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USS Gerald R Ford to Join Active Service

Desertfalcon

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The USS Gerald R. Ford, the first of ten of her class, is now complete and will be commissioned to join the fleet in just over a month. Starting in 2017 her air wing will be equipped with the F-35 fighter. These carriers will eventually replace all the current Nimitz-class flattops. Her namesake, our 38th president, served as an air defence gunnery officer aboard the carrier USS Monterey during WWII. Her state-of-the-art technology means that although she is slightly bigger than the Nimitz-class flattops she will require 600 fewer crew. She also boast more modern nuclear reactors, electric drive as opposed to steam turbines, magnetic catapults, and the latest in anti-aircraft and antimissile defences. :usflag:
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The age of the Carriers is coming to a close, is it wise to buy such expensive ships anymore?

Report: U.S. aircraft carriers’ ‘unchallenged primacy may be coming to a close’ - The Washington Post

It doesn't say 'age of carriers comes to a close'. It says 'age of unchallenged primacy of carriers comes to a close'.
By comparison, how many times have manned aircraft been declared dead, or tanks? Yet, both remain essential, if e.g. in a combined arms package where tanks are concerned (and one can easily see an equivalent of that developing in the air).

This is the future of the US Navy's aircraft carriers - Business Insider
 

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