Empire Conquest-Chapter 933 - 135: Super Carrier_3

In fact, when constructing the second batch of "Xue Yuanzheng" class, the Empire Navy had considered equipping them with phased array radar.

However, at that time, the available technology was passive phased array radar, and miniaturization technology of electronic equipment was insufficient, making the entire radar system extremely cumbersome. If used on a carrier, and to ensure no impact on other departments, at least a 50% increase in the projection area of the island would be required, occupying about six deck parking spots. As for the assistance phased array radar would provide to the carrier, it was evidently less significant than that provided by an Anti-Air Cruiser.

As a result, the Empire Navy eventually abandoned this idea.

Equipping a carrier with AESA radar is not to enhance its air defense combat capability, but to replace all other radars with one radar.

Simply put, it actually simplifies the radar system.

The biggest advantage of doing so is to reduce the size of the island, eliminate the mast used to install surveillance radars, and the space freed up on the deck can add two more parking spots, or use the area of these two parking spots to improve and optimize the deck system, thus enhancing the operation efficiency of ship-borne aircraft on the flight deck.

The engineers of the Empire Navy made full use of this space.

By adjusting the parking positions, the deck operation efficiency of the third batch of "Xue Yuanzheng" class increased by at least a quarter! 𝒇𝙧𝙚𝓮𝔀𝓮𝒃𝙣𝓸𝒗𝒆𝒍.𝙘𝒐𝒎

The benefits obtained are that its maximum daily sortie capacity increased from the previous 210 sorties to 240 sorties, the single wave sortie capability increased from 42 sorties to 46 sorties, and the recovery operation time of a complete attack wave was reduced from the previous 75 minutes to 60 minutes.

Undoubtedly, this is a solid improvement!

Furthermore, the third batch of "Xue Yuanzheng" class has a higher degree of automation, and the resulting benefit is a reduction in crew and aviation personnel by 15% and 12%, respectively, reducing more than 800 people in total, from over 5,600 in the first two batches to less than 4,800.

Critically, the first two batches of "Xue Yuanzheng" class will be upgraded and improved in terms of electronic equipment according to the standards of the third batch during their mid-term overhaul.

To put it, the "Xue Yuanzheng" class is absolutely an epoch-making product.

Objectively speaking, the significance of the "Xue Yuanzheng" class is not inferior to the "Chen Bingxun" class, being an existence capable of changing the rules of naval warfare.

Because there are virtually no drawbacks, the planned number of "Xue Yuanzheng" class constructed before the outbreak of the third Global War had already reached nine.

Thanks to the substantial enhancement of carrier combat capability, the tactical system of the Empire Navy also changed, leading to the start of the third wave of reform.

However, no one can deny that it was not a type of carrier that initiated the third wave of reform, but a person.

Strictly speaking, the third wave of reform of the Empire Navy is in fact part of the third military reform, serving the overall strategy of the Empire.

Actually, this is also a major feature of the third military reform.

In the previous two military reforms, each military branch, especially the three major military branches, basically acted independently, at most merely communicating with each other, with no possibility of unified command and unified allocation, and thus the impact of the first two military reforms was not significant enough to change the face of warfare.

Under the promotion of Zhou Yongtao, the third military reform was centered on the Empire’s overall strategy from the beginning.

The driving force of this military reform was no longer the tactical needs of each military branch, but the overall strategy of the Empire.

Crucially, the reform was no longer commanded by commanders of each military branch but by the Empire’s Supreme Military Commander.