Great love, all the power of inspiration and knowledge Man puts into his inventions. Even those that bring destruction and death. There are always excuses that this is all for protecting and maintaining the world order.
All this fully applies to the invention of the miracle of human thought - aircraft carriers.
The idea to combine aviation and the fleet originated at the end of the XIX century. Then, as the aircraft taking off from the ships, balloons were used. The inefficiency and low maneuverability of balloons made us think about more advanced projects - the creation of floating airfields for aircraft. November 14, 1910 the idea took on real features, the plane took off for the first time from the deck of the Birmingham cruiser. Two months later, the plane not only took off, but was also able to land on the deck of the ship.
Carriers first took part in the hostilities during the First World War. Of the leading warring countries of World War II, only the United States, Britain, Japan and France used aircraft carriers. The USSR and Italy were never able to implement their projects to create ships of this class. Germany launched the Count Zeppelin aircraft carrier, but this ship never went to sea and took no part in hostilities. April 24, 1945 was flooded by its own crew. In the summer of 1945 he was lifted from the bottom and enlisted as a combat unit in the USSR Navy, but under the 1947 treaty he was re-flooded, forever.
Today's aircraft carriers are real floating military bases in which many military branches are synthesized. These giants are capable of delivering in a short time whole squadrons to anywhere in the ocean, to any coast of the globe. In addition, modern aircraft carriers are equipped with strategic nuclear and missile weapons.
Consider the largest representatives of this class of warships, not forgetting to traditionally look at the pages of history.
HMS Argus (UK)
Argus, named after the mythological hero, was the first classic-built aircraft carrier to become part of the British Navy. Before that, linear ships were used to take off and land aircraft, changing their design. A flat take-off and landing deck was first built on Argus.
Wartime changed the shipbuilding plans of Great Britain. Initially, the Argus was planned to be used as passenger transport, but on September 16, 1918 it was launched as an aircraft carrier.
A Sopwith Cuckoo squadron was assigned to Argus. In a modified design with reinforced anti-aircraft and artillery weapons, Argus took part in World War II. After receiving severe damage in a battle with a German submarine and aircraft on November 10, 1942, the Argus was decommissioned and used as a training ship.
The creation of Argus spurred other countries to implement projects to create floating airfields.
Want to learn about the biggest battles of World War II? Thebiggest.ru has a very interesting article about this.
Lexington (USA)
Lexington with a displacement of 30,000 tons in the 20s of the twentieth century became the largest ship in the world of this class. The Americans built their first large aircraft carrier for 4 years and launched in October 1925.
The length of the ship was 270.6 meters, and the width of the flight deck was 39.6 meters. With large dimensions, the aircraft carrier developed a speed of 34 knots. On the deck of the ship housed 70 aircraft of various modifications. Most of all, the decking squadron of Lexington numbered 22 fighters. Including aviation, there were 12 torpedo bombers.
During the raid on Pearl Harbor, Lexington was at Midway Atoll. Having participated in small battles with Japanese ships, and on May 8, 1942, in a battle with Japanese aircraft carriers, the Shokaku and Zuikaku were hit and sank.
Shinano (Japan)
Japanese designers and shipbuilders created the largest aircraft carrier of the Second World War.
After the victorious raid on Pearl Harbor, the Japanese suffered a number of significant setbacks in the Pacific theater of operations. In order to return Japan’s superiority in the ocean, on November 28, 1944, the large Shinano aircraft carrier launched its first military campaign.
His deck hit contemporaries with its dimensions, 256 by 40 meters. The aircraft carrier was equipped with modern anti-aircraft weapons, artillery, 12 anti-aircraft missiles. The aircraft carrier posted 42 aircraft.
The fate of the “Sinano” was tragic. 17 hours after the first launch at sea, the American submarine SS-311 launched 6 torpedoes on the ship. Having received damage, "Sinano" sank. The accompanying destroyers rescued 1,080 people from the Sinano crew, 1,435 were declared missing.
Iowa (USA)
This type of battleship of the U.S. Navy can not be completely called aircraft carriers. All 4 ships built by this project during the Second World War were created as high-speed ships capable of withstanding the enemy’s surface and submarine fleet.
