[ClearCase_guy]

I wonder if we’ve decided that the enemy has ship-killing technology which makes modern aircraft carriers about as vulnerable as battleships in WWII?

I love battleships. I love aircraft carriers. But no weapon system lasts forever and if the costs outweigh the benefits, it might be time for these to fade away.

[RinaseaofDs]

I tend to agree.

Some of these programs have become federal job programs for Congressional districts.

There’s only one maker of Abrams tanks any more. Only one program that does nuclear refueling.

See a pattern?

Carriers are great, but if a bunch of hajis can put their hands on a game changing ship killer like the Exocet was during the Falkland Islands War, why keep building targets?

[lepton]

But no weapon system lasts forever and if the costs outweigh the benefits, it might be time for these to fade away.

---

It’ll be time for them to fade away when they actually become obsolete. It is plausible that top-tier enemies can take them out under certain circumstances. Until that is actually demonstrated, they will still be very useful in a variety of roles - the primary of which is projecting air cover over an area we don’t have airbases.

So, the rumors of demise should be taken seriously enough to plan alternative technologies, and not so seriously as to disregard a potent advantage.

[PIF]

Trouble with F-35s on CVNs - they are ready only 5% oft the time due to spare parts and software issues. The are effectively useless.

More on the early Truman retirement:
The Puzzling Case Of The Navy's Attempt To Retire Supercarrier USS Harry S. Truman Early
Legislators are already opposing the proposal, which contradicts every known requirement and policy, and we don't truly know if it's even real at all.
By Joseph Trevithick March 1, 2019 More on the early retirement of the Truman:

[conservatism_IS_compassion]

I love battleships. I love aircraft carriers. But no weapon system lasts forever and if the costs outweigh the benefits, it might be time for these to fade away.

intended 50-year service life.

When an investment has a 50-year payout period, that payout had better be awfully secure - at least for 35 years or so . . .