SEAKEEPING PERFORMANCE COMPARISON OF AIR CAPABLE SHIPS

Abstract

ABSTRACTThe on‐going debate regarding the merits of large versus small aircraft carriers raises several issues concerning the ability of various ship configurations to support sea based air operations. One such issue is the question of the relative seakeeping performance of ship alternatives. In an effort to shed some light on the matter, a comparative seakeeping assessment of nine air capable ships covering a wide range of size and hull form was performed. An evaluation of the impact of aircraft and ship motion limitations on sea based air operations and a comparison of the relative ability of the ships to conduct air operations while in a seaway are presented. The specific air operations considered are launch, recovery, and support of aircraft. The ships evaluated are CVN‐71, CVA‐67 (MR), CVV, LHA‐1, VSS‐D, DDV‐2, DDV‐1D, DD‐963, and SWATH‐6. These ships have the combined capability to operate Vertical Takeoff and Landing (VTOL), Conventional Takeoff and Landing (CTOL), Short Takeoff and Arrested Landing (STOAL), and Short Takeoff and Vertical Landing (STOVL) type aircraft. Results indicate that seakeeping performance generally degrades with decreasing displacement, that SWATH‐6 performance is the least degraded, that elevator wetness can be an important degrader for ships with lower freeboards, that roll motion can be an important degrader for ships under 60,000 tons, and that percent time of operation is strongly dependent on the prevailing wave and wind environment.