Siam class helicopter carrier (pre-22nd century)

[kato]

Inspired by the converting naval units to BT units thread somewhere in Ground Warfare...

Siam Class Helicopter Carrier

• Weight      : 11,486 tons full load (6,835.5 tons light displacement)
• Chassis      : Large Naval, Environmentally Sealed
• Template    : C
• Tech Level  : B
• Structure   : IS 36
• Propulsion  : ICE, maximum 29 knots / 54 km/h
• Crew        : 28 officers, 112 enlisted incl. air crew
• Troops      : 672
• Endurance   : 92.7 days without troops / 9.3 days with troops onboard
• Range       : 11,330 km at 17.5 knots cruise speed
• Battle Value: 5,947
• Cost        : 30,394,770 C-Bills

• --- Vessel ---
• 2,539.0 tons - Chassis
• 2,618.0 tons - Engine
• 2,966.0 tons - Fuel
• 12.5 tons - Armor (198 points BAR5 - 33 per facing)
• 12.0 tons - Lifeboats (12 Maritime)
• 3.0 tons - Lift Hoist
• 3.0 tons - Communications
• --- Aviation ---
  
  • 2,000.0 tons - Helipads (4)
  • 700.0 tons - Light Vehicle Bays (14)
• --- Troops ---
  
  • 120.0 tons - Foot Infantry Bays (24)
  • 12.0 tons - Field Kitchens (4)
  • 5.5 tons - MASH (three-theater)
• --- Armament ---
  
  • 2.0 tons - Machine Guns (4)
  • 2.0 tons - Vehicular Grenade Launchers (4 / Smoke Grenades)
  • 0.5 tons - Pintle Mounts (0.1t)
  • 15.0 tons - Ammunition (1500 per MG)
  • 6.0 tons - Heat Sinks
• --- Cargo ---
  
  • 34.5 tons - Cargo (Spare Parts)
  • 351.0 tons - Cargo (Consumables)
  • 84.0 tons - Cargo (ammunition and supplies for VTOLs, 6 tons each)

The above is an as-close-as-possible reproduction of the Chakri Naruebet, a BIP class aircraft carrier in service with Thailand. You have to make do with VTOL operations, much like the actual ship - and, well, we can still park small craft on the deck.

The actual ship has five helicopter landing spots on its deck (instead of four), which doesn't fit the size envelope without lowering the range considerably below original specs; we also don't have an analog for the Sadral launchers, unless we design some really quirky early primitive one-shot SRM-6 prototypes. So instead the pintle-mounted machine guns stand in for the originally proposed four Phalanx (with heat sinks for viable rapid-fire use of the MGs), while the VGL mimic the mounted SRBOC.

In return the crew numbers are low by modern standards though, we have a 15% higher flank speed - and we can build the whole thing for half of the cost of the real ship.

[Cryhavok101]

I like it. You doing more of these?

[Giovanni Blasini]

Very cool. I'm a fan of the sea control ship concept, and was glad to see someone building them.  Seeing a conversion into BT is neat.

[kato]

You doing more of these?

So far was more a byproduct and thought exercise in whether in particular the fuel requirements and some other things would "fit" while keeping all specs as close as possible to the original. Was surprised enough that it works out that well.  ^-^

Deviations:

For fuel we do have a slight deviation much like the speed: Original we have a range of 13,200 km at 16.5 knots. So basically we straightforward trade that 15% higher flank speed under BT rules for a 15% lower range at cruise speed - which does sound reasonable to me.

If we raise the Tech Level to C and lower the hangar to 10 aircraft with the other four parked on deck (as the original) we can save 497.5 tons and pretty much exactly fit the original 5th helipad too.

For the crew numbers, those 140 - 145 with the fifth helipad - are somewhat reasonable for a modernized version. Mistrals run with 160 nowadays.

[sp111kg]

Mind if I use this in an experiment to make an Alpha Strike Naval game? Would also be part of an after action and rp setting here and on a second site. Really do like it.

[kato]

sure, go ahead.

[I am Belch II]

Pretty neat, nice job

[marauder648]

Damn nice work!

[bblaney]

Very cool concept.

Are you going to do a modernized version that can defend against Air attack?

[kato]

What kind of air attack?

If you raise the Tech Level to D and install a reactor you can easily fit in a Piranha SCM launcher with a 20-round magazine on top of everything else...  ;)

[Wrangler]

You need AMS on this thing.  I know anti-aircraft missiles would be reduced to ARROW IV missile launchers,  i still wish they had primitive (obsolete) missiles systems.

[kato]

Here's an attempt for "modern" armament:

Per arc (Fwd-LR/Aft-LR):
4 AC/2 w/flak ammunition (877 rds per gun)
4 AMS w/ammunition (126 rds per system)

Per broadside (Fwd-LR):
2 LRT-20 w/ammunition (12 shots per launcher)

Single mount (Fwd):
twin missile launcher with magazine, system see below

Star League Era - Arrow IV + 72 homing missiles per launcher + single TAG system
post-Jihad Era - Piranha SCM + 18 missiles per launcher / replace ICE with fusion engine

Add heat sinks for exact full heat dissipation and CASE on the ammo bins for AC/2 and AMS.

This replaces MGs and VGL from the original Tech Level B outfit. Other than that the only switch is a fifth helipad (as for Tech Level C; stay with 14 light vehicle bays) and the addition of more cargo holds (two 125t holds standard plus four more for Arrow IV version). Reduce cargo hold size for more ammunition if you think you need it.

The above maximizes space usage, and yes this unit runs into equipment slot problems with anything beyond that.

On the Arrow IV (standard) version the single TAG is due to restrictions of a unit tagging more than one target. Factually it'd launch two missiles per target as a realistic mode of fire. The LRT-20 are for a bluewater threat scenario; you could replace them with e.g. a single PPC per arc plus power amplifiers just as well.

On a side note we also have to downgrade the number of field kitchens at any tech level by one as i just casually noticed in TM.

P.S. might do BV and cost at some point, not now...