line ahead

English

Initial fleet dispositions at the Battle of Lissa. The main body of the Italian fleet (in blue) is deployed in line ahead.

Noun

line ahead (usually uncountable, plural lines ahead)

1. (nautical, military) A type of warship formation with the ships proceeding one after another and the trailing ships following behind the lead ship on the same path.
   • 2019 November 20, Drachinifel, 8:10 from the start, in Honda Point Disaster - Taking a Wrong Turn at Albuquerque‎^[1], archived from the original on 14 December 2022:

     Unfortunately, the squadron was, in fact, quite a bit north by northeast of where they thought they actually were. The radiobeacon readings, as it turned out, had been correct. At about five o'clock in the afternoon, they'd adopted a line ahead formation, and, so, when the flagship made its turn to port at nine o'clock, the rest of the ships followed in an orderly queue. However, it was to be the third ship in line, USS Young, that would be the first casualty, as she tore open her hull on a submerged section of the shoal, capsizing to starboard, and taking twenty men with her, at four minutes past nine.

Antonyms

• line abreast