Drake class escort ship
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Missing image 130_metre_class_escort_ship_(gundam).jpg Drake-class escort ship | |
| Type | escort ship |
| Length | 130 meters |
| Armament |
"Igelstellung" 75mm Vulcan gun x3 |
| Mobile weapons | TS-MA2 Moebius or GAT-01 Strike Dagger x2 GAT-02L2 Dagger L x4 (CE 73 refit) |
| Linear catapults | 2 (CE 73 refit) |
| Ships of the class | Drake, Bernard, Law, Antigonos, Xerxes, Seleukos, Belgrano |
| Designer | Kimitoshi Yamane |
During the Bloody Valentine War (in Gundam SEED), the Drake-class escort ship is a light space warship employed by the Earth Alliance primarily for combat against fighters and mobile suits. The escort ships themselves have no mobile suit/mobile armour carrying capacity, instead concentrating on weapons that can fight against mobile weapons. Late in the war, the Drake-class ships are used to deliver nuclear arms and GAT-01 Strike Dagger mobile suits, the latter going into combat lashed to the ships' hulls.
Two years after the first war the Drake-class ships are still in service, but like the other Alliance ships they undergo some modifications. Two linear catapults have been added between the missile pods, allowing them to carry and launch mobile suits into battle. Unlike the Nelson-class battleships, where the mobile suits simply float into the catapult for launch, the Drake class have an arm that places the suit on the catapult for launch. Unfortunately, due to the restricted space the suits cannot be equipped with any mission packs.
The Drake class is named for 16th-century English naval hero Vice Admiral Sir Francis Drake.