Dylematy rozwoju małych flot wojennych
Dilemmas of the Development of Small Navies

Summary/Abstract: The dynamic development of military technologies applicable in the naval warfare entails a significant increase in the prices of armaments and marine equipment. Navies of medium and small states are already facing the problem of quantitative reduction of platforms and the loss of their interoperability that would allow joint operations in multinational teams. This situation could lead to the creation of ‘token fleets’ or the second category fleets (also within NATO), with the illusory value for the security of the state. This article focuses on navies of small and medium-sized countries, and it aims to present the determinants of their development so that they could maintain their national and allied credibility. Chosen research methods were the analysis of the international professional literature on the discussed subject and the analysis of developmental plans for small navies available in specialized literature and on marine related portals. The main research question was how to plan the development of small fleets that they would be useful for the security of the state? The main theses relate to: a systemic approach in planning the development of the navy, defining priorities (specialization or sustainable fleet) and shaping the morale of the people. Article is a substantive voice in the discussion on the transformation of the Polish Navy. The conclusions presented in the article indicate that the development of new technologies in conjunction with proper management of resources may favour the development of small navies, and the main problem is the quality of the political and military elites.

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