![]() ![]() The balance of the class will leave the fleet shortly thereafter. The Navy’s failure over the years to replace the Ticos with new ships it calls cruisers means the ADC role is going to have to shift to ships the fleet doesn’t call cruisers.Īfter all, the Navy expect to decommission the first 11 Ticos between 20. In the Navy, for as long as almost anyone in the fleet can remember, cruisers do ADC and the ADC job goes to cruisers. Indeed, over time the term “cruiser” more or less have become synonymous with the air-defense commander role. Of all the Navy’s roughly 100 surface combatants, they have the most missiles, the best sensors and the most space for a captain and their staff. Where the other surface warships in a carrier group might leave the group for days or weeks at a time to conduct their own, independent missions-the ADC ship never leaves the carrier.īecause the ADC vessel is the flattop’s last line of defense, the Navy assigns only its most heavily-armed ships to the role.įor a quarter-century, the Ticos have been the obvious choice for ADC. Its skipper usually is an experienced officer holding the rank of captain. It coordinates air-defense for the carrier group, which might include as many as five cruisers and destroyers in addition to the flattop. Perhaps more importantly, the Ticos have a full suite of radars in the L, S and X bands, plus the space and communications equipment they need to function as “air-defense commander” ships for aircraft carrier battle groups. The current Flight IIA Arleigh Burke-class destroyers, each displacing around 9,500 tons, boast 96 cells apiece. But the Ticos are the most missile-heavy.Įach Tico boasts 122 vertical cells for launching anti-air missiles and cruise missiles. The 9,800-ton Ticos aren’t the biggest surface combatants in the fleet-that honorific belongs to the three 15,900-ton Zumwalt-class destroyers.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |