Fabian GiesenAircraft carriers are objectively a ridiculous concept.
I mean, they happen to exist and work, but just imagine they didn't and someone pitched them to you.
"I'm thinking we should put some airfields in the water."
"What, extend the runway with an artificial island? We've done that a few-"
"No, I mean, like, middle of the ocean."
"On an island in the middle of the ocean?"
"NO! I'm saying we put it on a boat. Like a real big boat. And that boat is the airfield. So we can move it!"
"But that... how would that even... even if the boat is huge, how could you possibly get enough runway?"
"What, extend the runway with an artificial island? We've done that a few-"
"No, I mean, like, middle of the ocean."
"On an island in the middle of the ocean?"
"NO! I'm saying we put it on a boat. Like a real big boat. And that boat is the airfield. So we can move it!"
"But that... how would that even... even if the boat is huge, how could you possibly get enough runway?"
"Well it doesn't need to be _any_ kind of plane. But probably jet fighters. And bombers."
"*shaking head* I just did the math and even if we make this boat ridiculously long, that's just not enough runway for a plane to reliably take off, and if they didn't they'd just be dunked into the ocean!"
"Hm. Well. What if we use some kind of catapult?"
"Excuse me?!?"
"I don't know, some kind of airplane catapult to launch them. You figure it out."
"...An 'airplane catapult'?"
"*shaking head* I just did the math and even if we make this boat ridiculously long, that's just not enough runway for a plane to reliably take off, and if they didn't they'd just be dunked into the ocean!"
"Hm. Well. What if we use some kind of catapult?"
"Excuse me?!?"
"I don't know, some kind of airplane catapult to launch them. You figure it out."
"...An 'airplane catapult'?"
"Sounds fine to me."
"*blusters* but even if.. I mean, assuming if... okay. Let's just pretend we built this ridiculous airplane catapult of yours. We'd still need to basically build a boat the size of a medium-sized village. You'd need like 2 battleship crews' worth of personnel to operate that thing!"
"So?"
"What do you mean 'so'?"
"We have the sailors, don't we?"
"How would we even move the dang thing?"
"I don't know, a nucular reactor or whatever, let the eggheads take care of it."
"*blusters* but even if.. I mean, assuming if... okay. Let's just pretend we built this ridiculous airplane catapult of yours. We'd still need to basically build a boat the size of a medium-sized village. You'd need like 2 battleship crews' worth of personnel to operate that thing!"
"So?"
"What do you mean 'so'?"
"We have the sailors, don't we?"
"How would we even move the dang thing?"
"I don't know, a nucular reactor or whatever, let the eggheads take care of it."
"I happen to know the napkin math and even a nuclear reactor wouldn't be enough!"
"Okay fine, use two then!"
"Okay fine, use two then!"
They happened to actually build the damn things and they happen to work, but this entire concept is just ludicrous bullshit beginning to end
Morten Hilker-Skaaning
Sean Barrett
Tom Forsyth@rygorous You of course know that early aircraft carriers didn't have catapults or arresting gear because planes didn't need to go very fast to take off. Just stick some planks on an existing ship and you're good to go.
Of course, then the planes got faster, the sunk-cost fallacy starts to kick in, and nobody tells them to stop.
@TomF I did not, and it kinda takes the fun out of my mental image of it, I'm not gonna lie
@rygorous One of the early UK carriers was converted from a standard battleship, and all through its life they kept on thinking maybe they should convert it back again, so they didn't make very large changes to it, and it was always a bit of a crap carrier because of that.
@rygorous Ah, here it us. HMS Eagle. Blatantly just nailed some planks on an existing ship. OK, they did move the tower over a bit.
Tom Keresztes@TomF All three Courageous class carriers were battlecruiser conversions too. HMS Glorius has the distinction to be the first british warship lost to enemy action in WW2.
Melvyn@TomF @rygorous Yeah! And apparently a lot of people died before they figured out that faster jet planes could land diagonally instead of having to stop in front of a wall like they used to do with slower planes!! https://youtu.be/ZEfxZPFXMEk
How One Pilot's "CRAZY" Landing Method Cut Carrier Crashes by 80%
simonf 🦘@TomF @rygorous Had a book on WW1 aeroplanes when I was young and I recall it was even more primitive. I *think* it might have said the planes might not have been able to land at all (and had to be lifted out of the water).
The book had photos but this is the closest i could find online https://c8.alamy.com/comp/DRHR2Y/sopwith-1-strutter-biplane-taking-off-from-a-ship-ww1-DRHR2Y.jpg
The book had photos but this is the closest i could find online https://c8.alamy.com/comp/DRHR2Y/sopwith-1-strutter-biplane-taking-off-from-a-ship-ww1-DRHR2Y.jpg
@simonf @rygorous Those were specifically build as "catapult boats" - as you can see it's just slapped on top of one of the guns. The fighter was for point defense, and yes it launched, fought, and then the pilot bailed out and was rescued and the plane sank. They did it with Hurricanes in WW2 as well.
Ridley @ WATCH LYCORECO@rygorous I started reading this in Cave Johnson's voice at the last line
@rygorous but also, don't forget that ski ramp carriers exist and are even more ridiculous
and also modern carriers can have simultaneous takeoff and landing operations
Wolf480pl@rygorous
you don't need a nuclear reactor, you can just use 8 oil-fired steam boilers https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kitty_Hawk-class_aircraft_carrier
you don't need a nuclear reactor, you can just use 8 oil-fired steam boilers https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kitty_Hawk-class_aircraft_carrier
@rygorous
also, carriers have comparable size to New Panamax container ships https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Panamax
also, carriers have comparable size to New Panamax container ships https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Panamax
Stefan Marr@rygorous hm, but catapults are kind of how some of it all started https://www.wright-brothers.org/History_Wing/Wright_Story/Inventing_the_Airplane/Little_More_Oomph/Wright_Catapult.htm