# Varyag,Vikramaditya,Vikrant,Queen Elizabeth, Ford class AC 'S COMPARED !!!



## madooxno9

Large carriers not yet in service
Large aircraft carriers are a growth sector for naval shipbuilding. In a reverse of the gradual decline in operators following the second world war, a combination of recent naval lessons (for UK and France), regained pride (Russia) and new world powers (India, China) has led to a glut in new types. 





Varyag, China
The Varyag (Chinese name unknown) is the sister-ship of the Kruznetsov. It was uncompleted at the collapse of the USSR and lay in Ukraine for several years before being sold to China. It was not fitted out and missing many key systems including the engines. After being towed to China it has sat in Dalian docks being refitted for several years. The pace of completion has been the source of much speculation with some people saying its far from complete whilst others believing she will sail any day. But, with the necessary aircraft to operate from it still to be delivered (Su-33s from China ordered in 2007) China probably isnt in much of a hurry.





INS Vikramaditya, India
Although it has yet to be completed this carrier is worth comparing as it is rather unique. It is in fact a major rebuild of a Soviet Kiev class helicopter cruiser. Although the ship displaces over 40,000 tons its heritage provides for a relatively narrow flight deck. Certain details of its fit are still unknown but it is expected to operate MiG-29K Fulcrum multi-role fighters. 





Vikrant class, India
This is Indias indigenous carrier design although it was designed with the help of an Italian shipbuilder and shows a close resemblance to the Italian Cavour design. This is however no reason to knock it! Of similar size to the Vikramaditya, it is much better optimized for flight deck operations thanks to its clean sheet approach. 





Queen Elizabeth class, UK
The British CVF programme calls for the replacement of the three Illustrious class STOL carriers with two large fleet carriers. Uniquely for such large carriers these will be configured as a STOL platform but can be modified to a STOBAR or CTOL configuration.




Gerald R. Ford class, USA
The follow-on to the Nimitz class is the CVN-21 program. These are approximately the same as the Nimitz but feature and extensive modernization and deck rearrangement that moves the island (now with AEGIS phased array radars) further aft and reduces the deck-lifts from four to three. 





Others not compared
Russia plans to build several more carriers and China is probably going to start building domestically designed types in the next few years. South Korea and Japan have also built new carriers but these are too small for this comparison, being STOL carriers. The latest STOL carrier from Italy, Cavour, is extremely potent and intended to operate F-35s which will see the gap between STOL carriers and fleet carriers diminish. France may or may not purchase a second carrier, based on the British Queen Elizabeth type.

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## madooxno9

---------- Post added at 03:00 PM ---------- Previous post was at 02:59 PM ----------

The most obvious difference compared to the &#8220;in service&#8221; types is that all carry only multi-role jets. 

The fit of the Chinese Varyag is most controversial. All that is known is that 50 &#8220;Su-33&#8221; fighters have been ordered from Russia. Although the specification is unknown I&#8217;d suggest that these will almost certainly have more modern avionics that the older Russia machines, and almost certainly be multi-role. Many people speculated that China would field a twin engine carrier version of the J-10. This does not appear to have materialized and at any rate the twin engine &#8220;requirement&#8221; for carrier aircraft is clearly not universal. I&#8217;ve also added some L-15 advanced supersonic trainers to the air wing. These seem a natural and cheap solution and have been shown at defence shows with short rangeTL-10 anti-ship missiles hinting at a naval use. These would be potent in close-air-support and light strike, as well as emergency air-defence (certainly better than the Brazilian Skyhawks!!). 

The Indian warships were slated for naval versions of the LCA combat aircraft but this too seems to have not materialized and an upgraded version of the Russian MiG-29K Fulcrum is being delivered. Although less capable than the latest flankers, these are multi-role and feature a thoroughly modern avionics package. 

The British carriers will deploy a cross-service fleet of aircraft including both Royal Navy (Fleet Air Arm; FAA) and RAF F-35B VTOL fighters which will use the ski-jump but land vertically as per the Harrier. Harrier GR-9s will also deploy in the early days of operations as F-35s are still being delivered. Unlike the other carriers the air wing is likely to have an amphibious support emphasis with Apache gunships and huge Chinook and EH-101 transports. Maximum F-35s would be 36 in normal operations but probably fewer on routine deployments (as shown). 

The US carrier will carry F-35C fighters and probably still the relatively new F-18E/F Super-Hornet. Exact mix not clear. Possibly USMC F-35Bs may be carried, presumably using a catapult to launch(?) but landing vertically &#8211; this might pose operational challenges. 

Deck layouts:

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## madooxno9

The Varyag will have essentially the same deck layout as the Kruznesov with the probable exception of not having the Granit missile silos in the middle of the foredeck. The Obvious loser is the INS Vikramaditya which has only deck-centre lifts both of which obstruct deck operations, including the basics like landing. The island is also sub-optimally placed relatively close to the centre of the ship. By comparison the Vikrant is relatively optimally laid out, showing what a 30,000 ton STOBAR carrier should look like. 

