Part 1 (2/2)
This brings us back to the three words at the beginning of this introduction: presence, influence, and options. Naval forces generally provide presence. Carrier groups, though, dominate an area for hundreds of miles/ kilometers in every direction, including near-earth s.p.a.ce. While a frigate or destroyer impresses everyone who sees it, a carrier group can change the balance of military and political power of an entire region. A weak country backed by an American carrier group is going to be much tougher to overthrow or invade for a local or regional rogue state or warlord. That is the definition of international presence these days. Finally, there is the matter of options.
In the deepest heart of every politician, there is a love of options. Having choices in a tough situation is every politician's greatest desire, and carrier groups give them that. It is one of the oddities of national politics that until they become President or Prime Minister, politicians frequently and publicly view large military units like carrier groups as a waste of taxpayer money. However, let the politicians. .h.i.t the top of a nation's political food chain, and they sing another tune entirely. It is almost a matter of national folklore that every Chief Executive will, at some time in their Presidency, ask those four famous words: ”Where are the carriers?” It certainly has been the case since Franklin Roosevelt haunted the halls of the White House. Today, in fact, the use of forward-deployed forces afloat may be the only option open to a national leader.
Understanding aircraft carriers and their a.s.sociated aircraft and battle group escorts is not an easy task. Focusing only on the flattop is like tunnel vision, since the carrier's own weapons are purely defensive and quite short-ranged. To fully understand what effects a carrier group moving into your neighborhood is going to have, it is necessary to look beyond the carrier's bulk and dig deeper. You must look into the embarked air wing with its wide variety of aircraft and weapons, as well as the escorts. These range from Aegis-equipped missile cruisers and destroyers, to deadly nuclear-powered attack submarines. Armed with surface-to-air missiles and Tomahawk cruise missiles, they not only protect the carrier from attack, but have their own mighty offensive punch as well. To see it all takes a wider, deeper look than you are likely to find on the nightly news or in your daily newspaper. To do that requires that you spend time with people. Lots of people. These include the Navy's leaders, who make the policy decisions and have the responsibility of keeping our Navy the best in the world. You also need to spend some time with the folks who build the s.h.i.+ps, aircraft, and weapons that make the force credible and dangerous. Finally, you have to know the thousands of people who run the battle groups and sail them to the places where they are needed across the globe.
I hope as you read this book that you get some sense of the people, because it is they that are the real strength of the carrier groups, and our nation. While you and I stay home safe and warm in the company of our families and loved ones, they go out for months at a time to put teeth into our national policies and backbone into our words. It is they who make the sacrifices and perhaps pay the ultimate price. I hope you see that in these pages, and you think of them as you get to know the ”heavy metal” of the U.S. Navy up close. If you do, I think that you will gain a real perspective on their difficult, but vital, profession.
-Tom Clancy July 1998
Naval Aviation 101 ”Where are the carriers?”
Every American President since Franklin Delano Roosevelt
Aircraft carriers stretch perceptions. First of all, they're big-bigger big-bigger than most skysc.r.a.pers-skysc.r.a.pers that can move across the sea at a better than fair clip. And yet, despite their great size, when you watch flight operations on the flight deck (usually as busy as a medium-sized munic.i.p.al airport), you can't help but wonder how so much gets done in such a tiny s.p.a.ce. They not only stretch perceptions, they stretch the limits of the nation's finances and industrial capacity; and they stretch credibility. It's hard to find a weapon that raises more controversy. than most skysc.r.a.pers-skysc.r.a.pers that can move across the sea at a better than fair clip. And yet, despite their great size, when you watch flight operations on the flight deck (usually as busy as a medium-sized munic.i.p.al airport), you can't help but wonder how so much gets done in such a tiny s.p.a.ce. They not only stretch perceptions, they stretch the limits of the nation's finances and industrial capacity; and they stretch credibility. It's hard to find a weapon that raises more controversy.
