LSS and MRA: Australian Aircraft Carrier Concepts from 2000

[TinWing]

https://www.flightglobal.com/fixed-wing/2000/07/ran-considers-aircraft-carrier-plan/
This article features a computer rendering showing a crane forward the island swung out to refuel an escort. From the lack of deck markings for fixed wing aviation I presumed this to the shorter rotary wing hosting MRA variant.

https://www.flightglobal.com/fixed-wing/2000/07/floating-ideas/
And finally a Norman Friedman article with a very low resolution outboard profile drawing, which I assume is of the longer LSS variant. Cranes forward and aft of the island feature prominently.

https://navyleague.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2019/12/The-Navy-Vol_62_Part2-2000.pdf

 

[TinWing]

https://www.flightglobal.com/fixed-wing/2000/07/ran-considers-aircraft-carrier-plan/
This article features a computer rendering showing a crane forward the island swung out to refuel an escort. From the lack of deck markings for fixed wing aviation I presumed this to the shorter rotary wing hosting MRA variant.

https://www.flightglobal.com/fixed-wing/2000/07/floating-ideas/
And finally a Norman Friedman article with a very low resolution outboard profile drawing, which I assume is of the longer LSS variant. Cranes forward and aft of the island feature prominently.

https://navyleague.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2019/12/The-Navy-Vol_62_Part2-2000.pdf

From what I can discern, the baseline was a 224 meter “Multi-Role Auxilary” of 22,000t. Friedman concerns himself with the 247m “Littoral Support Ship” with a waterline beam of 28 meters, draft of 7.8m and flight deck width 45 meters. Presumably, the 29,000t figure is full load but it is unclear if that includes the optional 1,000t steam catapult. Drawing an air group of 20 F/A-18 fighters from the RAAF fleet implies the LSS would have had austere aviation facilities and practices more akin to USMC doctrine than USN - more of a CTOL or STOBAR LPH/LHA than an aircraft carrier. References to 6 landing spots for UH-60s of 4 spots for CH-47s indicates that army helicopters would have been used aboard the smaller MRA. So they were thinking about navy ships as platforms for the aircraft of sister services, not necessarily conventional single service naval aviation.

 

[RIPPER]

From what I can discern, the baseline was a 224 meter “Multi-Role Auxilary” of 22,000t. Friedman concerns himself with the 247m “Littoral Support Ship” with a waterline beam of 28 meters, draft of 7.8m and flight deck width 45 meters. Presumably, the 29,000t figure is full load but it is unclear if that includes the optional 1,000t steam catapult. Drawing an air group of 20 F/A-18 fighters from the RAAF fleet implies the LSS would have had austere aviation facilities and practices more akin to USMC doctrine than USN - more of a CTOL or STOBAR LPH/LHA than an aircraft carrier. References to 6 landing spots for UH-60s of 4 spots for CH-47s indicates that army helicopters would have been used aboard the smaller MRA. So they were thinking about navy ships as platforms for the aircraft of sister services, not necessarily conventional single service naval aviation.

Here are some pictures I have of these 2 proposals, I believe they are from the navy league magazine