Nascovo-Class Fleet Carrier
| Name: | Nascovo-Class |
|---|---|
| Type: | Fleet Power Projection and Defense |
| Builders: | Consolidated Shipyards, Safe Haven Naval Yard, Others |
| Operators: | Umbrian Republic Navy |
| Completed: | 87 |
| Lost: | 23 |
| Length: | 1320 m |
| Width: | 380 m |
| Height: | 340 m |
| Power Supply: | 8 x Orvieto Heavy Industries DG-9x Fusion Powerplant |
| Sub - Light Propulsion | 2 x Fulmin Propulsion Gz-Series Ion Engine (Primary), 2 x Fulmin Propulsion Gr-Series Ion Engines (Secondary), 4 x Fulmin Propulsion 3Mu Ion Engine Nacelles (Secondary) |
| Supra-Light Propulsion: | 1 x SSE 37-G2 supra-luminal drive core (Primary), 1 x SSE 32-d supra-luminal drive core (Secondary) |
| Endurance: | Fuel for 24 lightspeed jumps, 6 months of provisions for the crew |
| Crew: | 1,460 officers, 11,412 enlisted |
| Sensors: | 4 x Cianave Systems Gamma-12 Active Sensor Arrays, 8 x Cianave Systems 64r Passive Sensor Arrays |
| Armament: | 16 x 2 150 mm rail guns in double turrets, 32 x 1 76mm dual-purpose rail guns in single turrets, 36 x 3 30 mm rotary point defense cannons in triple barreled weapons stations, 216 x vertical launch cells with a configurable loadout of up to 1100 missiles depending on mission requirements |
| Armor | 250 mm titanium plate armor, 100 mm electric reactive armor layer, 100 mm double hull cavity, 75 mm composite armor |
| Spacecraft Facilities: | Capacity to support 10 squadrons of fighters and 30 shuttles (150 craft total) |
As visionary leaders demonstrated the potential of starfighters to serve as a powerful striking arm of the fleets, the Umbrian Republic Navy concluded that their existing carriers were too small. Individually, these vessels housed too few fighters for the massed wave tactics which were required for them to damage larger warships. Additionally, fielding large numbers of the poorly armed and armored ships in battle was seen as a liability.
The URN's Naval Architecture Board began to explore the creation of larger and larger vessels capable of carrying sufficient numbers of the small craft, while also having the firepower and defensive systems needed to keep themselves safe in battle.
After a few years of trial and error iteration, the URN approved a design for what would become the Nascovo-Class.
Narrower and taller than many of the Republic's warships, the fleet carrier was built around a central shaft which connected the forward superstructure to the rear drive core. A pair of cavernous hanger bays would be built above and below this strong central structure, while maintenance shops and fuel and munitions storage areas would connect the hangers to the bow. This would give the vessel a sleek, blade-like shape, making it easy to distinguish the carriers in the URN's anchorages and fleet assembly areas.
These features would give the Nascovos the ability to carry ten squadrons of fighters, compared to their predecessor, the Skiere-class, which could only carry three. They would also have a greater emphasis placed on armored protection, with the Nascovos capable of sustaining heavy fire before their defenses failed.
While the Magistracy of the Navy was confident that the Nascovo met all of their requirements, convincing the Senate to fund construction in sufficient quantities was a challenge. Unwilling to commit heavily to a new and unproven platform, the Senate only approved funding for the construction of twelve ships in 31144.
The URN's leadership would grumble, but without the needed support, they accepted that they would have to lay the groundwork for any further expansion in carrier numbers.
As the first vessels began to enter service, the Magistrate of the Navy was able to demonstrate the reduced operating costs of the Nascovos when compared to their predecessors, and requested another eighteen be built in exchange for mothballing forty of the Skiere-class light carriers, a proposal that would pay for itself in the span of a decade.
This compromise was sufficient to move the Armed Services Committee to move on the proposal, and the URN's shipyards geared up to produce the additional vessels, targeting six ships a year for three years.
By 31148, twenty-two of the Nascovos had been constructed, but only fourteen of those ships were in commission and combat ready. As a result, the class saw limited combat during the first few battles of the war, where the URN relied on numerical superiority in a bid to drive off the Ascomanni.
It would not take long for the class to see action however. In a number of minor skirmishes, the Nascovos proved to be up to the task of punishing overextended Ascomanni ships.
Tragically, these victories would lead to a number of high profile disasters. The URN's commanders, buoyed by this early success, would push the Nascovos into the line of battle, where they would fare poorly under concentrated enemy fire.
Worse still, the URN had much to learn about large scale aviation operations, and a number of the class would be ripped apart by massive internal explosions brought about by the combination of enemy action and sloppy fuel or munition handling.
These hard earned lessons would quickly be integrated into newer ships, which had reinforced bulkheads to separate out their magazines and fuel storage silos and better structural integrity in the large open hanger bays.
As the war dragged on, the Nascovos would become an integral part of the Republic military's attempts to rebuff the alien assault. Perhaps most dramatically would be the URN Terra's role in the Battle of Leciri, where the carrier entered the planet's atmosphere and used its guns and starfighters to provide close air support while the Umbrian Republic Army attempted to evacuate the planet's civilian population.