Controversy has troubled naval aviation from the early days of the century, when primitive airplanes originally went to sea. At first, airpower was seen as a useless diversion of scarce funds from more pressing naval requirements like the construction of big-gun battles.h.i.+ps. Later, after naval aviation became a serious compet.i.tor for sea power's throne, bitter infighting arose between gunnery and airpower advocates. Today, as the acknowledged ”big stick” of America's Navy, the aircraft carrier is under attack from those who claim to have better ways to project military power into forward areas. Air Force generals plug B-2A stealth bombers with precision weapons (so-called ”virtual presence”). Submariners and surface naval officers hawk their platforms carrying precision strike missiles. A good case can be made for all of these. Still, in a post-Cold War world that becomes more dangerous and uncertain by the week, aircraft carriers have a proven track record of effectiveness in crisis situations. Neither bombers nor ”a.r.s.enal s.h.i.+ps” can make that claim.
Question: What makes aircraft carriers so effective? What makes aircraft carriers so effective?
The USS George Was.h.i.+ngton George Was.h.i.+ngton (CVN- 73) operating her embarked carrier air wing One (CVW-1). Battle groups based around aircraft carriers are the backbone of American seapower. (CVN- 73) operating her embarked carrier air wing One (CVW-1). Battle groups based around aircraft carriers are the backbone of American seapower.
OFFICIAL U.S. NAVY PHOTO.
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Answer: Carriers and their accompanying battle groups can move freely over the oceans of the world (their free movement is legally protected by the principles of ”Freedom of Navigation”), and can do as they please as long as they stay outside of other nations' territorial waters. Carriers and their accompanying battle groups can move freely over the oceans of the world (their free movement is legally protected by the principles of ”Freedom of Navigation”), and can do as they please as long as they stay outside of other nations' territorial waters.
A nation's wars.h.i.+ps are legally sovereign territories wherever they might be floating; and other nations have no legal influence over their actions or personnel. Thus, an aircraft carrier can park the equivalent of an Air Force fighter wing offsh.o.r.e to conduct sustained flight and/or combat operations. In other words, if a crisis breaks out in some littoral (coastal) region, and a carrier battle group (CVBG) is in the area, then the nation controlling it can influence the outcome of the crisis.4 Add to this CVBG an Amphibious Ready Group (ARG) loaded with a Marine Expeditionary Unit-Special Operations Capable (MEU (SOC)), and you have even more influence. Add to this CVBG an Amphibious Ready Group (ARG) loaded with a Marine Expeditionary Unit-Special Operations Capable (MEU (SOC)), and you have even more influence.5 This, in a nut-sh.e.l.l, is the real value of aircraft carriers. This, in a nut-sh.e.l.l, is the real value of aircraft carriers.
Such influence does not come without cost. Each CVBG represents a national investment approaching US $20 billion. And with over ten thousand embarked personnel that need to be fed, paid, and cared for, each group costs in the neighborhood of a billion dollars to operate and maintain annually. That's a lot of school lunches. That's a lot of schools! schools! Add to this current United States plans to maintain twelve CVBGs. And then add the ma.s.sive costs of the government infrastructure that backs these up (supply s.h.i.+ps, ports, naval air stations, training organizations, etc.), as well as the vast commercial interests (s.h.i.+pbuilders, aircraft and weapons manufacturers, etc.) necessary to keep the battle groups modern and credible. And then consider that not all twelve battle groups are available at one time. Because the s.h.i.+ps need periodic yard service and the crews and air crews need to be trained and qualified, only two or three CVBGs are normally forward-deployed. (There is usually a group in the Mediterranean Sea, another in the Western Pacific Ocean, and another supporting operations in the Persian Gulf region.) Add to this current United States plans to maintain twelve CVBGs. And then add the ma.s.sive costs of the government infrastructure that backs these up (supply s.h.i.+ps, ports, naval air stations, training organizations, etc.), as well as the vast commercial interests (s.h.i.+pbuilders, aircraft and weapons manufacturers, etc.) necessary to keep the battle groups modern and credible. And then consider that not all twelve battle groups are available at one time. Because the s.h.i.+ps need periodic yard service and the crews and air crews need to be trained and qualified, only two or three CVBGs are normally forward-deployed. (There is usually a group in the Mediterranean Sea, another in the Western Pacific Ocean, and another supporting operations in the Persian Gulf region.) Is this handful of mobile airfields worth the cost? The answer depends on the responses to several other questions. Such as: How much influence does our country want to have in the world? What kind? How much do we want to affect the actions and behavior of other countries? And so on.