The Queen Elizabeth class are interesting in that they will be laid out so that only vertical landings will be practical, although the deck is designed to easily accommodate an angled landing run for STOBAR operations, and the addition of catapults with minimal rebuild for CTOL operations. 






Both the British and American carriers will have highly advanced deck management systems that will allow a much reduced deck crew and more efficient operations. This allows the Gerald R. Ford class to reduce the number of deck lifts to three from four. Similarly on both the British and American ship the deck lifts are large enough to carry two jets or a wider aircraft. 
Shipboard air defences





---------- Post added at 03:02 PM ---------- Previous post was at 03:01 PM ----------

We can guess that the Varyag will not be fitted with the same sensors/combat system/weapons as the Kruznetsov. Although China is an operator of both the AK-630 and Kashtan CIWS I expect that the Chinese designed Type-730 is more probable, probably just 4. The VLS silos will probably be welded over and the space used to increase the deck or more likely just for storage because China does not operate any VLS type SAMs that are as short as the Klinok; HHQ-16 is probably about 6m long. 

The weapons fit of the Vikramaditya has been the cause of some debate. Although there were reports that the Russian engineers could not find space for the relatively short Barak-I anti-missile missile favoured by the Indians, recent photographs show that the rear AAA positions have been raised. This could be to house the vertical magazines of the Grisom missiles for the Kashtan CIWS but this would result in the CIWS being mounted very high and potentially representing a landing hazard. My guess is that the raised section is to accommodate the Barak-I SAM:






The Vikrant class will probably also carry Barak-I but probably more missiles and with three OTO-Melara 76mm guns for added protection (depending on the ammo used the 76mm guns can be regarded as anti-missile defences similar or arguably superior to a CIWS). Some reports indicate that the Vikrant class will have a similar weapons fit to the new Kolkata class air-defence destroyer, but the relatively large size of the Barak-II or Shtil-1 (SA-N-11/SA-17 Grizzly) missiles (about 6m long) makes this unlikely IMO. 

The Queen Elizabeth class is typically shown in official graphics with three Phalanx 20mm CIWS and 3 (or more?) 30mm crewed guns. Its going to be disappointing to many Royal navy fans that the ship isnt better defended, perhaps with Aster-15 (as per Charles De Gaulle) or CAAM (an advanced SAM with active radar guidance and approximately 20km range, similar in concept to the MICA-VL). 

The US carrier will carry a substantially better defencive suite than the current Nimitz with the more capable ESSM missile in place of the Sea Sparrow (50km range vs about 15km, anti-missile capability etc).

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## madooxno9

Waiting for feedback from all members... thanks...


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## LURKER

nyc info.....well done


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## Whiplash

Awesome. Amazing threads.


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## madooxno9

> nyc info.....well done



thanks man... for going through ...

there is one more thread i started 2 days back on large AC'S in service ...

http://www.defence.pk/forums/military-forum/94045-large-aircraft-carriers-compared.html


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## madooxno9

i request all the members who have interest in AC s and would like to give reviews ...are welcome and plzz fell free ..to correct as this comparison was done in 2007


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## gubbi

Excellent thread madooxno9. However, the information is a bit old, for e.g. China had ordered 50 Su-33 flankers, but the deal never went through. Also, I would expect you to acknowledge your original source, who has put in much effort to compile and create such excellent information. I know where this is from.

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## madooxno9

^^^^ sir with due respect i started a thread on already in use AC's ... and i gave all the credit to the guy who compiled this all.... paleman ... this is just second part of that ... i saw here that no good thread on AC's so i wanted to share this with all.... 

thanks for the reminder...


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## gubbi

madooxno9 said:


> ^^^^ sir with due respect i started a thread on already in use AC's ... and i gave all the credit to the guy who compiled this all.... paleman ... this is just second part of that ... i saw here that no good thread on AC's so i wanted to share this with all....
> 
> thanks for the reminder...


 
I appreciate you efforts and its a pleasure to read such information. I just read you acknowledging Planeman on the other thread. Nice, I liked that. I would also appreciate if you would acknowledge in the first post what your sources are. Thats the right thing to do.


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## madooxno9

^^ sir , i have just started ...making threads ... in next thread i will for sure .. name the source in first post .. thank you agian...

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## blackops

Good work brother lovely thread well done

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## madooxno9

> Good work brother lovely thread well done



hey bro , thanks..


