Aircraft Carriers II (Closed to posting)

Returning to port after discovering the fault was a sensible action IMHO, because if the fault could not be rectified quickly then the contents of the cold storage room (a serious amount of meat basically) would have spoiled and would have needed to be replaced. Easier done alongside than by RAS and the spoiled meat could be removed and disposed of on land, without upsetting the enviroMENTALists, which would surely have happened if it had been dumped in the sea. The sharks missed out on a feast there though...

Latest CVF pics to be released by the RN showing the latest modifications (cuts) to the design. Note the forward end of the angled deck and the removal of the round down at the stern, as well as the deck recognition letter 'Q' on deck. Presumably Prince of Wales will be 'P' and if Ark Royal is retained as an LPH then we will have 'QPR'. I'm beginning to think there is a conspiracy by fans of Queen's Park rangers Football club somewhere behind the scenes here...

Note the forward end of the angled deck and the removal of the round down at the stern, as well as the deck recognition letter 'Q' on deck.

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Nice PIX Obi Wan..

I don't like the removal of the round down. That may mean that the RN may never have catapults and arresting gear again.

I just visited and discovered that the first test shots have been fired from the catapults of CVN-77. Seems a certain former US president that the ship is named after was on hand.

I wish the ship had a diffrent name..This(CV names) was discussed in the first Aircraft carrier thread.

NEWPORT NEWS, Va. (Jan. 25, 2008) Capt. Kevin O'Flaherty, commanding officer of Precommissioning Unit (PCU) George H.W. Bush (CVN 77), presents former President George H.W. Bush with a yellow shooter's jersey after the launch of two "dead loads" off the flight deck of the carrier which bears the his name. The ship is under construction at Northrop Grumman Newport News shipyard. U.S. Navy photo By Mass Communication Specialist 1st Class Susan Caraballo (Released)

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NEWPORT NEWS, Va. (Jan. 25, 2008) Former President George H.W. Bush signals the launching of two "dead loads" off the flight deck of the Precommissioning Unit (PCU) George H. W. Bush's (CVN 77).

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NEWPORT NEWS, Va. (Jan 25, 2008) Former President George H. W. Bush signals the launch of a "dead load" off the flight deck of Precommissioning Unit (PCU) George H.W. Bush (CVN 77) during a catapult test ceremony. "Dead Load" launches test the ship's catapult systems ability to launch aircraft. The ship is under construction at Northrop Grumman Newport News Shipyard. U.S. Navy photo By Mass Communication Specialist 1st Class Narina Reynoso (Released)

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Some PIX of the Russian CV, ADM"K", being escorted by a Norweigan ship.I have no idea the date on these PIX. But my assumption is that they are recent. Look at the P-3! What country? any guesses? And the ADM"K" flight deck..Jeez not much happening there! Totally devoid of any action!.

Obi Wan Russell said:

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Latest CVF pics to be released by the RN showing the latest modifications (cuts) to the design. Note the forward end of the angled deck and the removal of the round down at the stern...

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It seems to me that it is not so much an angle deck on the VSTOL only CVF, but an overhang to be used as a deck park and/or for helo operations. I presume that if these ships are ever fitted with catapults and arrestor gear the forward part of the overhang will then become part of the angled deck, at which point I guess the CIWS would have to be relocated.

I agree with bd popeye's comments re the round down. How difficult would it be to restore a round down, if it is decided to add catapults and arrester gear at a later date?

Tas

The parts of the angled deck which appear to have been dropped from the design can be restored without any difficulty as they are only external steel structure. I suspect they were dropped to appease the politicians by saying "Look, we've cut big chunks off the ship, think how much money we've saved!" when in fact all they have cut is a few thousand tonnes of relatively cheap steel which can easily be put back later. The overhang is as large as it was before, it's just the small forward extension and aft round down that have been axed and they were just steel with no 'moving parts' anyway. None of the RN's previous eight angled deck carriers were built with angled decks and they coped very well with the additions. The US Essex and Midway classes were built as axial deck ships and also took to the angled deck very well, and they were all designed before the angled deck or steam catapult were even concieved. CVF has been designed with these modifications in mind so retrofitting them will not be nearly so difficult or expensive.

Soviet practice in the Barents and Norwegian seas has been to keep all the planes bellow deck, due the harsh climate. Also if they are from this latest cruise, the air combonent is so small, that they all fit in the hanger.

Gollevainen said:

Soviet practice in the Barents and Norwegian seas has been to keep all the planes bellow deck, due the harsh climate. Also if they are from this latest cruise, the air combonent is so small, that they all fit in the hanger.

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Thanks Golly for that info. They must have a very small air wing for this deployment. Perhaps no more than 18-24 aircraft.

From my experience in the USN when incountering heavy seas. The hangar deck is crammed with as many aircraft as possible. The rest are bunched together in front of the island or on the aft end of the flight deck.

What is a 'round down'?