Sure, it's not hard to equate the role of CVBGs with ”gunboat diplomacy” policies of the 19th century. But doing that trivializes the true value of the carriers to America and her allies. Among the lessons the last few years have taught us is one that's inescapable: The United States has global responsibilities. These go far beyond simply maintaining freedom of maritime lines of communications and supporting our allies in times of crisis. Whether we like it or not, most of the world's nations look to America as a leader. And these same nations (whether they want to say so officially or not) see us as the world's policeman. When trouble breaks out somewhere, who're you going to call? China? Russia? j.a.pan? Not in this decade.
Sure, it's not always in the best interest of the United States to give a positive answer to every request for support and aid. But when the answer is positive, there is the problem of how to deliver the needed response. Once upon a time, our network of overseas bases allowed us to project a forward presence. No longer. Over the last half century, a poorly conceived and ill-executed American foreign policy has allowed us to be evicted from something over 75% of these bases. Add to this the limited resources available following the recent military drawdowns, and the National Command Authorities are left with very few options. Most of these are resident in the CVBGs and ARGs that make up the forward-deployed forces of the United States Navy.
At any given time, there are usually two or three CVBGs out there on six-month cruises, doing their day-in, day-out job of looking out for the interests of America and our allies, with adventure and danger only a satellite transmission away. Thanks to the support of service forces (fuel tankers, supply s.h.i.+ps, etc.), a well-handled CVBG's only limitations are the durability of machinery and the morale of the people aboard. Given the will of a strong nation to back it, CVBGs can be parked off any coast in the world, and sit out there like a bird of prey.
That is the true meaning of ”presence.”
Rationale: Why Aircraft Carriers?
So why does America really really need aircraft carriers? We've seen the theoretical, ”policy” answer to that question. But what's the practical, real-world answer? What value does a ninety-year-old military concept have in an age of satellite surveillance and ballistic missiles? How does a relative handful of aircraft based aboard Naval vessels actually effect events on a regional scale? Finally, what does this capability give to a regional CinC or other on-scene commander? All of these questions must be explored if the real value of carriers and CVBGs is to be fully understood. need aircraft carriers? We've seen the theoretical, ”policy” answer to that question. But what's the practical, real-world answer? What value does a ninety-year-old military concept have in an age of satellite surveillance and ballistic missiles? How does a relative handful of aircraft based aboard Naval vessels actually effect events on a regional scale? Finally, what does this capability give to a regional CinC or other on-scene commander? All of these questions must be explored if the real value of carriers and CVBGs is to be fully understood.
Aircraft Carriers: An Open Architecture In less than a hundred years, we've pa.s.sed from the first heavier-than-air test flights to deep-s.p.a.ce probes. During that same time, after over five centuries of preeminence, we have seen the demise of gunnery as the measure of Naval power. The decline of naval guns and the rise of airpower were not instantly obvious. In fact, in the early 1900's, to suggest it would have invited a straitjacket. The first flying machines were toys for rich adventurers and stuntmen, their payload and range were extremely limited, and their worth in military operations was insignificant. The technology of early manned flight was derived from kites, bicycles, and automobiles. Structures were flimsy and heavy, and the engines bulky and inefficient.
Though the First World War did much to improve aircraft technologies, and made many military leaders believers in the value of airpower, the world powers had just made a staggering investment in big-gun dreadnought-type battles.h.i.+ps that Naval leaders had no appet.i.te to replace. Thus, Naval airpower wound up being limited by arms treaties or shuffled to the bottom of the funding priorities. Even so, though few saw this then, the future of Naval airpower was already a given. There are two reasons for this:
First-Aircraft soon proved they could carry weapons loads farther than guns could shoot, and with greater flexibility.
Second-An aircraft carrier can more easily accommodate upgrades and improvements than an armored s.h.i.+p with fixed-bore guns.