In August 1943, Iowa took up combat duty in Norwegian waters, where, according to intelligence, the German giant Tirpitz was operating. And the American ship was 270 meters long.
In addition to standard artillery weapons, two catapults for launching seaplanes were located on the Iowa. In total, 3 aircraft were provided for the battleship. There were no platforms or a hangar for the aircraft on board the ship, two aircraft were constantly on the catapults, the third stood on the deck between them.
After World War II, Iowa took part in hostilities in the Korean War. Since July 2012, the museum ship has been at the port of Los Angeles.
Midway (USA)
Midway became the very first heavy aircraft carrier designed by US designers. Designed in the early 1940s, it went into operation on September 10, 1945, without having time to take part in the hostilities of World War II.
Designed based on British developments, the Midway significantly exceeded ships of this class in terms of technical and tactical characteristics. The length of the ship was 295 meters, and the width of the take-off deck was 41.45 meters. 12 engines and 4 turbines allowed the heavy carrier to reach a speed of 33 knots due to armor and weapons.
Vessels of this type have become long-lived combat, being more than 40 years in the US Navy. Midway took part in post-war conflicts in Vietnam and Korea. In 1991, it provided aviation and missile support to the ground operation of US troops in Iraq. On April 11, 1992, Midway was decommissioned and made a museum.
And about the most ridiculous types of weapons of the Second World War read on thebiggest.ru.
Admiral Kuznetsov (Russia)
The aircraft carrier was built during the Soviet Union at the Nikolaev shipbuilding plant, and today it is the only ship of this type in the Russian Navy.
The fate of the ship was surprisingly connected with the history of the country in which it was designed and built. Construction began on September 1, 1982 under the name Riga. In 1982, after the death of the Secretary General in November 1982, the ship under construction was renamed Leonid Brezhnev. In unfinished form was launched in 1985. On August 11, 1987, the aircraft carrier was renamed and its combat tests of 1988-1989 were held under the name "Tbilisi".
The ship had a number of significant deficiencies and malfunctions, due to which it repeatedly returned to the docks. October 4, 1990 received its current name "Admiral Kuznetsov." The twenty-year period of its history, until 2011, the aircraft carrier was either under repair or redone.
"Admiral Kuznetsov" is one of the largest ships of this class. Its length is 302 meters, the greatest width is 71.9 meters. On an aircraft carrier in combat deployment, there are 28 aircraft and 24 helicopters.
The Russian aircraft carrier is in many ways inferior to its American counterparts. From the very beginning of the era of aircraft carrier construction in Russia, this idea has not taken root. After the military operation in Syria in 2016 - early 2017, Admiral Kuznetsov was returned to the home base. Thebiggest really hopes that Admiral Kuznetsov will be replaced in the near future by a powerful, functional and reliable aircraft carrier. Although such conversations in military circles are not observed.
John Kennedy (USA)
"John F. Kennedy" was the last aircraft carrier of the American Kitty Hawk project, which began back in the 40s of the twentieth century.
This warship made its first military campaign on September 7, 1968. The length of the aircraft carrier is 320.6 meters, the width at the widest point is 76.8 meters. On its deck, the ship can accommodate up to 80 aircraft.
An unpleasant incident occurred with an aircraft carrier in 1975, when as a result of a collision with the Belknap cruiser, the cruiser completely burned down. And this was not the only case of collision with other vessels. After combat duty mainly off the coast of Europe, John F. Kennedy was removed from the US Navy in 2007 and is in reserve.
The ship was revived by cinematographs, shooting it in the scene of the film “2012”, where a tsunami carrying an aircraft carrier crashes onto the White House.
Forrestal (USA)
The aircraft carrier, which proudly bore the name of the first US Secretary of Defense, was the first ship of this type, which was designed for jet aircraft.
On October 1, 1955, Forrestal left the port for its first ocean crossing. At that time, it was a huge ship 325 meters long and 72.5 meters wide. On the deck of the ship and the runway housed up to 90 units of aircraft.
The Forrestol floating airfield took an active part in supporting the ground operations of the American army, but this ship can be called the most unlucky.
In the Navy he was nicknamed "Zippo" because of the frequent fires that occur on the ship. It was also so that a rocket fired from a ship caused a fire that lasted 14 hours.
