The Rise Of Australasia

Chapter 628 - 479: Aircraft Carrier Completed

The new year’s National Day had no activities, even the usual flag-raising event was forbidden from being watched by anyone.

It’s not that the flag-raising event had any secrets, but the flu still posed a risk, and for the safety of the people, public gatherings were better kept to a minimum.

With the arrival of the new year, there were quite a few good news for Australasia.

The first being the compensation from defeated countries and the United States, Australasia was able to receive approximately 120 million Australian dollars in compensation, accounting for a large portion of last year’s total fiscal revenue, it can be described as a sudden wealth.

It’s worth noting that in 1918, Australasia’s total fiscal revenue was only 172.9 million Australian dollars, an increase of only 4% compared to the previous year, far smaller than the previous growth rate of 15% to 17%.

But this was inevitable, as the flu had a severe impact on all countries worldwide. For Australasia to maintain the growth of fiscal revenue was already a blessing in disguise.

If the compensation from the defeated countries and the United States, amounting to 120 million Australian dollars, is included, Australasia’s total revenue last year was close to 300 million Australian dollars. The financial budget was quite abundant and was the reason why Australasia was confident in developing the entire plain of the Mure River Basin.

Behind the growth of fiscal revenue last year, Australasia’s government’s total fiscal expenditure was also alarmingly high.

Due to the nationwide free supply of materials and free flu treatment, Australasia’s total fiscal expenditure skyrocketed last year, almost surpassing the total fiscal revenue.

The total expenditure of 170.4 million Australian dollars was enough to prove the commitment of the Australasian government in dealing with the flu. This expenditure figure increased by nearly 25 million Australian dollars compared to last year, and it was self-evident where the money was spent.

It’s predictable that this year’s total fiscal expenditure will not be lower. After all, the construction of the new capital officially begins this year, which is a massive project requiring an investment of at least hundreds of millions of Australian dollars.

On January 17th, 1919, Arthur, accompanied by many royal guards, quietly visited Sydney Royal Shipyard to inspect the sea trials of the Giant-class aircraft carrier, which had been under construction for two and a half years and was developed and produced independently by Australasia.

The construction time of the Giant-class aircraft carrier began in the second half of 1916, and the first batch was planned to be divided into two ships, the Giant Aircraft Carrier and the Sky Aircraft Carrier, both of which were completed in mid-1918.

At present, it’s the most critical test period for these two aircraft carriers. If they can successfully pass this marine navigation test period, it is estimated that in mid to late 1919, both of these aircraft carriers can be put into service in succession.

This is great news for Australasia, as the addition of two aircraft carriers can greatly enhance the navy’s combat capabilities, allowing the size and actual combat capability of Australasia’s navy to squeeze into the world’s top five.

Also, due to the importance of these two aircraft carriers, Arthur decided to personally inspect the sea trials of the aircraft carriers and check the actual combat capabilities of the aircraft carriers designed and developed by Australasia.

Aircraft carriers with real significance were currently researched only by the United Kingdom. But if the warships and battlecruisers that were temporarily converted during the war were all counted, then aircraft carriers appeared several years ago.

The combat capabilities of aircraft carriers vary greatly, and the fake aircraft carriers are ultimately temporary substitutes during the war. The development of the navy still needs the real aircraft carriers.

Australia and the United Kingdom still maintained close ties after the war. The Competitive God Aircraft Carrier researched by the British was also familiar to Arthur.

The Competitive God Aircraft Carrier was planned in 1916, and the construction started in April 1917. The progress is not much slower than that of Australasia.

One could not help but admire the excellent talent of the British in shipbuilding, as the Competitive God Aircraft Carrier they researched was not much different from the Giant Aircraft Carrier of Australasia.

Of course, what determines the real combat capabilities and functions of an aircraft carrier is the aircraft it carries.

In order to match the advanced Giant Aircraft Carrier, Australasia equipped it with as many as 24 fourth-generation military aircraft to maximize the combat power of the Giant-class aircraft carrier.

Among them were 6 reconnaissance aircraft, 8 fighter aircraft, and 10 bombers, which fully ensured the reconnaissance, air combat, and bombing tasks of the aircraft carrier.

It’s no exaggeration to say that the Giant-class aircraft carriers, equipped with 24 of the most advanced military aircraft in the world today, have combat capabilities and uses far beyond the current most powerful super dreadnoughts.

If a super dreadnought and a Giant-class aircraft carrier were to duel one-on-one, the winner could only be the Giant-class aircraft carrier, and the super dreadnought would have no chance of winning.

The reason for this dramatic difference in combat results is that the effective attack range of a super dreadnought and an aircraft carrier is too far apart.

Because of the presence of airplanes, Giant-class aircraft carriers can carry out reconnaissance, combat, and even bombing tasks from hundreds of kilometers away.