In order to retrofit a larger gun to deliver a larger sh.e.l.l, you have to replace the turrets and barbettes. And to do that, you have to completely rebuild a battles.h.i.+p or cruiser. By comparison, for an aircraft carrier to operate a new kind of aircraft, bomb, or missile, you only need to make sure that the new system fits inside the hangars and elevators. You also need to make sure that it's not too heavy for the flight deck, and (if it's an aircraft) that it can take off and land on the deck. Simply put, as long as an aircraft or weapons fits aboard a carrier, it can probably be employed successfully. In modern systems terminology, the carrier is an ”open architecture” weapons system, with well-understood interfaces and parameters. Much like a computer with built-in capabilities for expansion cards and networking, aircraft carriers have a vast capability to accept new weapons and systems. Thus, some battles.h.i.+ps built at the beginning of the First World War were sc.r.a.pped after less than five years service, while modern supercarriers have planned lives measured in decades.
Sure, gun-armed wars.h.i.+ps can still hurt aircraft carriers. And in fact, during World War II, several flattops found themselves on the losing end of duels with surface s.h.i.+ps. Today, missile-armed s.h.i.+ps and submarines pose an even greater hazard to flattops, as they do to all vessels. However, all things being equal, the range of their aircraft is going to give carriers a critical edge in any combat. Carrier aircraft can hold an enemy s.h.i.+p or target at a safe distance, and then either neutralize or destroy it. The word for this advantage is ”standoff.” By ”standing off” from an enemy and attacking him from over the horizon, you greatly reduce his ability to counterattack the carrier force, making defense much easier. In fact, just finding a CVBG is harder than you might think, as the Soviet Union discovered to its great chagrin on more than one occasion during the Cold War. If-as now seems likely-the next generation of American flattops incorporates stealth technology, then you can plan on aircraft carriers serving well into the next century.
Some Propositions about Sea-Based Airpower The ”real-world” effects of ”sea-based” naval aviation (that is, aircraft based aboard s.h.i.+ps at sea) and the principles by which battle group commanders ply their intricate and difficult trade are many, varied, and complex; and learning these takes years. What follows is no subst.i.tute for those years. Still, knowledge of some of the basic propositions about sea-based airpower that guide the plans and actions of our Naval leaders can't help but be useful: * Control of the Total Littoral Battles.p.a.ce Is Impossible without Air Control of the Total Littoral Battles.p.a.ce Is Impossible without Airpower-While it cannot realistically win a battle, campaign, or war by itself, no victory is possible without airpower. Broadly defined as the effective military use of the skies-airpower is vital to controlling the ”battles.p.a.ce” of the littoral regions. One only need look back at British operations in the Falklands in 1982 to see how much can go wrong when a fleet operates within range of enemy land-based aircraft without proper air cover. As a result, their victory in that war was ”a very near thing.”* Sea-Based Airpower Involves a Variety of Systems-Naval Sea-Based Airpower Involves a Variety of Systems-Naval forces bring a variety of systems and sensors to the littoral battles.p.a.ce. To name a few: fighter jets and transport helicopters; submarine-hunting helicopters and aircraft; surface-to-air (SAM) missiles defending against aircraft and ballistic missiles; and cruise missiles. This functional diversity means that a CVBG commander can bring any number of systems and employment options to bear, greatly compounding the defensive problem of an adversary. Properly utilized and supported, sea-based airpower can provide enabling force and muscle for any number and type of military operations. forces bring a variety of systems and sensors to the littoral battles.p.a.ce. To name a few: fighter jets and transport helicopters; submarine-hunting helicopters and aircraft; surface-to-air (SAM) missiles defending against aircraft and ballistic missiles; and cruise missiles. This functional diversity means that a CVBG commander can bring any number of systems and employment options to bear, greatly compounding the defensive problem of an adversary. Properly utilized and supported, sea-based airpower can provide enabling force and muscle for any number and type of military operations. Examples of this functional diversity include: deterring the use of ballistic and cruise missiles in a regional conflict, supporting amphibious and airborne operations, providing cover for a non-combatant personnel evacuation, or firing land-attack missiles and controlling unmanned aerial vehicles from