Aircraft Carriers

[Geoff_B]

Basically yes manpower and fit. Independicia was unmodified post war except fo a small angled flight deck. She had been used by the RN, RCN and Argentine navy since the war without major rebuild or refit. Local maintenance probably wasn't upto scratch so she would be well worn by the end of the 60's.

the Karel Doorman had been kept maintained by the Dutch Navy in a pretty modern condition and her boiler were replaced with the unused ones from the incomplete Leviathon during the mid 60's refit. As a result the Argentina Navy had a nice updated and modern Colossus/Majestic class carrier for a price cheaper than putting their own through refit and rebuild to a similar standard.

The other aspect is the airgroup, additional manpower and airacraft would be need to operate both carriers, something not easy to do with a largerly conscript based service. It may have been wiser to refit the carrier and mothball the gun cruisers still in service, but the macho mentality was still going strong and the big gun cruisers represented power in the South American stakes more so than a small carrier with limited strike capability.

Cheers

G

[uk 75]

In the Brown-Moore book "Rebuilding the Royal Navy" there is a tantalising drawing of a proposal for a Commando Carrier resembling an "Iwo Jima" built to commercial standards.  Digging around in some old cutings and books I have found that there were proposals from about 1964 on to replace the "Bulwark" and "Albion" conversions with up to 4 commercial spec helicopter ships. These lurked around until the 1974-5 Defence cuts killed off this requirement.  It was later resurrected after the Falklands.

I don't know whether this offers another fun project for the Shipbucket community. The Brown/Moore drawing is very bland. A simple hull (similar to the Iwo Jima?) with a small island with the then fashionable Mack?

UK 75

[uk 75]

One for the excellent Shipbucket community.  I think you chaps have a copy of Friedman's US carriers. In the back of the book is a sketch of a "self protecting" carrier armed to the teeth with 50s missiles and carrying nets for 50s style VSTOL planes (mentioned in some threads on Alternate History threads).

This would be a marvelous subject for some shipbucket artwork. Not sure which of the 50s design it might have carried but the following come to mind:

Ryan F13 Vertijet
Bell F109

or the fixed wing Douglas Missileer.

UK 75

[Tornado]

I have a drawing of the carrier you mention in another book, 'The Hybrid Warship'. Take off the VTOL pads and you had a carrier with loads of self-defence, not so much room for aircraft though...

Supercarriers let the aircraft do the defending but if the USN was ever short of escorts it might have been a good idea.

May give this idea a go...

[Jschmus]

My apologies if someone has reported this before, but I only saw it myself over the weekend.  Japan has launched a new "helicopter destroyer" intended to replace the aging Harunas.  The ship features no equipment for handling fixed-wing aircraft, but it looks an awful lot like a through-deck cruiser or SCS.

[Hobbes]

Cool! I really like the look of that thing.  

[Captain Canada]

Is that real ? Looks kinda fake. Especially the Merlin. Cool, but fake !

Any more info on her ?

 

[jon_rose]

Especially the Merlin.

It's a Sea Hawk

[Amphion]

Especially the Merlin.

It's a Sea Hawk

Yeah, the one on the forward flight-deck. But the one on the aft flight-deck look kinda Merlin-ish.  

But I agree, it look kinda photoshoped. Something about the crisp contrast compared with the SeaHawk.

[anthonyp]

Last I heard it's still in drydock under construction.

That's definitely a CGI, though.  Close to what the actual ship's gonna look like, though.

[nev]

Any links to more details?  What the helo complement will be?  I take it its meant to be like an ASW carrier?

[rafi]

some interesting links about the DDH Hyuga...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hyuga_class_destroyer

http://www1.jeffhead.com/worldwideaircraft...riers/16ddh.htm

Rafi  

[Captain Canada]

Cool stuff ! I see they call it an MCH-101. I like the F-35s on there as well...what's that smaller helo ? A Dolphin ?

 

[elmayerle]

Hmm, don't the Japanese also have a modern LPH with a through-deck and a well-deck?  Those operating with this DDH could give you quite an assault force.

[nev]

Hmmm, so you could add a ski-ramp and launch F-35s off of there