Aircraft carrier CVN-78 "Gerald Ford". USA
Gerald R. Ford (1913 - 2006, 38 US President 1974-1977)
The designation of a new type of CVX aircraft carriers began with 1996.
At the initial stage of work on the aircraft carrier’s project, by order of the Minister of the Navy, an advisory commission was formed, which, in collaboration with experts fleet and industry, in particular, on the problems of promising technologies designed to increase the operational flexibility of the new aircraft carrier, has developed the following recommendations. A ship should have a displacement of at least 100 thousand tons and a large flight deck for basing on it an aircraft wing of the whole composition and ensuring flights of promising aircraft, helicopters and unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) in virtually any weather conditions. It was deemed expedient to equip the aircraft carrier with a nuclear power plant (NPP), which allows for its emergency transition to the destination area at high speed without refueling (in connection with this, the project received the designation CVNX). A single electric power system should provide not only the operation of auxiliary mechanisms, but also the use of promising systems weapons. In order to increase the survivability of the ship, the commission recommended taking measures to reduce acoustic and electromagnetic signatures, and in order to save money, reduce crew size, construction costs and operating costs, as well as eliminate the need to recharge nuclear reactors.
The initial appearance was even too "stealth" shape.
However, this option was also considered:
However, by accepting these recommendations, the naval command refused, at the same time, to abandon the original version of the project due to its high cost (it meant the development of a completely new architectural and constructive type of ship) and preferred an evolutionary transition to designing a new hull after completing additional research and development. introduction of new technologies in shipbuilding practice. According to the developers, this will take about 20 years, during which three ships with a Nimitz-type aircraft carrier will be built. Along with the target installation for the creation of an aircraft carrier that significantly exceeds existing ships of this class in terms of combat capabilities, the designers were tasked with reducing the life cycle cost of a ship by 20 percent. Since it can make 50 - 21 billion dollars with 22-year service life, the naval command intends to look for measures that will not only allow the planned number of aircraft carriers in the fleet, but also use the savings for the development and development of other weapons and military equipment. Since up to 40 percent. (about 9 billion dollars) of the above amount falls on the maintenance of personnel, a significant reduction in the number of aircraft carrier crew is envisaged - from 3,5 to 2,5 thousand people. This requirement will be partially implemented already during the construction of the CVN-77, which will be intermediate between the existing NIMITz-type AVMAs and the ships of the new design, characteristics and technical solutions.
Guided missiles, cumulative ammunition, the latest torpedoes, aircraft carrying napalm or cruise missiles with conventional and, possibly, with chemical-biological warheads can pose a threat to aircraft carriers. In this regard, along with the improvement of constructive protection and self-defense means, the project developers seek to reduce the radar and optoelectronic visibility of promising aircraft carriers. On modern ships of this class, the superstructure alone, rising to the 30 m above the upper deck, has an effective scattering surface (ESR), equivalent to the ESR destroyer URO of the Orly Burk type. Research on the CVNX project confirmed the desirability of replacing a large superstructure with two small ones, using conformal antennas, rounded sides of the flight deck, special coatings and other measures related to the use of stelta technology, as well as placing all or part of the aircraft lifters in the ship’s diametral plane. . This is not about making the new aircraft carrier invisible, the task of the developers is to reduce the EPR so that the radar image of the AVMA does not differ from other ships of a marching or combat warrant.
AVMA CVN-78 (with the Nimitz type aircraft carrier) will be equipped with a new nuclear power unit and an electric power system that will allow the ship to be equipped with electromagnetic catapults and a high-precision self-defense weapon, powering the radar and powering the auxiliary steam systems. These and other innovations will be further developed in the design of the AVMA CVN-79, which will have a hull of a new (possibly catamaran) structure, which will increase the area of the flight deck, and a promising electric propulsion system.
For promising aircraft carriers, the operating period will be approximately 50 years. Taking into account past experience, during this period the ship, as project developers predict, will be able to take part in three major regional conflicts and at least a smaller scale in 20, provide 500 with thousands of aircraft take-offs and landings, spend 6 000 days at sea and walk about xnumx million miles Taking into account the rotation of crew members during this time on board will serve up to 3 thousand people.