submarines. Examples of this functional diversity include: deterring the use of ballistic and cruise missiles in a regional conflict, supporting amphibious and airborne operations, providing cover for a non-combatant personnel evacuation, or firing land-attack missiles and controlling unmanned aerial vehicles from submarines.An F-14D Tomcat taxies through catapult steam on the deck of the USS Carl Vinson Carl Vinson (CVN- 70). The four-and-a-half-acre flight deck is one of the busiest and most dangerous workplaces in the world. It also is the place where carriers prove their worth in the real world. (CVN- 70). The four-and-a-half-acre flight deck is one of the busiest and most dangerous workplaces in the world. It also is the place where carriers prove their worth in the real world.OFFICIAL U.S. NAVY PHOTO[image]* Sea-Based Airpower Is Inherently Flexible and Mobile- Sea-Based Airpower Is Inherently Flexible and Mobile-Because they are based aboard s.h.i.+ps, sea-based aviation a.s.sets are highly mobile. Modem CVBGs can easily move five hundred nautical miles in a day, which means that they can redeploy almost anywhere in the world in just a few weeks. And with a little warning, a forward-deployed force can be in a crisis zone in days, sometimes even in hours. Because they are not directly tied to a land-based command structure, the personnel and units embarked aboard the s.h.i.+ps are equipped and trained to work on their own. Finally, because sea-based air units pack a lot of power into very small packages, they have great agility in an uncertain, fast-moving crisis or combat situation.* Sea-Based Airpower Is Inherently Offensive- Sea-Based Airpower Is Inherently Offensive-While airpower has powerful defensive capabilities, it is best used in offensive operations, thus allowing its full power to be focused and timed into blows of maximum power and efficiency. The ability to rapidly s.h.i.+ft position, for example, allows sea-based units to change their axis of attack, and makes the defensive problem of the enemy much more difficult. By simply moving into an area, sea-based aviation units fill the skies with their presence, affecting both the military situation and the mind-set of a potential enemy. Should combat operations be initiated, sea-based air units are prepared to launch sustained strikes against enemy targets for as long as required. Even if the enemy forces choose to strike back at the naval force, the mere act of the attacking fleet units degrades the hostile air and naval units involved.* Sea-Based Airpower Provides Instant Regional Situational Awareness Sea-Based Airpower Provides Instant Regional Situational Awareness -A battle group entering an area provides a wide variety of intelligence-collection capabilities for a regional CinC. Along with the air and s.h.i.+pborne sensors organic to a naval force, the unit commanders have a number of regional and national-level intelligence-collection capabilities that can rapidly fuse the data into a coherent situational a.n.a.lysis. This makes the job of deciding upon future action and committing follow-on forces much less uncertain. As a further benefit, the staying power of the naval force means that minute-to-minute changes in the military and political situation in a crisis/combat zone can be watched, and trends and developments can be tracked over time, allowing a deeper and wider understanding of the regional situation. -A battle group entering an area provides a wide variety of intelligence-collection capabilities for a regional CinC. Along with the air and s.h.i.+pborne sensors organic to a naval force, the unit commanders have a number of regional and national-level intelligence-collection capabilities that can rapidly fuse the data into a coherent situational a.n.a.lysis. This makes the job of deciding upon future action and committing follow-on forces much less uncertain. As a further benefit, the staying power of the naval force means that minute-to-minute changes in the military and political situation in a crisis/combat zone can be watched, and trends and developments can be tracked over time, allowing a deeper and wider understanding of the regional situation.* Sea-Based Airpower Is Protected from the Effects of International Politics-Unlike land-based air and ground units, which can't operate without the approval of a regional ally or host country, naval forces (and air units in particular) are not affected by such issues. They are also less vulnerable to attack by enemy forces or acts of terrorism. s.h.i.+elded by the international laws covering freedom of navigation, sea-based units are free to act independently. Since each s.h.i.+p and aircraft is the sovereign territory of the owning country, any attack or intrusion becomes a potential act of war and a violation of international law. Since few nations have the will to violate these accords, this makes naval aviation a force that does not have to ask permission to act.