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## madooxno9

[video]http://v.youku.com/v_show/id_XMjM5OTEzNzUy.html[/video]


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## madooxno9



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## madooxno9

kashtan ciws







# Target range from 500 to 8,000 m
# Target altitude from 500 m to 3,500 m
# Maximum speed - rocket: 600 m/s - 900 m/s
# Number of targets engaged simultaneously: up to 6
# Reaction Time: 6-8 Seconds
# Rate of fire: 10,000&#8211;12,000 rds/min
# Cartridge types: 30 mm with HE-Frag, Frag-T, HEI, APT, AP, and CC(Cargo Carrying)
BARAK-1





Barak II

In January 2007, after several months of intense negotiations, India and Israel signed a US$330 million deal to co-develop an all new generation of the Barak SAM, which was to be known as the Barak II. It has also been called Barak 8.They have worked out an agreement to develop and produce the long-range Barak air defence system for both the Indian and the Israeli militaries. The initial co-development funding is about US$350 million, of which IAI will finance 50 per cent. The venture is a tripartite one, between the DRDO, the Indian Navy, and IAI. The missile is referred to as the LRSAM in Indian Government literature, and will have a range of 70 km (43 mi)

Its probably same specification for IAC-1 but with more CIWS and Barak launch pads..


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## madooxno9

Some recent info from Sevmash about current status of Vikramaditya

1. The first plane will take off the ship in middle of 2012 (MiG-29K). 

2. The readiness is 77% (Dec. 2010). Cables 240 km long. 

3. The fans are new - about 1000 units. The pumps are new too.

4. The nose angle is 14 grad. 

5. Probably 16 MiG-29K/KUB and 10 helos will be soon made ready for deck. 

6. Length of the desk is 283 m. (Previously 273m)


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## madooxno9

Kiev Aircraft Carrier Tianjin


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## madooxno9

some pix from ex-


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## madooxno9

One of the first pieces of steel for the second ship in the Gerald R. Ford class, CVN 79, is cut at Northrop Grumman Newport News Shipbuilding, Feb. 25, 2011. (Photo by John Whalen)





Ship architects in Virginia step into virtual-reality blueprints to perfect the design of the U.S. Navy's first new carrier class in 40 years. Working in 3D reduces errors and oversights on a $14 billion project.





Slabs of steel brought by rail to the Newport News shipyard in Virginia wait to be cut, pressed and curved into the hull of the USS Ford, which is scheduled to launch in 2015.





Using a 23-story gantry crane, the largest in the Western Hemisphere, workers maneuver a structural unit into place.




*Steel cut for next Ford-class carrier*

Politicians, Admirals and Northrop Grumman executives were on hand Friday as one of the first pieces of steel for the second ship in the Gerald R. Ford class of aircraft carriers (CVN 79) was cut in Newport News.

Participants in the ceremony at Northrop Grumman Newport News Shipbuilding included Matt Mulherin, sector vice president and general manager of Northrop Grumman Shipbuilding-Newport News; Rear Adm. Michael McMahon, program executive officer for carriers, U.S. Navy; U.S. Rep. Scott Rigell; U.S. Rep. Bobby Scott; U.S. Rep. Rob Wittman; and Northrop Grumman employees building the carrier.

RADM McMahon said CVN 79 will soon have a name and a crew and will be a great ship. He also recognized the shipbuilders from Newport News and said, "While the carriers are recognized as a national asset so too is this shipyard and the shipbuilders that are in this yard."

That feeling was shared by one shipbuilder who spoke with WAVY News 10. "We actually have to sign the parts that we make, said Aaron Sampson, a Metal Fabricator. "There's a lot of pride that actually goes into filling those parts."

Full construction of CVN 79 is anticipated to begin in late 2012, with delivery to the U.S. Navy scheduled for 2020.

The first of the Gerald R. Ford class of nuclear powered aircraft carriers, the Gerald R. Ford (CVN 78), is currently under construction at the shipyard. According to Northrop Grumman, enhancements incorporated into its design include flight deck changes, improved weapons handling systems and a redesigned island, all resulting in increased aircraft sortie generation rates. It will also include new nuclear power plants, increased electrical power generation capacity, allowance for future technologies and reduced workload for the sailors, translating to a smaller crew size and reduced operating costs for the Navy.

"Having two carriers under construction within a five-year period is the kind of stability that we all benefit from &#8211; the Navy, the shipbuilders, our suppliers and our country," said Matt Mulherin, vice president and general manager for Northrop Grumman Shipbuilding. "It allows for the most efficient flow of the workforce from one ship to the next, and facilitates a learning curve. This stability is key to cost efficiency and to the health of our industrial base."

The Navy says a Gerald R. Ford class carrier will save the service more than $5 billion in total ownership costs during its planned 50-year service life when compared to a Nimitz-class carrier.


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## Thoma Yosip

It was also announced that the operational carrier will have catapult and arrestor gear (CATOBAR) installed in order to accommodate the F-35C variant of the Joint Strike Fighter rather than the STOVL F-35B.[9][21] On 23 November 2010 the Chief of the Defence staff General Sir David Richards confirmed that HMS Queen Elizabeth would be fitted as a conventional carrier. "The short delay to the first carrier, to allow it to be fitted with 'cats and traps', means that when it comes into service in 2019 it will be equipped with the hugely capable carrier variant of Joint Strike Fighter."

Per Queen Elizabeth class aircraft carrier - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

This may be a direct result of the reported F-35B overweight problems.


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