Performance characteristics of the nuclear aircraft carrier "Gerald Ford":
Total displacement: approximately 100 thousand "long tons" (101.6 thousand metric tons.)
Dimensions: Length 317 meters, width 40.8 meters (maximum).
Main power plant: AES, 2 advanced pressurized water reactors with extended life.
4 GTZA (main turbo gear units), 4 screws.
Full travel speed approx. 30 knots
Crew (sailors, air group, support staff): 4660 people.
Air wing: 75 aircraft for various purposes.
Anti-aircraft missile system:
"Advanced C Sparrow" or RIM-116 (RAM-116).
Aviation technical equipment: EMALS electromagnetic catapults (commissioned by General Atomics)
Electronic weapons veluechaet in itself BIOUS ACDS Bloc 1 (or its improved version), multifunctional ASU "Aejis" Mk 7 (or improved version), radar with HEADLIGHTS ASU "Aejis" Mk 7 PY-1E or PY-1H4 + V wing support, satellite communication systems, navigation systems, etc., etc.
About the composition of the wing:
The strike component will be represented by F / A-18E / F Super Hornet and F-35C fighters.
In the long run, shock capabilities may increase due to the introduction of a UAV air group, for example, Northrop Grumman is working on the X-47A project for US Navy TTZ.
Apparently, F / A-18E / F Super Hornet fighters are also planned to be used as air defense fighters, at least F-14 special interceptors are written off, and the new ones are not designed (at the end of 90's there was information on the development of the ship version F-22, but apparently the topic has stalled).
Perhaps AUG air defense will be assigned to EM from the Aegis ASU, equipped with SM-3 air defense systems "Standard".
Thus, there is a predominance of the shock capabilities of the wing over air defense.
Aircraft EW: apparently in this capacity will be the version of the "Hornet" EA-18G Growler (which is quite good in terms of unifying the composition of the air group).
E-2D Advanced Hawkeye aircraft will be presented with DLRO / control aircraft (in appearance, the Hokai is not different from the usual, but it has fairly advanced capabilities; in particular, unlike the previous ones, the Edwanst Hokai will be able to coordinate air strikes ground and sea surface targets.).
As an anti-submarine aircraft, the V-22 Osprey in the SV-22 variant (instead of the Viking) will most likely be used, plus a multi-purpose version of the HV-22 convertible in the form of landing and search and rescue equipment.
However, this does not negate the presence on board of the helicopters, which most likely will remain the various versions of the Sea Hawks.
Some milestones built by CVN-78:
The first section of the keel laid 14 November 2009. The bookmark was attended by Susan Ford Boyles, daughter of Gerald R. Ford, who acted as the patron saint of the ship named after her father (I must say that there was some controversy over the name of the ship, in particular, the fleet veterans insisted on assigning the name of the new aircraft carrier " America ", in honor of the decommissioned ship class" Kitty Hawk "). Her initials were performed by electric welding on a steel sheet that was embedded in the first section of the keel.
But, actually, the first section of the keel in the shipbuilding dock.
So, if we make some preliminary conclusions about the features of the CVN-78, the following will be presented:
1. Of the new products, the use of an E / m catapult is actually taking place (reactors with an extended lifetime were first introduced on the Virginia-type submarine, the Aejis ASU with the HEADLAMP was first introduced on the previous CVN-77 "George HW Bush"). On the one hand, this saves a lot of weight (the E / m of the catapult is approximately 2 times lighter than the steam ones, and the weight of the steam catapults is approximately 20% of the standard AVIM displacement of the Nimitz type), to start up heavier machines; Again, there is no water (steam) consumption, no wear of hydraulics. On the other hand, the equipment e / m catapults are more sensitive to the aggressive factors of the marine environment, the work of some components can create unwanted fluctuations of the deck; Electromagnetic impulse while the catapult is in operation can interfere with the ship's radio electronic equipment.
2. On the other hand, there is criticism of the CVNX program for unnecessarily high cost, while opponents point out that to solve the fleet’s percussion problems, it’s enough to use ship-based RCs, and tasks aviation Marine Corps support can take on the F-35B Marine Corps.
Presumably the AB Gerald R. Ford will be completed in 2015.
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