Fleet Escorts

I'm a new player to Full Thrust playing in a local
group (in Atlanta). In the few games I've played
so far (knock down drag outs with lots of ships)
I've been struck by two things -- 1) Escort sized
ships seem to be nothing but targets in the battle,
and 2) Escorts don't seem to have a real role on
the board other than to make the setup look pretty
and possibly to absorb damage.

This, combined with the difficulty defending against
salvo missiles and fighters led me to wonder if it
was possible to create an escort sized vessel with
the ability to actually protect the fleet from
fighters and missiles and maybe stay alive themselves
(and have a role on the battlefield).

The obvious first choice of having lots of PDS and
ADEF is a little unsatisfactory because it's not
possible to fire on the fighters until they attack.

I was considering something that I'm certain has
been done (maybe to death) on this list and I 
wanted to get some input on how smart or dumb it
would be.

My idea is a Destroyer/Carrier with good hull,
armor, shield 2, ADFC, lots of PDS's and 1 fighter
squadron of interceptors. There would be a cruiser
version with 2 squadrons. The idea is that the hull,
armor, and shields would make them difficult to 
destroy from a distance. The PDS/ADFC would help
when the attack came, and the interceptor squadrons
would cut down on the number of fighters reaching
the SDN's and Carriers. Also, if the escort was
destroyed, the fighter squadron would remain.

Ok, now is this a smart or a not so smart idea?
What are the countermeasures? Would I be better
off with regular fighters so that they could take
an offensive role if the enemy didn't have fighters
or missiles? Is there a better idea? Thanks and 
I'm sorry if this has been asked and answered.

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