* Sea-Based Airpower Provides Long-Term Presence and Power Sea-Based Airpower Provides Long-Term Presence and Power-Maritime nations have long made allowance for resupply and support of their forces at sea. As long as proper sea lines of communications can be maintained, and replacement s.h.i.+ps and aircraft can be rotated, s.h.i.+ps and sea-based air units can be sustained almost indefinitely on station, and mission durations of months or even years can be supported. This is a key attribute of great maritime nations, and the addition of sea-based air units to their force mix greatly enhances the power and presence they can generate. Recent examples of this kind of forward naval presence are the naval embargoes of Iraq and the Balkans, and the lead-up to the 1991 Gulf War.* Sea-Based Airpower Can Conduct Multiple Missions at the Same Sea-Based Airpower Can Conduct Multiple Missions at the Same Time-Since naval forces are designed with robust command-and-control capabilities, and sea-based aircraft are multi-mission-capable by necessity, sea-based air units are capable of many types of missions, and can conduct them simultaneously. Thus, attack aircraft can conduct suppressive missions on enemy air defenses, while other units are engaging in precision cruise-missile strikes, armed helicopters are securing the battles.p.a.ce around the naval force, and SAM-equipped s.h.i.+ps are conducting defensive operations against enemy ballistic- and cruise-missile strikes. Such flexi-bility gives naval leaders a critical edge when fast-breaking, rapidly changing crisis and combat situations are in play. Time-Since naval forces are designed with robust command-and-control capabilities, and sea-based aircraft are multi-mission-capable by necessity, sea-based air units are capable of many types of missions, and can conduct them simultaneously. Thus, attack aircraft can conduct suppressive missions on enemy air defenses, while other units are engaging in precision cruise-missile strikes, armed helicopters are securing the battles.p.a.ce around the naval force, and SAM-equipped s.h.i.+ps are conducting defensive operations against enemy ballistic- and cruise-missile strikes. Such flexi-bility gives naval leaders a critical edge when fast-breaking, rapidly changing crisis and combat situations are in play.* Sea-Based Airpower Can Generate a Wide Variety of Effects Sea-Based Airpower Can Generate a Wide Variety of Effects-A naval force generates reactions that range from coercion to terror. Sea-based air units add to this power, by adding a wide variety of weapon and mission effects, ranging from the use of surveillance aircraft and the delivery of special operations forces to more traditional results like the aerial delivery of munitions onto targets. Yet even here, variety is the watch-word. Because naval air units are based at sea, there are no restrictions upon the munitions they can carry and employ. This means that an enemy can expect to face everything from precision-guided penetration bombs to cl.u.s.ter munitions-or even a nuclear strike. Such threats can often deliver the most useful of all weapons effects, deterrence from acting with hostile force against a neighboring nation.* Sea-Based Airpower Keeps Threats Far Away Sea-Based Airpower Keeps Threats Far Away-America's Navy has historically displayed its greatest value by keeping the threat of enemy military action on the other side of the world's oceans. In fact, no hostile military force of any size has intruded upon our territory since the War of 1812. Today, our sea services continue this mission, and sea-based airpower provides our naval forces with much of the muscle that makes it possible. By keeping the enemy threats against our homeland at arm's length, sea-based airpower keeps our nation strong, and our people safe in an otherwise uncertain world.
The launch of a BGM-109 Tomahawk cruise missile from the guided-missile destroyer Laboon Laboon (DDG-58) during Operation Desert Strike in 1996. (DDG-58) during Operation Desert Strike in 1996.
OFFICIAL U.S. NAVY PHOTO.
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Milestones: The Development of a Modern Weapon It goes without saying that inst.i.tutions as large, diverse, and powerful as naval aviation do not just happen overnight. They evolve over time, and are the product of the forces and personalities that impact upon them. In fact, naval aviation grew to maturity surprisingly quickly, and most of the critical events and trends that shaped it happened in the roughly five decades stretching from 1908 through the mid-1950's. During that time, the basic forms and functions that define carriers and their aircraft today were conceived and developed. Let's take a look at a few of the most critical of these events and trends. We'll start with the first act in the birth of the world's most powerful conventional weapons system.
