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Reathach-class carrier: Difference between revisions
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==Design and Construction== | ==Design and Construction== | ||
The ''Reathach'' was the first post-[[Second Great War]] carrier built for [[Faneria]] other than the [[Barefield-class light carrier|Barefield]] class of helicopter carrier; as a result, it was constructed in two stages. Fhainnin naval industry had declined significantly since the wartime era, only picking up after the completion of the [[Grand Vandarch Canal]] and the expansion of cargo rail routes through the [[Croilaen Mountains|Croilaen | The ''Reathach'' was the first post-[[Second Great War]] carrier built for [[Faneria]] other than the [[Barefield-class light carrier|Barefield]] class of helicopter carrier; as a result, it was constructed in two stages. Fhainnin naval industry had declined significantly since the wartime era, only picking up after the completion of the [[Grand Vandarch Canal]] and the expansion of cargo rail routes through the [[Croilaen Mountains|Croilaen Gaps]] reinvigorated the economy. The class was intended to serve several purposes, one of which was to create an initial group of specialists with large warship-building experience, which would be employed to plan a class of cruiser for construction in the 1990s along with working out teething issues with the facilities needed to build and house such vessels. This meant that initially, the hull of ''Reathach'' was built by [[Burgundie|Burgundine]] firm [[O’Shea Container Shipping|O’Shea]], then towed to [[Rihsport]] in Faneria, where the superstructure, armament, and most of the electronics were installed by [[Sae Breach Lahan]] prior to trials. ''Meon'' was then built in Rihsport's new facilities with oversight by an O'Shea engineering team. | ||
The actual role of the class, aside from jump-starting the Fhainnin military's naval reconstruction program and testing new technologies, was to act as a missile-cruiser/carrier hybrid. The ships were constructed similarly to small carriers with the bow ski jump replaced by conventional missile armaments, leaving reduced space for an air wing in exchange for allowing the ships to act as somewhat independent squadron leads. This mean that while the two ships would never be able to carry an equivalent air group to a proper carrier, they could act as long-range, largely independent warships with a degree of naval aviation capabilities, which had since the 1950s been nonexistent in the ANF. The limits of the Barefield class (particularly in terms of the severe cost-saving measures taken during construction) relegated them to a role as mobile helicopter bases, as well as limiting their ranges severely. In contrast, the ''Reathach'' and ''Meon'' were constructed to a competitive standard, as the two were expected to not be replaced until the 2010s. | The actual role of the class, aside from jump-starting the Fhainnin military's naval reconstruction program and testing new technologies, was to act as a missile-cruiser/carrier hybrid. The ships were constructed similarly to small carriers with the bow ski jump replaced by conventional missile armaments, leaving reduced space for an air wing in exchange for allowing the ships to act as somewhat independent squadron leads. This mean that while the two ships would never be able to carry an equivalent air group to a proper carrier, they could act as long-range, largely independent warships with a degree of naval aviation capabilities, which had since the 1950s been nonexistent in the ANF. The limits of the Barefield class (particularly in terms of the severe cost-saving measures taken during construction) relegated them to a role as mobile helicopter bases, as well as limiting their ranges severely. In contrast, the ''Reathach'' and ''Meon'' were constructed to a competitive standard, as the two were expected to not be replaced until the 2010s. | ||