CVN 21 aircraft carrier

Originally posted by rogue1


I fail to see how a Seawolf would cost US$13 billion+, which I assume is the USS Jimmy Carter.

I was reviewing this olde post and thought I would add some informations to this thread for some of the readers.

I too am astonished at some of the figures for the Jimmy Carter but let some light on this.

First off the standard torpedo compliment of most US Nuclear submarines is to feed four torpedo tubes. This means that the storage space inside the boat and the way the storage racks and handling equipment is laid out and made to function is around the concept of four torpedo tubes. This alone is an expensive proposition.

The Jimmy Carter and other Sea Wolf class boats are equipped with Eight torpedo tubes. This is alot of tubes. IF you have ever seen a torpedo tube mounted and welded in a boat under construction it is not a nickle and dime effort. Four tubes alone are very very espensive. But we are talking about Eight tubes here. These are X ray class welds here. Meaning of any dont pass they must be cut out and properly welded...then X rayed again. Even much of the piping in certain areas servicing the tubes is x ray inspected. This type of construction is very expensive. Metal that cracks out at sea at depth ..because it is not properly welded... means that it cracks and runs ....it runs like a crack in a fiberclass Corvette body...not cool out at depths.

Also the metal of the Sea Wolf is not the metal of which most of the submarines we have are made. Most of our boats use a grade called HY80 steel. Meaning it is blended and designed to withstand 80.000 pounds of pressure. This is a very expensive blend of steel and almost exclusively used in submarines. The Sea Wolf boats are made of HY 100 steel Need I say more about expenses??
These two types of steel require very strict welding processes to prevent cracks from developing. HY 100 even more so. Hence more costs.
Sea Wolf has a different reactor than did the previous 688 class submarines. Hence more costs here. Different engine rooms. more costs.

Jimmy Carter has a 100 foot extension built into her for servicing special teams. Huge costs incurred here. YOu can only speculate what is in this section as not many are allowed in here. I can gaurantee you it is not something you see at your local Home Depot or Lowes. Nonetheless ..huge cost increases here. Jimmy Carter is a Sea Wolf alright but a one of a kind Sea Wolf...among only three boats of this type. I am sure the development costs for the special equipment incorporated in her was ground breaking. It also took a long time to get her delivered..noticably so. This too, hints at significant costs/delays incurred to work out alot of the bugs. This story will not be made public for many many years..they dont dare. You can also safely speculate on something here...it costs alot to maintain this 100 foot section properly. The pay off must be worth it. Similar to the Hubble telescope ...if you think it through carefully. The payoff must be worth it.

OH..by the way..neither could most folks believe the cost of the Hubble Telescope when it was made and delivered into outers pace.
We paid that much ....that much.... just for a telescope to look into outer space...a place none of us would get to in our lifetimes.???? Are we that naturally stupid??? Or is the Hubble primarily for looking into outer space??
But most of us believe the standard stock stories about the Hubble because we spend so much time in Star Wars, StarGate, Babylon5, or what ever drivel someone spoonfeeds us next year.

Notice the common denominator between the Hubble and the USS Jimmy Carter...staggering costs.??!! Think about it. Just how much are intelligence capabilitys worth??....to someone???

You folks do know that certain kinds of intelligence gathering are done with submarines that is impossible with satellites...yes?? The marriage of intelligence gathering, special teams and submarines is very condusive to this data gathering. Yes??

I'd sure like to know what is in that 100 foot add on section in the USS Jimmy Carter. But then again ..I want to be able to finish those two kangaroo beers (Fosters Lager) chilling in my fridge.

Anyone out here know how stealty is a satellite?? Curious here??

Just something for you folks to consider by contrasts...and costs.

Orangetom

The CVN-21 will have an aircraft complement similar to the Nimitz class carriers. It's the same basic hull, but with new automation, and stealthier features. They aren't packing it with planes, because they're using new features on the flight deck and hangar bays to facilitate a higher sortie rate. The current details show it may actually have 10-15 fewer aircraft than the Nimitz does.