 Escort Carrier (based on Timeon Clipper freighter) |
Escort Carriers are slower, less armed and armored, and carry fewer fighters. They are less expensive and can be built in less time. This is their principal advantage, as escort carriers can be completed in greater numbers as a stop-gap when fleet carriers are scarce. However, the lack of protection makes escort carriers particularly vulnerable and easy to destroy with great loss of life.
Most often built on a commercial ship hull, escort carriers are too slow to keep up with UPF fleets consisting of fleet carriers, battleships, and cruisers. Instead, they are used to escort convoys, defending them from enemy threats.