Quote:
Originally Posted by wabpilot
The Flight IIA Burkes more than replace all the capabilities of two Spruances. Is it a danger to have only three escorts for a CV? In reality, that is like six of ther immediate predeceassors or twelve FRAMs.
|
I am not sure I agree with this, first because numbers count, but specifically because I don't believe what you say is true.
They had other problems like all ships ultimately do, but I'm not sure I would agree a Flight IIA "more than replaces all the capabilities of two Spruances," because if we are being factually accurate, the VLS Spruance class almost always deployed with more Tomahawks than Flight IIAs do today and was a better ASW platform than the Flight IIAs are today.
They may not have had good air defenses, but they were quiet, they were fast, they were big, and they were very stable on the water and the Spruance class may have been the best ASW surface ship the US Navy has ever fielded, in the past or present.
The Arleigh Burkes are better ships, but I don't think any single Arleigh Burke class ship of any flight is able to substitute two Spruances straight up in a Carrier Battle Group.
I think rick's question is hard to answer because throughout the history of carrier warfare, naval warfare was centrally focused in blue water. I think we are still in the first decade of a new naval era in which events will be decided in littorals, not blue water, and I'm not quite sure what any task force should look like yet in this new era, much less a carrier task force.