Nimitz class carriers have been the face of the US Navy. Its been one of the most important
asset of the US armed forces and has enabled power projection far off from the US homeland.
USS Nimitz ,lead ship of Nimitz class was commissioned in 1975, displacing about 100,000
tons when fully loaded. A Nimitz-class carrier can steam faster than
30 knots, cruise without resupply for 90 days, and launch aircraft to strike targets hundreds
of miles away.
The Nimitz design has accommodated many new technologies over the decades, but its ability
to accept the most recent technical advances is limited.
Major limitations include limited electrical power generation and increased weight due
to upgrades, which eats into ships stability.
Ford class super-carriers are being built to replace some of the United States Navy's
existing Nimitz-class carriers from 2016. The first ship of this class is Gerald R.Ford.
The ship of this class are expected to be
in service with the US Navy till 2065. The carriers have been envisaged to be more efficient
and future proof.
Ford class is exploiting the latest technological advances in ship building area and feature
huge number of improvements over the Nimitz class. In this video we will look into the
5 most important improvements.
Ford-class has beed designed keeping in mind the cost of an individual sailor. The ship
is more automated than any before it, which gives it increased capability with reduced
crew. Automation has been implemented wherever possible,
which has reduced crew size ,which in turns lower operating cost.
Ford-class carriers total of only 2,600 sailors, about 700 fewer than a Nimitz-class.
Considering the 50 years life span of the carrier, this will translate to billions of
dollars in saving.
The carrier has fully air conditioned crew compartments , drastically improving the living
condition of the crews and help in getting more out of each crew.
Nimitz-class carriers got planes moving for takeoff using steam-actuated catapults. The
system required a lot of steam piping, a large condensate return, and tons of fresh water.
They also have a lot of maintenance issues.
Plus, with steam-actuation, the majority of the force is being transferred to the airplane
at the beginning of the stroke—in a jolt. This puts stress on an airframe, and thus
reduces lifespan of the multi-million dollar planes.
Ford class uses Electromagnetic Aircraft Launch System (EMALS). The system uses linear induction
motor with an electric current to generate a magnetic field. That field then propels
a carriage down a track. Since the power delivery is linear, it negates the deficiencies of
steam catapult.
The heart of any aircraft carriers are the nuclear reactors which provide the required
power. Ford class has newly designed reactors.
2 Bechtel A1B nuclear reactors are installed on each Ford-class carrier.
Each one these are capable of producing 300 MW of electricity, triple the 100 MW of each
Nimitz-class.
The huge power supply provides for the leg room, required for future expansions like
inducting Laser Guns
Also, compared to the Nimitz-class reactor, the Ford reactor have about half as many valves,
piping, major pumps, condensers, and generators which reduced maintenance cost and lower space
requirements.
Ford class has an integrated Active electronically scanned array search and tracking radar system.
The dual-band radar (DBR) utilizes a multi tier, dual-band tracker, which consists of
a local X band tracker, a local S band tracker, and a central tracker. The central tracker
merges the two signals to provide a comprehensive situational awareness.
The X band tracker is optimized for low latency to support its mission of providing defense
against fast, low-flying missiles, while the S band tracker is optimized for large area
coverage.
This new system has no moving parts, therefore minimizes maintenance & manning requirements.
Also, the island is kept smaller by replacing 6 to10 radar antennas with a single six-faced
radar.
The Ford class has a newly designed deck. It has 3 aircraft elevators instead of 4 in Nimitz
Eliminating 1 of the elevators further increased
the ship's capabilities by leaving room for other things like having dedicated helicopter
landing pad. The island is also smaller and farther aft
than the Nimitz‐class, this way, space for flight deck operations and aircraft maintenance
is increased.
The result is impressive,Ford class is capable of generating 30 % more sorties (flight missions)
per day than Nimitz‐class. This is huge gain since the offensive as well as defensive
capabilities of the carrier gets a major lift.
The increased open spaces also provide for great transformational potential like ability
to install directed energy weapons & deployment of unmanned aircrafts in future.