A small fleet of ships or boats (8)
I believe the answer is:
flotilla
<span class="explanation-format__ClueExplanation">This clue is a double definition.<br/ ><br/ >'<span class="explanation-format__original">a small fleet of ships</span>' is the first definition.<br/ ><span class="explanation-format__explanation">(I've seen this before)</span><br/ ><br/ >'<span class="explanation-format__original">boats</span>' is the second definition.<br/ ><span class="explanation-format__explanation">(I have seen 'many boats' mean 'flotilla' so perhaps 'boats' could also mean 'flotilla')</span><br/ ><br/ ></span>
(Other definitions for flotilla that I've seen before include "A lot of craft" , "Fleet of small vessels" , "number of boats" , "number of small ships" , "Group of small craft" .)