Posted on 12/29/2011 7:33:48 AM PST by blam
US Sends Aircraft Carrier Into The Strait Of Hormuz, As Iran Beats Its Chest
Robert Johnson
Dec. 29, 2011, 7:56 AM
USS John C. Stennis
Iran has announced it located a U.S. aircraft carrier moving into the Strait of Hormuz during Iranian wargame exercises.
The AFP reports Commodore Mahmoud Mousavi, spokesman for the exercises, says the carrier was spotted by an Iranian reconnaissance plane that took photos and video.
A spokesperson for the U.S. Fifth Fleet confirmed the carrier is the USS John C. Stennis, a nearly 1,100 foot nuclear powered craft with unlimited range and 3 million gallons of onboard fuel for its aircraft.
USS Mobile Bay
In addition to its planes and the ships that sail in the group, the Stennis is armed with NATO RIM-7 Sea Sparrow and Rolling Air Missile (RAM) surface-to-air missile systems, the Phalanx Close-in Weapons System for cruise missile defense, and the AN/SLQ-32 Electronic Warfare System.
U.S. officials said Wednesday that the Stennis and the guided missile cruiser USS Mobile Bay slipped into the strait Tuesday after a stop at Dubai's Jebel Ali port.
The USS Mobile bay is a 570 foot Ticonderoga class cruiser that carries the Tomahawk Land Attack Missile, two Seahawk LAMPS multi-purpose helicopters, and is used for anti-submarine warfare, anti-air, and anti-surface warfare.
The Associated Press reports Iran is playing up the sighting of the carrier and boasting of the strength of its navy in the region.
Iranian naval chief Adm. Habibollah Sayyari says Iran has "control over the moves by foreign forces" and that the "foreign fleet will be warned by Iranian forces if it enters the area of the drill."
Iranian state TV showed the supposed video but details of the carrier couldn't be made
(snip)
(Excerpt) Read more at businessinsider.com ...
Big ol radar cross section but still awesome to look at. I never did tire of looking at ships and planes while in and still enjoy seeing them.
I hope Obama knows what he is doing. It can’t be like his Drone moment. Can I have my Drone back. Pretty Please.
I don’t think that’s very smart at all.
Back in my day—you know, wooden ships and iron men—they wouldn’t send a carrier in there because those waters are far too restricted. Of course, that was when Ronaldus Magnus was president.
I have an uneasy sense of impending disaster. Hope I’m just being silly.
My nephew’s on the Stennis. Stay safe Kenny.
Interesting that Iran doesn’t mention the Nuclear Subs that accompany all Carriers.
I can’t get the headlines ‘President Demands Apology for Lost Carrier’ out of my head.
You’re being silly and Ronaldus Magnus sent several carriers through both the Straits of Hormuz and the line of death in the Gulf of Sidra.
SOH = rather limited maneuvering room for a US aircraft carrier and all the supporting defense forces to protect it... which used to include a second carrier group nearby
I remember the days when adults were in charge of strategic decisonmaking and the US the Navy would not take this risk for a FON show of force with an unstable dictator backed by the Russians and the Chinese
Let’s hope the Iranians play nice
If El Presidente will just let the navy do what the navy does best, there will be a very short stare down in the Strait of Hormuz. Then maybe a little flyover of the presidential palace in Tehran by an F18 squadran.
Then things will get back to what is considered normal. But my guess is El Presidente will try to negotiate with Tehran and once again, we will come out on the short end.
It’s a dumb move if Obama is actually thinking of naval action, but if he’s just showing the flag and expects no violence it’s SOP. But if he’s contemplating action, and he might be, given the positive effect it would have on his poll numbers, then you keep the CV at arm’s length. Its great strength is its standoff ability. During Operation Preying Mantis, the Navy kept its CV in the Arabian Sea and sent its DDGs into the Gulf to do battle. I cannot believe th Iranian military doesn’t remember what a FUBAR they experienced at the hands of the USN.
Seems to me the carrier really doesn’t need to be within 300 miles of the Strait if damage is her intention.
great minds think alike
Ad I recall, carriers didnt go into these waters until after the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait - when that happened the Navy changed its SOP so as to not the let USAF jocks have all the joy
I agree...too restrictive.
Also, I don't believe that much of the oil for the USA goes through this strait anymore.
We're doing this mainly for the rest of the (ungrateful) world.
I was on the USS Truett at the time we went below the LOD.
“You’re being silly and Ronaldus Magnus sent several carriers through both the Straits of Hormuz and the line of death in the Gulf of Sidra.”
The difference is, Reagan would have pulled the trigger and the world knew it. I don’t think the world believes Obama would pull the trigger; that would not be sufficiently “nuanced.” If you’re not prepared to use it, don’t risk it.
We’re asking for disaster here because the Rules of Engagement would need to let the Navy react instantly to whatever happens or to any perceived threat. That may mean shooting down an “unarmed” reconnaissance plane. Can anybody believe the ROI say anything other than, “If something happens, call the White House?”
You are exactly right. It is shooting fish in a bucket. We know that we have a plan and I would bet it involves more than the 5th fleet.
I believe the navy kept the CVs out of the Gulf during Preying Mantis, and simply launched their aircraft. The Gulf of Sidra was a different story as it involved a challenge over the definition of international waters and the Gulf itself was merely an extension of the Med and was not, as the Persian Gulf is, a confined body of water, only narrowly connected to the Arabian Sea.
For the last 30 years, every single president and most of congress has worked to make America ‘interdependent’ instead of independent.
When we are interdependent,our economy can be looted in the name of globalism by the globalist thugs running our government.
Oil is just one cog in the gear of interdependence.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.