Originally Posted by Phil R
I have no military experience and I have not read every page of this thread, but that only puts me in the same boat as most of the 60 million people who have paid to build and will pay to operate these carriers...
Sorry Phil but you need to read a bit more of the thread. Just for starters...
A QEC carrier will cost significantly less than a third of a Ford CVN to build and have a typical complement (by far the most expensive bit over her 50 year-life) including air group of 1,200 vs 4,660 for the Ford. Imagine the difference in wage bill and extras.
The number of aircraft carried is relevant but not as important as the sortie generation rate which is much higher than can be achieved with CTOL aircraft. Even so, the QEC should eventually have a surge capability of up to 48 RN & RAF F-35Bs when circumstances demand. She will be massively more capable than the Invincible class.
Unless we go head-to-head with the USA, how is the 5th Generation F-35B lacking in capability? It is a step change from anything that we or anyone else has.
While not perfect, the QEC will have a helicopter-borne AEW capability. If only we'd had it during the Falklands campaign.
Nuclear propulsion would probably double the overall bill, not only of production but also for maintenance, skilled personnel and decommissioning costs. As it is, her podded propulsion system based on Rolls-Royce's integrated electric propulsion (IEP) system is tried and tested.