The teacher gave me a twig and said, "Break it!" And I broke. Then he gave me a broom of twigs. And I couldn't break it. Then he gave me a plate. And I broke it. Then he gave me a stack of plates. And I broke them. Then the teacher said: “Well, you are a dunce. Now we have only a broom of the whole things. " (An ancient parable).
Until recently, the AUG was considered the main "broom" of the American fleet. An invincible grouping of surface warships and submarines, each element of which organically complemented and strengthened the rest. Versatility, multitasking, striking power of aviation and cruise missiles, several lines of defense, the farthest of which will be removed hundreds of miles from the main order.
In early 2015, news of the impending reorganization of the US Navy arrived from overseas.
The new format for the development of the surface fleet focuses on the division of ships into small battle groups, as well as an increase in the number of anti-ship weapons used in equipping ships.
The official reasons for the changes are related to the Chinese anti-access / area denial (A2 / AD) defensive strategy to restrict access and maneuver in selected areas of the oceans. The Yankees understand that the carrier-based wing has little chance against a ground-based aviation group, and the air defense / missile defense systems of the escort destroyers will not cope with massive attacks by winged and ballistic anti-ship missiles. The way out is combined attacks from all directions and the deployment of strike weapons on board the submarines. submarines have the most chances to get inside the guarded perimeter and complete the task.
A deeper analysis shows that the grounds for reorganizing the fleet did not appear yesterday. With the end of the Cold War, the American navy has completely switched to fleet-against-shore operations. The new conditions immediately raised the question of the adequacy of the use of expensive clumsy AUG in coastal areas. Approaching the coast, they enter the area of operation of the Air Force, where naval aviation with its limited take-off weight is not quoted against the background of a variety of Raptors. Any need for an aircraft carrier disappears by itself.
Iraq, 1991. Operation Desert Storm. Statistics on the use of carrier-based aircraft: 15% of all combat missions of the coalition, 13% of the mass of all dropped bombs, the share of precision-guided ammunition used - 10%. Outstanding performance for the six aircraft carriers involved.
As a result, for a quarter of a century of continuous wars, AUGs were used only sporadically. In 1999, the only aircraft carrier (of the 11 in service) approached the shores of Yugoslavia only on the 12th day of the war. During the last attack on Libya (2011), the Yankees generally refused to participate in aircraft-carrying ships. Despite the fact that their fleet took the most direct part in this operation. For example, the Florida submarine fired 93 Tomahawk cruise missiles in the first night!
Boats are another story altogether. Lone sea wolves, capable of acting where any other ship will die in minutes.
Submarine forces often operate far ahead without the support of other friendly forces. This means that submarine forces are often the only ones actually operating in these areas. As a result, after the First World War, it was proposed to use single submarines for various military operations in the forward echelons.
- US Navy Submariner's Code.
British and American submarines at the North Pole. There are no AUGs nearby. The submarine is the only class of ships capable of operating in high latitudes, under the ice shell of the Arctic.
The submarine is the most effective naval strike weapon carrier. Secretive, elusive, at the same time massive, tk. relatively cheap compared to other ships in the ocean zone. It is no coincidence that the Yankees currently operate 72 nuclear submarines. It is obvious that they, without any AUG, will be the main striking force in the event of a naval conflict.
The discussion about the cost of ammunition is meaningless. The cost of the Tomahawk CRBM reaches $ 2 million, which is 5-10 times more expensive than a guided bomb, but we must not forget that the bomb needs a carrier (cost of one flight hour from $ 10,000), a cover group (fighters, electronic warfare aircraft), the trained pilot and the costs of his regular training. At the same time, the cruise missile is specially designed to break through the air defense (there is no risk of losing the 100 millionth aircraft and the pilot landed by ISIS militants). Versatility? The latest modifications of "Tomahawks" are already smart enough to promptly aim at GPS coordinates, loit over the battlefield, waiting for a call, and attack moving targets.
The ratio of the losses of the Japanese fleet. The biggest problems were caused by the small vicious fish that literally grind the imperial fleet
… In the distance the “iron-like” silhouette of “Zamvolt” flashed. The rocket and artillery destroyer of a new type offers the cheapest solution: the destruction of the enemy's coastal infrastructure with guided 155 mm projectiles. At any time, in all weather conditions, without paying any attention to the enemy air defense. The reaction to the call is two minutes.
Of course, the participation of aviation is indispensable: the aircraft have a wide range of ammunition and high flexibility in use. But what does this have to do with the navy? The sailors did their part (the part that no one else would do). Delivered a thousand cruise missiles into the combat zone and used them to “carry out” key targets on the first day of the war. The Air Force will take care of the rest.
As a result, the need for an aircraft carrier as part of the AUG does not look obvious. There are submarines - silent sea killers, with dozens (and even hundreds) of cruise missiles on board. They can cut sea communications, they can strike overland. Covert surveillance of the enemy, the landing of sabotage groups, the setting of minefields, wiretapping of underwater communication cables, theft of fragments of enemy aircraft and missiles from the seabed …
There are destroyers. A typical example is Arleigh Burke. Compared to a nuclear-powered aircraft carrier and its air wing:
The cost of the destroyer is 9 times lower.
The number of the crew is 15 times less.
Operating costs are not comparable.
What can an aircraft carrier do that a destroyer cannot do (say, a KUG of four or five destroyers)?
