which could be based on these light ships. These carriers are typically around 20,000 tons displacement and carry a mix of ASW helicopters and fixed wing aircraft. Land-based maritime patrol aircraft are also useful in this role, since they can operate independently of aircraft carriers. Disaster relief Naval aircraft are used to airlift supplies, insert specialized personnel (e.g. medical staff, relief workers), and evacuate persons in distress in the aftermath of natural disasters. Naval aircraft are vital in cases where traditional infrastructure to provide relief are destroyed or overtaxed in the wake of a disaster, such as when a region's airport is destroyed or overcrowded and the region cannot be effectively accessed by road or helicopter. The capability of ships to provide clean, fresh water which can be transported by helicopter to affected areas is also valuable. Naval aircraft played an important part in providing relief in the wake of the 2010 Haiti earthquake and Typhoon Haiyan. Naval aviation branches Current Argentine Naval Aviation (Argentine Navy) Fleet Air Arm (RAN) (Royal Australian Navy) Bangladesh Naval Aviation (Bangladesh Navy) Brazilian Naval Aviation (Brazilian Navy) People's Liberation Army Naval Air Force (Chinese People's Liberation Army Navy) Republic of China Naval Aviation Command (Republic of China Navy) Chilean Naval Aviation (Chilean Navy) Colombian Naval Aviation (Colombian Navy) Department of Aviation (United States Marine Corps) Flotilla de Aeronaves (FLOAN) (Spanish Navy) French Naval Aviation (French Navy) Marineflieger (German Navy) Navy Aviation Command (Hellenic Navy) Indian Naval Air Arm (Indian Navy) Indonesian Naval Aviation Center (Indonesian Navy) Islamic Republic of Iran Navy Aviation (Islamic Republic of Iran Navy) Italian Naval Aviation (Italian Navy) Fleet Air Force (Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force) Air Wing Six (Republic of Korea Navy) Mexican Naval Aviation (Mexican Navy) Pakistan Naval Air Arm (Pakistan Navy) Peruvian Naval Aviation (Peruvian Navy) Polish Naval Aviation (Polish Navy) Portuguese Naval Aviation (Portuguese Navy) Russian Naval Aviation (Russian Navy) Royal Thai Naval Air Division (Royal Thai Navy) Turkish Naval Aviation (Turkish Navy) Ukrainian Naval Aviation (Ukrainian Navy) Fleet Air Arm (United Kingdom Royal Navy) United States Naval Air Forces (United States Navy) Naval Air Force (Vietnam People's Navy) Former Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service (Imperial Japanese Navy) Netherlands Naval Aviation Service (Royal Netherlands Navy) Soviet Naval Aviation (Soviet Navy) See also Aerial warfare Army aviation Military aviation Modern United States Navy carrier air operations References Further reading Grosnick, Roy A. United States Naval Aviation 1910 -