Source: DARPA image via Defense NewsĪ drone swarm mothership is an unmanned or manned system that transports the swarm to the battlefield. During the flight test, three drones successfully carried out all formation flying positions and safety features before one was successfully recovered in midair for the first time. The Mothership Concept An X-61 Gremlin drone and a C-130 undergoing a flight test by DARPA at Dugway Proving Ground in Utah on 29 Oct. The challenge for the United States and other militaries is how best to defend the mothership and integrate it with other weapons platforms. Particularly, the Protoss Carrier shows the importance of mothership-like concepts to support drone swarm deployment, rearmament, and repair. The imaginary Protoss Carrier illustrates important lessons around using drone swarms in a real 21 st century battlefield. The tough part was I built my whole strategy around the Carrier as soon as they were destroyed, so was I. I loved to build like ten Carriers and watch all the pixelated drones swarm all over the battlefield and destroy everything in sight. My favorite unit was always the Protoss Carrier - a 25 th century dirigible-looking aircraft that spits out four little robot planes (eight if you have the upgrade). For those unfamiliar, StarCraft is a real-time strategy game where futuristic armies battle for territorial supremacy. When I was young, around 16 or so, I loved the video game StarCraft. Image of a Protoss Carrier / Source: (StarCraft_II)?file=1._Carrier_Default.jpg