ship (SCS) will be protection of underway replenishment groups, amphibious groups, convoys, and task groups which will not have aircraft carriers in company.

The USS Gaum, operating as the prototype SCS, has had a helicopter squadron and a detachment of Harriers from the U.S. Marine Corps testing the concepts of antisubmarine warfare (ASW) systems, surveillance against antishipping missiles from hostile submarines, and V/STOL aircraft as possible air interceptors or for air-to-surface attack.