But the maximum attack range of a super dreadnought is also the maximum range of its main guns. Currently, shipborne main guns have a range of a few dozen kilometers at most, and the accuracy of such large-caliber main guns cannot be guaranteed. The difference in range between the two sides is worlds apart.

One could say that aircraft carriers are the nemesis of giant battleships. With the real aircraft carriers of the future, Australasia can close the gap with other countries that have large warships and even overtake them in the field of naval warfare with the help of aircraft carriers.

Anyone with slight knowledge of fleet composition in later generations would know that the most powerful fleet is the aircraft carrier fleet.

Generally consisting of an aircraft carrier, several destroyers, and even more small warships, the majestic battleships of World War I and II have gradually lost their usefulness with the advent of aircraft carriers.

After all, the cost of a super dreadnought is as high as about 2 million pounds, but the total cost of a giant-class aircraft carrier plus 24 aircraft is only about 1.5 million pounds.

With 1.5 million pounds spent on building an aircraft carrier, it is able to suppress a super dreadnought that costs more than 2 million pounds. This deal is quite cost-effective.

When countries around the world spend a great price to manufacture more super dreadnoughts, they face the aircraft carriers built by Australasia and the United Kingdom, and they would know the meaning of regret.

Now there is no naval restraint treaty; the victorious countries naturally build warships as they please.

Take the United Kingdom as an example. In 1918, even with the influence of influenza, the United Kingdom still started construction of two aircraft carriers, two super dreadnoughts, and two battlecruisers.

If it were not that the construction of these six main battleships would continue until 1920, Arthur would think that the naval arms race was still going on.

In order to keep the aircraft carriers of Australasia as secret as possible, Arthur’s trip to the Sydney Royal Shipyard was very secretive and low-key, and there were no people at the Royal Shipyard to greet him.

The nearby seas being tested were also fully sealed off. After all, Australia’s oceans were under complete control of Australasia, so it would be a simple matter to close them off.

No country would be foolish enough to provoke Australasia’s status in Oceania, even Britain and France could not shake Australasia’s rule in Oceania.

Aboard the Hope super battleship, Arthur held a telescope, watching the performance of the two aircraft carriers patiently.

Because the stability of the two aircraft carriers being tested could not be fully guaranteed, Arthur wisely chose to watch the performance of the two aircraft carriers from the Hope super dreadnought.

The main tests for the two aircraft carriers were the rapid take-off and landing of three different types of aircraft, precise detection and attack of the farthest target, and quick turning in a short period.

As a large warship with a full-load displacement of more than 13,000 tons, the giant-class aircraft carrier is relatively small compared to the super dreadnought.

With almost equal power, the maximum speed of the giant-class aircraft carrier could reach 25.5 knots, exceeding some battlecruisers known for their speed, which shows just how fast the aircraft carrier is.

Of course, the important reason for the giant-class aircraft carrier to run so fast is that the military-grade aircraft carrier almost abandoned all large firepower.

Besides some rapid-firing guns and machine guns for air defense, there are only a few hidden torpedo launchers underwater, together forming the source of all firepower for the giant-class aircraft carrier.

As for the large-caliber guns found on conventional warships, they cannot be seen on the giant-class aircraft carriers.

But this can be well understood, as the aircraft carrier’s reconnaissance and firepower mainly rely on aircraft. The aircraft carrier rarely engages in close combat with enemy warships and basically does not have that ability.

The hardest part of building an aircraft carrier is the long take-off distance required by the currently underperforming aircraft.

Because of insufficient power, British and French-made aircraft generally need more than a kilometer of take-off distance.

It often takes a long time for the aircraft to taxi before it has enough power to take off. However, due to the design and purpose of aircraft carriers, they cannot be designed too long.

Take Australasia’s giant-class aircraft carrier as an example. Its length and width are 180 meters and 21.5 meters, respectively, which is obviously far from the taxi distance required by the aircraft.

To enable the aircraft to take off within such a short distance, some technologies to assist the aircraft’s flying are needed.

Naturally, the full-pass deck does not need much explanation, allowing aircraft to have a longer taxi and landing distance, thereby increasing the stability of the aircraft during take-off and landing.

It is important to know that, apart from human factors, the most dangerous stages of an aircraft’s entire flight are take-off and landing.

Especially during landing, when the entire aircraft carrier is only so large, even a small error during landing could cause the aircraft to crash into the sea or even smash onto the deck.

The giant-class aircraft carrier is specially designed with arresting devices to help intercept landing aircraft going too fast and prevent them from sliding into the sea.

After all, a state-of-the-art military aircraft costs tens of thousands of Australian dollars. Losing one for no reason would indeed be heartbreaking.

Apart from devices to assist take-off and landing, the giant-class aircraft carrier has also specially provided thicker armor for the aircraft parking area and the carrier’s command tower to ensure the protective performance of the aircraft carrier.

Since the aircraft carrier’s own firepower is not strong, if it does not have a reliable protective capability, it could easily be attacked by submarines lurking underwater.