The ship was decommissioned from the fleet in 1993. Forrestol was bought by one of the companies from the US Navy for one cent and cut into scrap metal in 2015.
Kitty Hawk (USA)
The Kitty Hawk, commissioned in 1961, was the last turboprop ship. After him, only nuclear reactors were used to equip the US aircraft carriers.
Another feature of this aircraft carrier was the almost complete absence of artillery. On the deck, 326 meters long and 86 meters wide, 80 aircraft were stationed. "Kitty Hawk" in this indicator in 2008 took 5th place.
The ship took an active part in the hostilities. In 1992, in operations in Somalia and the Persian Gulf. In 2000, in the Sea of Japan, two Russian planes flew over an American aircraft carrier and sent the pictures taken to the ship's website.
Kitty Hawk was withdrawn from the fleet in 2009. Some sources said that the aircraft carrier wants to buy India.
Nimitz (USA)
An American aircraft carrier with a nuclear power plant, with a total displacement of 106,300 tons, was developed in the 1960s. Ships of this type are among the largest military vessels in the world.
Nimitz was commissioned in 1975, and he took part in military operations in Yugoslavia and Iraq.
The length of the ship is 332 meters. Aircraft can take off both from the bow of the ship and from the side take-off strip. The maximum Nimitz can take on board more than 80 aircraft, but usually 64 aircraft and helicopters are located on hikes on the decks of an aircraft carrier.
On January 25, 1987, the Skyworior EA-3B made an emergency landing on an aircraft carrier lane with an inoperative guidance system for the ship. All planes took off from Nimitz, and barriers for braking the EA-3B were put up on the strip. But this did not help, the plane fell overboard and 7 crew members died.
The life of Nimitz-type ships is 50 years, and that of nuclear installations is 25 years. In total, 10 aircraft carriers of this type were launched.
Enterprise (USA)
The world's first nuclear-powered aircraft carrier was launched in 1960. This is the only aircraft carrier in its category, although the United States planned to create 5 of these ships.
Enterprise is the largest aircraft carrier to date. The deck length of this warship is 342 meters and a width of 78.4 meters. This giant made its first military campaign in 1962. 8 nuclear installations and 4 turbines allow the ship to reach a speed of 33.6 knots, which equals 62.2 km per hour.
He participated in the Vietnam War. At that time, a record was set - 165 sorties from an aircraft carrier per day. In total, the ship’s aviation group is 90 aircraft. In the 1990-2000s, he actively participated in all US military operations around the world.
During the history of existence, he made sea trips 25 times. The ship was decommissioned on December 1, 2012. Then the deactivation of the nuclear installation took place.
To replace this aircraft carrier and Nimitz-type ships, in the near future it is planned to introduce a new generation aircraft carrier Gerald R. Ford to the US Navy.
Gerald R. Ford (USA)
The aircraft carrier is currently being completed and is undergoing test events. The aircraft carrier was launched in 2013, and the daughter of Gerald Ford broke a bottle of champagne on the side of the ship. Designers estimate that the ship is 70% ready.
The design of the aircraft carrier received a number of improvements. Firstly, the new ejection system allows you to avoid heavy loads when taking off aircraft. Secondly, nuclear plants produce 25% more energy than Enterprise.
The dimensions are almost similar to previous ships, 337 meters long and 78 meters wide. At the "Gerald R. Ford" can accommodate up to 80 aircraft of various modifications and helicopters.
The introduction of the first ship of this type to the US Navy took place in 2017.
Finally
As we see, the leading positions in this type of armament belong to the USA. The principle declared by President Woodrow Wilson in 1918 to achieve US world domination is brilliantly implemented in projects to create aircraft carriers - oceanic military bases.
This is due to other reasons. Germany and Japan are forbidden to build warships, and accordingly have a navy. France and Great Britain, having become part of NATO, pursued a policy in line with US military policy. The military doctrines of these countries did not involve separate large-scale military operations. The need for such weapons has disappeared.
In the USSR in the 60s of the last century, they began to bet on the development of ballistic missiles as a means of delivering nuclear charges. The attempts undertaken did not lead to positive results that could satisfy the military leadership, and projects to create aircraft carriers were curtailed.
A new round of the arms race, which has been observed in recent years, can bring to life new types of large ships, from the deck of which aircraft can take off.