Mr. BAEgle,
Was your boy Tony any saner in 2003?
Now, to return to topic, you fellows need to absorb the fact that large surface ships CANNOT hide anywhere on this planet's oceans from better-equipped foreigners.
The same is true for the US Nav.
The main point is: large, ultra expensive aircraft carriers are on their way to becoming the battleships of the 21st century, heading for the "must keep the fleet in being" syndrome of 1917-1918.