Eugene Ely's Stunt Our journey begins in 1908, just five years after the Wright brothers' first flight, when Glenn Curtiss, an early aerial pioneer, laid out a bombing range in the shape of a battles.h.i.+p, and simulated attacking it. Though the U.S. Navy took notice of Curtiss's test run, it took no action. Several years later, after word reached America of a German attempt to fly an airplane from the deck of a s.h.i.+p, the U.S. Navy decided to try a similar experiment. They built a wooden platform over the main deck of the light cruiser Birmingham Birmingham (CL-2) and engaged Eugene Ely, a stunt pilot working for Curtiss, to fly off it. At 3 P.M. on the afternoon of November 14th, 1910, while (CL-2) and engaged Eugene Ely, a stunt pilot working for Curtiss, to fly off it. At 3 P.M. on the afternoon of November 14th, 1910, while Birmingham Birmingham was anch.o.r.ed in Hampton Roads, Virginia, Ely gunned his engine, rolled down the wooden platform, and flew off. He landed near Norfolk several miles away. A few months later, Ely reversed the process and landed on another platform built on the stern of the armored cruiser was anch.o.r.ed in Hampton Roads, Virginia, Ely gunned his engine, rolled down the wooden platform, and flew off. He landed near Norfolk several miles away. A few months later, Ely reversed the process and landed on another platform built on the stern of the armored cruiser Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (ACR-4), which was then anch.o.r.ed in San Francis...o...b..y. Soon afterward, Congress began to appropriate money, the first naval aviators began to be trained, and planes began to go to sea with the fleet. It was a humble beginning, but Eugene Ely's barnstorming stunt had started something very much bigger than that. (ACR-4), which was then anch.o.r.ed in San Francis...o...b..y. Soon afterward, Congress began to appropriate money, the first naval aviators began to be trained, and planes began to go to sea with the fleet. It was a humble beginning, but Eugene Ely's barnstorming stunt had started something very much bigger than that.
The First Flattop: The Conversion of the USS Langley Langley (CV-1) (CV-1) Stunts were one thing, but making naval aviation a credible military force was something else entirely. During World War I, U.S. naval aviation was primarily seaplanes used for gunnery spotting and antisubmarine patrols. However, the British achieved some fascinating results using normal (wheeled) pursuit aircraft (fighters) launched from towed barges, and later from specially built aircraft carriers converted from the hulls of other s.h.i.+ps. These aircraft attacked German Zeppelin hangars and other targets.6 The benefits of taking high-performance aircraft to sea were so obvious to the British that the Royal Navy rapidly set to converting further s.h.i.+ps into aircraft carriers. This move did not go unnoticed by other Naval powers after World War I. By 1919, the j.a.panese were also constructing a purpose-built carrier, the The benefits of taking high-performance aircraft to sea were so obvious to the British that the Royal Navy rapidly set to converting further s.h.i.+ps into aircraft carriers. This move did not go unnoticed by other Naval powers after World War I. By 1919, the j.a.panese were also constructing a purpose-built carrier, the Hosho. Hosho. Meanwhile the British continued their program of converting hulls into aircraft carriers, and began work on their own from-the-keel-up carrier, the Hermes. Meanwhile the British continued their program of converting hulls into aircraft carriers, and began work on their own from-the-keel-up carrier, the Hermes.
Eugene Ely flies off of the USS Pennsylvania Pennsylvania at 3 P.M. on November 14th, 1910. This was the moment of birth for naval aviation. at 3 P.M. on November 14th, 1910. This was the moment of birth for naval aviation.
OFFICIAL U.S. NAVY PHOTO.
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These programs spurred the General Board of the U.S. Navy to start its own aircraft carrier program. In 1919, the board allocated funds to convert a surplus collier, the USS Jupiter, into the Navy's first aircraft carrier, the USS Langley Langley (CV-1)-nicknamed the ”Covered Wagon” by her crew. For the next two decades, the little (CV-1)-nicknamed the ”Covered Wagon” by her crew. For the next two decades, the little Langley Langley provided the first generation of U.S. carrier aviators
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