Large deck, nuclear-powered aircraft carriers are the signature expression
of american military power. No other combat system, available to US war
fighter comes close to delivering so much offensive punch for months at a
time without requiring land bases near the action.
As a result, the 10 carriers in the current fleet are in continuous demand
from regional commanders, so much so that extended overseas combat tours are
becoming the norm.
Nobody really doubts the utility of large deck carriers. there's nothing
else like them and the united states is the only nation that operates a
fleet big enough to keep three or more carriers continuously deployed at all
times.
Large deck carriers are fast and resilient, Nimitz-Class Carriers of the
type that dominate the current fleet like the ford class carriers that will
replace them are the biggest warships ever built. They have 25 decks
standing 250 feet in height and displace 100,000 tons of water.
With hundreds of watertight compartments and thousands of tons of armor, no
conventional torpedo or mine is likely to cause serious damage and because
carriers are constantly moving when deployed at up to 35 miles per hour,
fast enough to outrun submarines, finding and tracking them is difficult.
Within 30 minutes after a sighting by enemies, the area within which a
carrier might be operating has grown to 700 square miles, after 90 minutes
it has expanded to 6,000 square miles.
Carrier defenses are formidable
The US aircraft carriers are equipped with extensive active and passive
defenses for defeating threats such as low-flying cruise missiles and
hostile submarines. These include an array of high-performance sensors,
radar-guided missiles and 20 millimeters gatling guns that shoot 50 rounds
per second.
The carrier air wing of 60 plus aircraft includes a squadron of early
warning radar planes that can detect approaching threats, including radar
periscopes, over vast distances and helicopters equipped for anti-submarine
anti-surface and counter mine warfare.
All of the carriers defensive sensors and weapons are netted together
through an onboard command center for coordinated action against
adversaries.The carriers do not operate alone, carriers typically deploy as
part of a carrier strike group that includes multiple guided missile
warships equipped with the Aegis Combat System.
Aegis is the most advanced air and missile defense system in the world,
capable of defeating every potential overhead threat including ballistic
missiles. It is linked to other offensive and defensive systems on board US
surface combatants that can defeat submarines, surface ships and floating
mines or attack enemy sensors needed to guide attacking missiles.
In combination with the carrier air wing, these warships can quickly degrade
enemy systems used to track the strike group. The carrier strike groups
often include one or more stealthy attack subs capable of defeating undersea
and surface threats.
Navy tactics maximize survivability although u.s aircraft carriers are
protected by the most potent, multi-layered defensive shield ever conceived,
they do not take chances when deployed near potential adversaries. Their
operational tactics have evolved to minimize risk while still delivering the
offensive punch that is their main reason for existing.
For instance, a carrier will generally not operate in areas where mines
might have been laid until the area has been thoroughly cleared.
New technology is bolstering carrier defense, although there has been much
speculation about emerging threats to aircraft carriers, the navy invests
heavily in new offensive and defensive technologies aimed at countering such
dangers.
The most important advance of recent years has been the netting together of
all naval assets in an area, so that sensors and weapons can be used to
maximum effect.
Initiatives like the naval integrated fire control, counter air program
linked together every available combat system in a seamless, fast reacting
defensive screen that few adversaries can penetrate.
Numerous other advances are being introduced, from the penetrating recon
capabilities of stealthy fighters to shipboard jamming systems to advanced
obscurants that confuse the guidance systems of homing missiles.
The bottom line on aircraft carrier survivability is that only a handful of
countries can credibly pose a threat to america's most valuable warships,
and short of using nuclear weapons none of those is likely to sink one.
Although the navy has changed it tactics to deal with the proliferation of
fast anti-ship missiles and the growing military power of china in the
western pacific, large deck aircraft carriers remain among the most secure
and useful combat systems in america's arsenal.
With the unlimited range and flexibility afforded by nuclear propulsion,
there are few places they can't go to enforce United States interests. At
the rate the navy is investing in new warfighting technologies that is
likely to remain true for many decades to come.
