Originally Posted by
George K Lee
OK. Now someone's really deep into the magic mushroom stash.
Dokdo is substantially smaller than the Invincibles and has a well deck that can take two LCACs and consequently occupies a large slab of the hull. It's designed for ten SH-60-class helicopters, each of which at a rough guess takes up much less than a quarter of the deck space of an F-35B and accommodates less than a quarter as much fuel. Other than rounds for the Goalkeeper and RAM, the only other ordnance it carries would seem to be lightweight torpedoes and small ASMs like Sea Skuas.
Again, folks, the F-35B is the size of an F-4.
She's not that much smaller that the Invincibles (by about 45 feet and perhaps 10% in tonnage), and Harriers/SeaHarriers have operated from even smaller ships with Spain, USA, Thailand and Italy. Yes, I do understand the Harrier is a smaller aircraft).
The Dokdo has elevators that can fit the F-35- another coincidence like the Japanese carrie...I mean destroyer?
While she is definitely primarily an amphib, and while she would not be able to employ a large airwing for simultaneous CAP, strike etc, she could employ a handful of B's. Not as a true blue water carrier, but perhaps as the perfect middle finger "carrier" that would be prominently aimed directly at a few neighbors I can think of....