What might the aircraft carriers of the future look like ?

[RedLegion]

Top navies like China, the US, and in the future, India will build typical supercarriers. Some tasks, such as the EAW, REC, and tanker, will be taken over by UAVs. Somewhere in the second tier will be the UK, France, Japan, and Korea, which will operate smaller vessels equivalent in size to the QE2 or ChdG. Other navies will attempt to build purely UAVs and aircraft carriers, but this won't be successful for a long time.

 

[Scott Kenny]

Top navies like China, the US, and in the future, India will build typical supercarriers. Some tasks, such as the EAW, REC, and tanker, will be taken over by UAVs. Somewhere in the second tier will be the UK, France, Japan, and Korea, which will operate smaller vessels equivalent in size to the QE2 or ChdG. Other navies will attempt to build purely UAVs and aircraft carriers, but this won't be successful for a long time.

Current designs for the new French carrier are between Forrestal-class and Nimitz-class in size. 80,000tons.

 

[perfectgeneral]

I believe there will be 4 major principles that will influence the aircraft carriers of the future:

1) NEZ, No Escape Zone of anti-ship weapons, are increasingly effective, leaving aerodrome ships more susceptible to being targeted. It will be increasingly dangerous to keep all your eggs in one basket...

2) The evolution of a multitasking ship will be consolidated, completely merging an amphibious plant with the stobar or ctol concepts.

3) Missiles nowadays sometimes reach the same range as embarked planes, this danger means that aerodrome ships need to be diluted in numbers to increase chances of survival. being smaller, they would operate together.

4) Drones, loitering munitions, missiles equipped with turbines will cause an emphasis on modeling in destroyers, causing them to return to operating with aircrafts following the example of WWII cruisers, no longer being limited to operating only with helicopters.

1) This smacks of the bomber will always get through. What about the no escape zone of the antimissile missile/laser?
2) Time has brought in the surprise bonus possibility of autonomous aircraft. The ideal distances offshore conflicts between roles.
3) Combined operations have improved with greater networking, but there are still economies of scale to consider.
4) Drone launching and recovery on destroyers might apply networking with aircraft carrier assets, but not replacing them.

 

[Nik]

A tangential question: How 'sea-worthy' are or 'could be' 'Lighter Aboard Ship' and similar craft ?

Effectively 'containerising' re-supply / 'Replenishment At Sea'...
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I'm still wondering if a 'missing piece' is the classic 'Sky-Crane'.
Even if it needs auxiliary tip-jets on the rotors...
But, please, keep Boeing far, far away from the project...

 

[southwestforests]

4) Drones, loitering munitions, missiles equipped with turbines will cause an emphasis on modeling in destroyers, causing them to return to operating with aircrafts following the example of WWII cruisers, no longer being limited to operating only with helicopters.

4) Drone launching and recovery on destroyers might apply networking with aircraft carrier assets, but not replacing them.

It has been a long time since Dad was in the Navy, he retired in 1985; he began as a aviator but an eye issue soon developed and he moved to Surface Warfare & was several times on CVs and DDs, and there is much detail I do not know about the modern technology.
A thing I wonder about is vessel size impacting ability to conduct aircraft/drone operations in the higher numbered sea states.
Might there be times the large CV could still do flight ops while a DD or FFG sized vessel would have to say, Not today mates?