Three photos to help you rethink the notion of “aircraft carrier”, all from the US Navy.

Photo 1. 1924.

In August 1924 an oiler, the USS Patoka, had been converted into a tender for rigid airships by adding a mast. On the only occasion where a rigid US airship was landed on flat-topped aircraft carrier, the rolling and pitching motion of the ship smashed the aluminium ribs and lower fin. The airship is the US Navy’s Shenandoah.

Photo 2. 1934.

This photo shows a US F9C-2 Sparrowhawk aircraft, but what’s carrying it? The US rigid airship Macon carried a complement of five small fighter planes. I find it amazing that not just did the small fighter planes launch from the airship, they also landed there. The landing arrangement was called a “trapeze”, a hook on the top of the aircraft engaged with the trapeze hung underneath the airship.

In a humorous incident, Franklin Roosevelt was en route from Panama to Hawaii on the cruiser Houston. Sixteen hundred miles from shore they were buzzed by two Sparrowhawk aircraft. There was some anxiety because the president had received no notice that they were coming and had no idea what the intentions of the planes were or where they came from. The mystery was solved when the Macon came into view.

“The little planes, sans wheels, put on quite a show. They dropped San Francisco newspapers for the president, also specially franked envelopes for his philatelic collection”.

Follow up question. How many fighter planes could be launched from (and landed on) the largest planes now in existence?

Photo 3. 1961.

This photo shows the aircraft carrier Antietam, but what is that white vee shape rising from its foredeck? No it’s not a flaw in the picture, it’s the huge research balloon Strato-Lab V. Peak altitude for the Strato-Lab V was 34,668 metres, making it the highest manned balloon flight to that time. It did not have a pressurised capsule, just a metal cage with venetian blinds for controlling the amount of sunlight, and hence the temperature. It’s primary purpose was to test spacesuits for astronauts.

Imagine all the energy that goes into making all these military vehicles, ships, planes.

then all the energy to run them.

then the energy to recycle them.

CrazyNeutrino said:

Imagine all the energy that goes into making all these military vehicles, ships, planes.

then all the energy to run them.

then the energy to recycle them.

at least much of that last is done by the ocean, sort of good anyway.

Postpocelipse said:

CrazyNeutrino said:

Imagine all the energy that goes into making all these military vehicles, ships, planes.

then all the energy to run them.

then the energy to recycle them.

at least much of that last is done by the ocean, sort of good anyway.

CrazyNeutrino said:

Imagine all the energy that goes into making all these military vehicles, ships, planes.

then all the energy to run them.

then the energy to recycle them.

Airships (blimps) have very low fuel consumption.
The gases used for lifting airships – hydrogen or helium – are recycled.
Ships are slow. Airships are faster.
Airships can be repaired while in flight. Aeroplanes can’t.

mollwollfumble said:

CrazyNeutrino said:

Imagine all the energy that goes into making all these military vehicles, ships, planes.

then all the energy to run them.

then the energy to recycle them.

Airships (blimps) have very low fuel consumption.
The gases used for lifting airships – hydrogen or helium – are recycled.
Ships are slow. Airships are faster.
Airships can be repaired while in flight. Aeroplanes can’t.

You are going all Steampunk on me aren’t you?

mollwollfumble said:

CrazyNeutrino said:

Imagine all the energy that goes into making all these military vehicles, ships, planes.

then all the energy to run them.

then the energy to recycle them.

Airships (blimps) have very low fuel consumption.
The gases used for lifting airships – hydrogen or helium – are recycled.
Ships are slow. Airships are faster.
Airships can be repaired while in flight. Aeroplanes can’t.

might be good for a fleet of drones

I believe airships have been used and vetoed before in battle

steampunk drones might confuse the enemy

Arts said:

I believe airships have been used and vetoed before in battle

I don’t think they were overly effective as barrage balloons

how high can airships go?

higher up the better?

make them especially camouflaged to change color to match the background sky

CrazyNeutrino said:

how high can airships go?

higher up the better?

a properly designed helium dirgible can go anywhere….. “anywhere!!!”

They often use airships in the sky as an alternative Earth or future

have a flat deck helium balloon to launch aircraft into space

the airship acts as a carrier for multiple spaceplanes to roar off the deck and into space saving the energy to get to the upper atmosphere

wookiemeister said:

have a flat deck helium balloon to launch aircraft into space

the airship acts as a carrier for multiple spaceplanes to roar off the deck and into space saving the energy to get to the upper atmosphere

How about a space airship that flies just within the atmosphere and carries missiles and fires space to ground missiles straight down on Islamic state

no need for the missiles to go up and across and requires less fuel

CrazyNeutrino said:

wookiemeister said:

have a flat deck helium balloon to launch aircraft into space

the airship acts as a carrier for multiple spaceplanes to roar off the deck and into space saving the energy to get to the upper atmosphere

How about a space airship that flies just within the atmosphere and carries missiles and fires space to ground missiles straight down on Islamic state

no need for the missiles to go up and across and requires less fuel

or just drop guides bombs instead – cheaper and being so high you could strike over a great distance cheaply day or night

A space airship could perform many scientific experiments and carry heaps of sensors.

a large airship sat at 30km up could easily see individual targets and drop a small bomblet that would fall to the target and be much more effective and use less explosive to kill the target

make a bomb like a large dart and no doubt it could penetrate the strongest tank

the bombs would be steered to the target real time , you might have a maintenance crew on board but the bombs dropped by remote operators

ISIS wouldn’t have the tech to reach the balloon

you could knock out SUVs used by the enemy with a small bomb hitting it at high speed
, it would make them nervous because nowhere would be safe

thousands of oil tankers used by Isis could be taken out by the small bombs targeting the tank of the vehicle , the bomb pierces the tank exploded and forces oil out bloating the tank and igniting the vapour forced out of the split tank.

rather than having some onboard device that’s expensive you could have two cameras watching the bomb’s descent and working out speed and position

the only expensive part would be the RC mechanism to steer the bomb in the air to the target