For seventy years, they have represented the power of the United States. When conflict broke out in the world, it was the American aircraft carriers - fast, mobile and with the kind of firepower that some countries lack - were the first to arrive in the crisis area. When the word "crisis" is pronounced in Washington, the first thing that leaves the lips is Clinton's famous phrase: "Where is the nearest aircraft carrier?"
But today these hulks, each 1,000 feet long, with a nuclear power plant on board and a few squadrons of aircraft, are becoming too expensive to maintain. More than $ 1.5 billion is required for the construction of one ship alone. In addition, they have become too vulnerable to new generation anti-ship missiles. This is one of the reasons cited by a senior US Navy officer in his request to the Pentagon to reconsider attitudes towards the construction and use of aircraft carriers.
In contrast to today's situation, where the fleet operates with a small number of large aircraft carriers, the fleet of the future must have a large number of small aircraft carriers. “Moving from extremely expensive and vulnerable supercarriers to more mobile, smaller ships will be extremely beneficial and will expand our nation's influence,” said Captain Jimi Hendrix.
This will allow the US Navy carrier-based aircraft to be distributed around the world. Based on many ships in small groups, the US air force can hardly be destroyed in one blow.
To clarify some of the details, the following should be said: no one, not even Hendrix, claims that literally tomorrow large aircraft carriers will become obsolete. On the contrary, Great Britain, the United States and especially China are developing and building new supercarriers, albeit not as large as 11 American ships of the Nimitz and Enterprise type (each of them displaces about 100 thousand tons). Hendricks insists that large aircraft carriers should remain in the fleet, but they should only be used in large-scale crises and as powerful support.
Outgoing Secretary of Defense Robert Gates mentioned this proposal in his speech.
For normal patrolling, the fleet must use small aircraft carriers. Hendrix does not give figures, but assumes that for the cost of building one large aircraft carrier, it is possible to build 3 ships weighing 40 thousand tons each.
Light aircraft carriers have the right to life, since there have been changes in the very approach to the use of aviation. During the Cold War, naval aviation was used massively to carry out as many operations as possible in the early days of the conflict. No one expected that the intense phase of the conflict could last long. For this, large aircraft carriers are optimized - for a "massive and fast battle".
Modern conflicts tend to be low-intensity and protracted. Fewer naval missions are required, but they last longer. Aircraft carriers no longer need to carry many strike aircraft and launch them as often. This is what Hendrix is focusing on.
He is confident that the future tactical aircraft carrier is already under construction at the Mississippi shipyard, although the command of the Navy does not confirm this information. America, the first of a new class of amphibious attack ships, could become "the first light aircraft carrier," Hendrix writes.
"America" is about to get into service. The ship must carry a thousand marines, landing them ashore using V-22 tiltrotors. Like its predecessors, the ship is capable of carrying VTOL Harrier aircraft (pictured) and even the promising F-35B fighter. The difference is in how many pieces of equipment can be placed on board the "America": up to 30 pieces. For comparison, conventional attack ships carry up to 5 Harriers on board, and large aircraft carriers up to 50 F / A-18 Hornet attack aircraft.
Unlike other observers, Hendrix hopes for the late and ultra-expensive F-35 fighter, especially the B-type fighter, the most problematic of the three in testing. “I know the development costs are prohibitive, but I am confident that this aircraft will be useful to us in the future,” says Hendricks.
In his opinion, armed drones launched from a ship could complement the F-35. A test flight of the world's first combat unmanned aircraft capable of landing on an aircraft carrier, the Northrop Grumman X-47B, took place in February. The Navy wants to order a batch of such drones to equip an aircraft carrier by 2018. Hendrix is confident that small aircraft carriers armed with drones and vertical takeoff and landing aircraft made using stealth technology, "will change the appearance of the fleet and usher in a new era." However, he admitted that he was facing strong opposition from diehard followers of large aircraft carriers. According to him, "a lot of people don't like America (ship name; approx. Mixednews)."
Even Gates was forced to back down after criticizing the Navy for being overly dependent on huge aircraft carriers. Here is what he later said in an interview: “Okay, I will not reduce the number of aircraft carriers. But you should think about how you can use aircraft carriers in the era of ultra-precise cruise and ballistic missiles that can easily destroy a ship."
For Hendrix, the answer is obvious - there should be more aircraft carriers, but their size should be seriously reduced.