PLO
The most important aspect. The most dangerous direction. Anti-submarine defense is entirely assigned to the destroyers and the base anti-submarine aircraft (Orions / Poseidons). The aircraft carrier has absolutely nothing to do with this. The destroyers are equipped with under-keel and towed sonar stations, as well as a set of anti-submarine rocket torpedoes, which allow them to quickly destroy the detected submarine in any weather conditions. At the same time, the KUG of four or five destroyers is capable of carrying up to 10 anti-submarine helicopters!
Why would they abeam an aircraft carrier? Ballast, excess cargo.
IMPACT OPPORTUNITIES
Were discussed just above. In the conditions of modern conflicts, AB is like a fifth wheel. They send it only then, because it was built and now it is necessary to use it somewhere. To justify the existence of numerous admiral posts.
When should they be used for their intended purpose? It will take a long time to fight off Easter Island from the newcomers.
Air defense / missile defense
Shipborne air defense systems, like the American Aegis, form the main air defense / missile defense circuit of the squadron. Only cruisers and destroyers are able to protect the aircraft carrier and themselves by intercepting the released low-flying anti-ship missiles.
Additional capabilities of the ships are associated with missile defense systems. Theater ballistic missile defense, interception of ballistic missile warheads and destruction of objects in near-earth orbits. This can not be repeated by anyone except the missile destroyer.
The only strength of the carrier-based wing is the ability to counter air attack vehicles. While the detection range of shipborne radars is limited by the radio horizon, combat air patrols are able to monitor the situation for hundreds of miles around. This is the only argument in the dispute over the need for an aircraft carrier.
However, there is one little-known circumstance that calls into question all the benefits of carrier-based aircraft in matters of air defense of the squadron. The very fact that friendly aircraft are in the air disorganizes and randomizes the work of anti-aircraft systems. New links of interceptors rising from the deck of an aircraft carrier, the simultaneous operation of a large number of aviation radars … All the necessary conditions for "friendly fire" have been created.
After all, anti-aircraft missiles do not care what the respondent squeaks about "friend or foe". They aim at the nearest object from which the radio signal is reflected.
Shipborne detection systems, CIUS and anti-aircraft missile systems have made a tremendous leap in their development over the past 30 years. The range of destruction of anti-aircraft missiles exceeded 200 km (for targets above the radio horizon). SAMs with active radar seeker appeared. The frequency of data updates has increased dramatically. On the basis of active phased antenna arrays, multifunctional radars were created with the ability to form dozens of beams for target illumination. All this increased the capabilities of air defense systems to such a level that the ship no longer needs air cover, as it was before.
Her Majesty's ship "Dragon". A destroyer unique in its class, specially "sharpened" for air defense / missile defense missions (while not devoid of reasonable versatility). Equipped with two radars with AFAR and anti-aircraft complex PAAMS (missiles of the Aster family with active radar seeker)
Finally, when working in the “fleet against shore” format, what prevents the air force fighters from covering the BMC?
Intelligence service
AUG supporters will press on this point, because a grandiose panorama of the earth's surface opens up from a height of 10,000 meters: the viewing range is increased by almost 20 times. Moreover, the aircraft itself is not tied to the mast and can make reconnaissance flights in any chosen direction, moving away from the order by a thousand miles.
But the question is, why carry a plane with you everywhere?
A miracle of technology: the unmanned naval reconnaissance MQ-4C Triton. The drone is equipped with an AN / ZPY-3 radar with an active phased array with a synthetic aperture having a 360 ° viewing range. As well as an optoelectronic station with thermal imagers, laser rangefinders and a high-resolution video camera for accurate ship identification. It is reported that the radar is capable of detecting submarine retractable devices (periscopes, communication antennas). Data transmission - via satellite, in real time.
Gliding silently at an altitude of 17 kilometers, the MQ-4C UAV is able to survey 7 million square kilometers of the ocean surface per day.
Dispersed over coastal airfields, a squadron of such "Tritons" is capable of providing continuous control over the situation in the North Atlantic (or any other selected area of the world ocean).
Spotted a naval target? Good. But how to strike now?
Airborne and shipborne anti-ship munitions are generally identical (Harpoon, LRASM). In the case of the domestic fleet, Russian sailors are ready to offer a huge arsenal of anti-ship missiles - from the light X-55 to the universal “Caliber” and the heavy “Vulcan”.
Further, the air wing of a modern aircraft carrier is completely useless for countering submarines.
As for the range of destruction of surface targets … There is every reason to believe that one of the ship's battle groups (the Yankee has 84 missile cruisers and a destroyer) or one of 72 submarines will always be close to the enemy. Or maybe several at once, a whole "wolf pack".
Numerous compact KUGs have greater mobility and maneuverability than the only and unrepeatable aircraft carrier group. After all, most of the sea areas are in the area of action of coastal fighter and bomber aircraft. Think of Falklands-82. What successes have Argentine pilots achieved, operating in the open ocean, at a distance of 700-800 km from the nearest airfield!
Destroyers "Stout" and "Gravely". Ahead is the British Dragon. "Mahan", "Ramage" and "Barry" remained behind the scenes. Typical Mediterranean missile defense patrol (destroyer squadron of the Sixth Fleet DESRON SIX). There are no AUGs nearby
