Modern Carrier Battle Group..Strategies and Tactics

[rhino123]

Re: The End of the Carrier Age?

There is one, its called the X37b,, its in orbit right now and another one under construction.

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GOD! That again! First off... X-37 plane is unmanned, it carries no weapons! At the most, it can be called a satellite that can change orbit!

Not denying that it is a good system, would make intercepting it much more difficult but that is it!

Can can an X-37B thingy replace an aircraft carrier... when it clearly have different roles and task. Can you please come up with something more credible?

 

[siegecrossbow]

Re: The End of the Carrier Age?

There is one, its called the X37b,, its in orbit right now and another one under construction.

As I've emphasized many times before as of now the X37b is not designed to be a weapons but a surveillance platform. It is unmanned and is too light to carry an actual payload. Besides the cost of launching a fleet spaceplanes far exceeds the cost of maintaining a fleet of conventional fighters and if you look at how much air-to-air performance is sacrificed by the interceptors I don't think you can expect a space-plane to really "manuever" in actual combat situations... I can go on and on about why the X37b, while an marvelous breakthrough, can't substitute other functions of the U.S. armed forces but that will take a few pages.

 

[siegecrossbow]

Re: The End of the Carrier Age?

GOD! That again! First off... X-37 plane is unmanned, it carries no weapons! At the most, it can be called a satellite that can change orbit!

Not denying that it is a good system, would make intercepting it much more difficult but that is it!

Can can an X-37B thingy replace an aircraft carrier... when it clearly have different roles and task. Can you please come up with something more credible?

As I've emphasized many times before as of now the X37b is not designed to be a weapons but a surveillance platform. It is unmanned and is too light to carry an actual payload. Besides the cost of launching a fleet spaceplanes far exceeds the cost of maintaining a fleet of conventional fighters and if you look at how much air-to-air performance is sacrificed by the interceptors I don't think you can expect a space-plane to really "manuever" in actual combat situations... I can go on and on about why the X37b, while an marvelous breakthrough, can't substitute other functions of the U.S. armed forces but that will take a few pages.

Looks like we think exactly alike lol .

 

[xywdx]

Re: The End of the Carrier Age?

Well arming the X-37 with a few missiles or bombs is not out of the question, but the problem is sustainability.
The cost of having a fleet of X-37 land, supplied and take off again would be at least as much as firing ballistic missiles doing the same thing.
In a way armed X-37 can be considered ballistic missiles that have already completed the ascent and remain docile in orbit until the command is given to strike.

 

[rhino123]

Re: The End of the Carrier Age?

Looks like we think exactly alike lol .

Great minds thinks alike.

Well arming the X-37 with a few missiles or bombs is not out of the question, but the problem is sustainability.
The cost of having a fleet of X-37 land, supplied and take off again would be at least as much as firing ballistic missiles doing the same thing.
In a way armed X-37 can be considered ballistic missiles that have already completed the ascent and remain docile in orbit until the command is given to strike.

It is not as simple as that. Arming something that is not design to become a weapon platform is not something that is that easy to do. Plus just a few missiles and bombs are not going to change anything.

The main thing is the capability to react at a very fast speed, and sufficiently armed and configured for different task is needed. The only way to do it now is using carriers.

Another way of going is to arm the military with huge number of UCAV that had long range and armed with missiles. But these UCAV still needed a platform to launch them, so carrier are still needed, but might not really be as large as now.

 

[siegecrossbow]

Re: The End of the Carrier Age?

Great minds thinks alike.



It is not as simple as that. Arming something that is not design to become a weapon platform is not something that is that easy to do. Plus just a few missiles and bombs are not going to change anything.

The main thing is the capability to react at a very fast speed, and sufficiently armed and configured for different task is needed. The only way to do it now is using carriers.

Another way of going is to arm the military with huge number of UCAV that had long range and armed with missiles. But these UCAV still needed a platform to launch them, so carrier are still needed, but might not really be as large as now.

UCAVs, as of now, are still vulnerable to interference and jamming but it is up to us electrical engineers to make A-to-A combat drones a reality . The potential advantages are too numerous for us to abandon the concept right now! Capability to perform high g-manuevers without fear of pilot blacking out, no need for expensive pilot training, 100% pilot survival after the drone gets shot down... While the development of UCAVs will be expensive the money that it can save will also be tremendous (besides offering huge tactical advantages).

I am not sure whether a drone carrier will be much smaller than the current behemoths in service with the USN. First of all I think until AI has improved to the point that the planes could engage one another autonomously I think the pilots would still need to be located relatively close to the planes (like on a carrier). You will still need a large number of engineers/maintenance crew who will take care of the birds once they are done with a mission. A large number of sea men are likewise needed for the maintenance of the carrier itself. It all depends on how much of the process can be automated (and how much the top brass trusts automation).

 

[noname]

Re: The End of the Carrier Age?

Great minds thinks alike.



It is not as simple as that. Arming something that is not design to become a weapon platform is not something that is that easy to do. Plus just a few missiles and bombs are not going to change anything.

The main thing is the capability to react at a very fast speed, and sufficiently armed and configured for different task is needed. The only way to do it now is using carriers.

Another way of going is to arm the military with huge number of UCAV that had long range and armed with missiles. But these UCAV still needed a platform to launch them, so carrier are still needed, but might not really be as large as now.

I expect the main purpose of the X-37 will be to attack and monitor - or even capture and destroy an enemys space assets. There is some possibility that the X37 will be armed with a laser that can be used in space. It does have a fairly small payload bay. If you can wipe out an enemys space based assets both economic and military you will have one tremendous advantage over an enemy.

 

[siegecrossbow]

Re: The End of the Carrier Age?

Guys we should stop speculating! Popeye may lock the thread for good if we continue posting nonsense!

Personally I believe that the procurement of aircraft carriers is not so much a defensive as it is an offensive measure. The carrier offers the much needed power projection capabilities and may play a decisive factor in China's ventures in the South China Sea.

 

[rhino123]

Re: The End of the Carrier Age?

Guys we should stop speculating! Popeye may lock the thread for good if we continue posting nonsense!

Personally I believe that the procurement of aircraft carriers is not so much a defensive as it is an offensive measure. The carrier offers the much needed power projection capabilities and may play a decisive factor in China's ventures in the South China Sea.

Agreed there.

Actually aircraft carriers are a very versatile system, not just focusing on being defensive or offensive. It is a system that allow any country to project her entire three elements of military to practically any part of the world.

 

[SampanViking]

Re: The End of the Carrier Age?

Much of the current interest in the DF21D ASBM was triggered by a article published early this year by the Think Tank Orbis in their quarterly magazine.

It provides a fictional future analysis of circumstances and consequences of China sinking the George Washington in 2015.

I am sure that many will have issues and opinions of their own regarding the various facts and assumptions, but the article is still worth taking the time to read as it does obviously project its future based in current developments and policy within the USN. Comments about the effects of needing to redeploy Mid Ranking USN and Air Force Officers to land based operations in Iraq and Afghanistan are particularly pertinent.

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