At the end of this article, I would like to express my opinion on a number of issues raised in the discussion of carrier-based air groups earlier.
At most 36 planes and 10 helicopters fit into the hangar of an aircraft carrier, where to shove all the rest?
We look at the diagram below.
And in the photo
We count the cars and understand that about 40 aircraft with several helicopters can be accommodated on the flight deck at prelaunch positions. There may be much more of them on the flight deck when traveling.
There are more than fifty of them on deck.
Those. in addition to 36 aircraft and 8 helicopters, the hangar on the upper deck can accommodate at least 40 more aircraft and a couple of helicopters. - you don't have to put anything into the hangar to organize takeoff and landing operations. At the same time, the hangar will be packed to the stop, but if you need to organize the rotation of cars - who prevents you from lifting a dozen aircraft from the hangar (bringing their number on the deck to 50) and then removing those that need, for example, repairs?
No one
Aviation cannot be stored on the flight deck, open to all winds - it can be thrown into the ocean, damaged, and besides, the sea air is harmful to the internal filling of aircraft
Let's start with the simplest thing - the height of the Nimitz-class aircraft carrier reaches 30 meters and it is extremely difficult to wash anything off its deck. Unless a giant killer wave or a monstrous typhoon … Pitching also cannot drop the plane - there are special fastenings for it on the flight deck (by the way, fastenings are also needed for aircraft on the hangar deck, the presence of a hangar does not save from rolling). Of course, airplanes exposed to all winds still carry more damage than those hidden in the hangar, in which even the air is conditioned, but …
Here's the thing. If an aircraft carrier is going on a peaceful campaign, it really does not have to drag the entire air group with it, half is more than enough to train all the pilots of a full air group, and to participate in most exercises, too. Therefore, it is likely that we often see pictures of American aircraft carriers with an almost empty flight deck.
But if an aircraft carrier is on its way to war … would anyone really care about the increased wear and tear of aircraft attached to the flight deck? Something is doubtful, in a war completely different criteria are included. And in order to keep such delicate things as, say, turbine blades from external influences - is it really impossible to come up with some kind of airtight covers for nozzles and so on?
The planes in the hangar are made up like sardines in a bank, as such they cannot be serviced or moved
In fact, planes have been built end-to-end since the days of the first aircraft carriers. Here, for example, is the location of the Japanese Akagi air group.
And here is a small collage - real photos of aircraft (I didn’t deny myself the pleasure and put a photo of the flight deck of an aircraft carrier during the Second World War before the start of the aircraft - if someone thinks that the Nimitz is cramped - look here)
Despite the crush, it is quite possible to service the planes - the thing is that a person of average height can easily accommodate under the wing of the same "Super Hornet" - no problem
So there are no problems with service. With transportation - there is, but this is the case - the aircraft carrier has 4 aircraft lifts and if you try to group, say, the Hornets for one, the growlers for the other, the Hockey and the third, and so on.then, in principle, it is quite possible to raise exactly what is needed at the moment.
In the photo, the planes at the prelaunch positions are standing with folded wings, when will they have time to unfold their wings and hang up ammunition before launch? There is no time and place
The "Tomkats" have wings that do not fold, so there is no problem with them. And here are the folding wings of the Hornet
As it is easy to see, the main armament is installed on the “non-folding” part of the Hornet's wing. The very process of unfolding the wing occurs very quickly and automatically (the very first video in the first part of the article - "Hornet" opens its wings, having already entered the catapult)
Many thanks to everyone who mastered it!:)
The article used materials:
Aircraft Carrier Flight and Hangar Deck Fire Protection: History and Current Status
Aksenov V. Nuclear aircraft carriers of the "Nimitz" type.
Marine collection №7 2008 "Nuclear aircraft carrier" Nimitz"
