Some ships can carry small vessels. Their carrier capacity is limited by total numbers and each slot carries a maximum mass limit. Large gunboats often exceed the mass limit of older carriers.

All capital ships have at least some carrier capacity, though most only very small numbers for bolstering their own defense. The only ship to meaningfully extend the range of a strategic number of fighters and bombers is the carrier. While space stations have even greater capacity, their lack the speed to use that capacity offensively.