March 3, 2014 -- (TRN) -- In response to a Russian invasion, the United States has sent an aircraft carrier strike group toward the Black Sea to be able to respond to developments on the Crimean peninsula of Ukraine. The super-carrier USS George H.W. Bush plus seventeen other ships and three submarines passed through the Aegean sea this afternoon. The George H.W. Bush is carrying 90 aircraft including helicopters of various types, and several squadrons of F/A-18 Hornets, some of the most advanced combat aircraft in the world. The submarines each have twenty four missile silos, with each silo housing a missile armed with eight separate nuclear warheads which operate as MIRVs (Multiple Independent Re-Entry Vehicles) that can be independently targeted. The George H.W. Bush is the first and only aircraft carrier in the world that has successfully sea-launched and landed an unmanned X-47b Stealth Drone which can be used for long term surveillance or for offensive attacks. The number of ships accompanying the George H.W. Bush in this strike group is significant: 17 ships and 3 submarines. Aircraft carrier Strike Groups are assembled as-needed so there is no particular number of accompanying vessels. However, the graphic below gives readers a sense of the types of vessels that accompany a U.S. Carrier which is being sent into battle. The arrival of the USS George H.W. Bush increases the military might facing the Russians by an order of magnitude. This one strike group has more firepower than the entire Ukrainian air force and, in fact, more total fire power than all the countries bordering the Black Sea combined, with the exception of Russia itself. The carrier has not actually entered the Black Sea and may not be able to. The Montreux Convention Regarding Regime of the Straits forbids ships whose sole purpose is launching of aircraft, from passing into the Black Sea. Russia was able to bypass this restriction by pointing out that its aircraft carrier(s) performed operations other than launching aircraft. As a state bordering the Black Sea, Russia got away with this; the U.S. may not. Even though Turkey is a NATO ally, they retain absolute legal authority over the strait of Bosporus and it will be Turkeys call on whether or not to allow the ship into the Black Sea. Entry into that sea is NOT necessary for the George Bush to be 100% effective. All of the Ukraine and, of course, Crimea, is already well-within operational range of the aircraft on the George Bush if it simply remains in the Aegean as shown on the map below.
Posted on: Tue, 04 Mar 2014 22:04:39 +0000
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