Naval War College Review Volume 64 Article 4 Number 4 Autumn 2011 The uturF e of The uturF e of Aircraft aC rriers Robert C. Rubel Follow this and additional works at: https://digital-commons.usnwc.edu/nwc-review Recommended Citation Rubel, Robert C. (2011) "The uturF e of The uturF e of Aircraft aC rriers," Naval War College Review: Vol. 64 : No. 4 , Article 4. Available at: https://digital-commons.usnwc.edu/nwc-review/vol64/iss4/4 This Article is brought to you for free and open access by the Journals at U.S. Naval War College Digital Commons. It has been accepted for inclusion in Naval War College Review by an authorized editor of U.S. Naval War College Digital Commons. For more information, please contact
[email protected]. Rubel: The Future of The Future of Aircraft Carriers THE FUTURE OF AIRCRAFT CARRIERS Robert C. Rubel he aircraft carrier has been around in various forms since the First World TWar. Its emergence as the key denominator of naval power is legendary, and its continuing prestige in this role is even yet spawning building programs among established and growing navies. The aircraft carrier is the largest and mostcomplexofallwarshipsandinmostcasesthemostexpensive.Inaddition to the cost of the ship itself, that of the embarked air wing must be considered, not to mention the extensive logistics and training infrastructure needed to keep carriers operating and useful. A recent Naval Postgraduate School study has shown that approximately 46 percent of the Navy’s personnel—officer, enlisted, 1 and civilian—are assigned to positions either on or supporting its carriers.