Many maritime pundits these days express the view that aircraft carriers are doomed. The ships are too large, too vulnerable, and increasingly irrelevant, they say.
Others, however, opine that with their long range, sustainable high speed, endurance, hitting power, and surveillance and command and control capabilities, these ships have a vital role in modern warfare. Aircraft carrier construction meanwhile continues apace.
China weathered many operational and mechanical challenges while bringing its first two carriers into operation. One of them, Shandong, recently demonstrated the progress that Beijing has made when the ship was observed carrying out multiple launches and recoveries of aircraft by day and by night without mishap.
Now, China has capitalised on its experience of operating aircraft carriers by building and recently commissioning the 80,000-tonne Fujian. Constructed by Jiangnan Shipyard, the new carrier is powered by conventional steam turbines and features three parallel runways and electro-magnetic catapults.
Analysts will be carefully watching the progress of Fujian's trials and work-ups. China is headed to be a major force in naval aviation, although a replacement for the under-performing J-15 fighter-bomber is needed. It is likely that the new FC-31 will be selected, but it is unclear when the plane will be ready for operational service.
Of particular significance, however, will be the deployment on Fujian of the KJ-600 airborne early warning aircraft, which is set to greatly enhance the potency of Chinese carrier strike groups.
In parallel with the new fixed-wing carrier, China has recently completed a catamaran-hulled uncrewed aerial vehicle (UAV) carrier, which has been described as being about one third of the size of Fujian, and capable of operating large fixed-wing UAVs. It is so far unclear where this new asset, which was built by Yangzhou Dayang Shipbuilding, will fit into China's maritime order of battle.
China's great naval rival, India, already has two carriers. One is indigenously built while the other is a former Russian warship, though both can operate MiG-29K fighter-bombers. New Delhi recently confirmed that another carrier, likely to displace about 65,000 tonnes and to be equipped with electro-magnetic catapults, will be built in India. This is apparently in response to the commissioning of Fujian and to Pakistan's own naval expansion.
The new Indian carrier will probably be equipped with a new-generation indigenous naval fighter as well as combat UAVs and airborne early warning platforms.
Recent reports indicate that the new carrier, to be named Vishal, will probably replace the unreliable Vikramaditya, and that an additional new carrier will be ordered in due course.
Japan, for its part, now operates two light carriers, Izumo and Kaga. However, for political reasons, both are designated as destroyers. These 27,000-tonne ships have been modified to operate F-35B Lightning II fighter-bombers.
This year, France confirmed that the long-delayed project to replace the impressive but problem-plagued Charles de Gaulle with another big, nuclear-powered flat-top will go ahead, and that initial work on the ship commenced this year. An advanced version of the Rafale fighter is being developed to operate from the new ship.
Burgeoning naval power Turkey is set to be a major player in the aircraft carrier game. The Turkish Navy order of battle already includes Anadolu, a flat-topped amphibious assault ship that is capable of operating both helicopters and UAVs.
Ankara's recently-unveiled, highly ambitious naval expansion plan also included a project to build a large dedicated fixed-wing aircraft carrier. The planned vessel will be gas turbine-powered, displace about 60,000 tonnes, and will operate about 50 indigenously-built aerial assets. These assets will include the Hurjet crewed fighter, the Tai Anka III UAV, the Kizilelma uncrewed fighter, and the TB-3 combat UAV.
The carrier will feature three runways and will initially have a bow-mounted "ski jump" take-off aid. The ski jump will later be replaced by an indigenously-developed catapult system.
Russia is heavily focused on the war in Ukraine but nevertheless has plans to replace its decrepit carrier Admiral Kuznetsov with the probably nuclear-powered, 100,000-tonne Shtorm 23000E project. Perhaps unsurprisingly, little has been heard of this project in recent years.
The paramount carrier operator, with 11 such warships currently available, is of course the US Navy. The 100,000-tonne Ford-class carriers, the first example of which is already in commission, feature electro-magnetic catapults and powerful air groups that include interception, anti-submarine, land and sea strike, and airborne early warning assets. These ships are some of the world's most potent warfighting machines.
Incidentally, the Americans are planning to augment their carrier air groups with combat UAVs in the near future, as is the UK Royal Navy (RN). The RN currently operates F-35Bs and helicopters from two 65,000-tonne carriers, Queen Elizabeth and Prince of Wales.
It is worth noting that, in addition to the specialist aircraft carriers featured in this analysis, there are at least 13 flat-topped amphibious warfare vessels in service, many of which are equipped with short take-off, vertical landing, warplanes such as the F-35B and the AV-8B Harrier.
It is apparent that, notwithstanding the emphasis that is currently being placed upon submarines, fixed-wing naval aviation will remain a vital component of modern maritime warfare.
