The Hailong (Sea Dragon) Class Aircraft Carrier is an absolutely ancient ship, being in service before the 23rd century, now more than 150 years old, first commissioned during the People's Republic of China era, previously named after that administration's notable admirals, renamed to the Hailong and other more generic names after the democratic reformations, and the founding of the Commonwealth.
The ship is a standard flattop design with a fusion engine, capable of fielding multiple multirole fighters and drones. Due to its age, the carrier is difficult to operate and much slower than its counterparts on Earth, Atlantica, Hawking, and New Austin. It is kept afloat by pricey annual maintenance and bare minimum software updates. Its airfleet is also understrength, all of the Hailong's in the Commonwealth's possession operating less than half of its designed capacity. Alarming documents have revealed that the Hailong may even be outclassed by the UES' Erunoc Class Aircraft Carrier, an Aos Si nation that is on a much lower technological level compared to the CotD.
The Hailong's sorry state can be primarily attributed to the CotD's political priorities. After the democratic reformation, the CotD drastically changed its policy towards the Aos Si and geopolitics on the planet, cutting down much of its power projection, prioritizing small naval vessels that can deal with piracy efficiently instead. While the aircraft are modern, they are low in number, as any remaining funds for the navy have been diverted to social and cultural projects, along with space infrastructure and defense for the HFR as a whole.
The Hailong represents the high point of human power projection on Zhuque, ancient, yet still functional. However, with the increasingly volatile geopolitical changes on the planet between the Aos Si nations, the Commonwealth is in desperate need of a modern aircraft carrier. Better yet, it needs a complete soul-search, whether its pacifist attitude can truly maintain a sustainable peace on the planet between humans and the Aos Si.
The ship is a standard flattop design with a fusion engine, capable of fielding multiple multirole fighters and drones. Due to its age, the carrier is difficult to operate and much slower than its counterparts on Earth, Atlantica, Hawking, and New Austin. It is kept afloat by pricey annual maintenance and bare minimum software updates. Its airfleet is also understrength, all of the Hailong's in the Commonwealth's possession operating less than half of its designed capacity. Alarming documents have revealed that the Hailong may even be outclassed by the UES' Erunoc Class Aircraft Carrier, an Aos Si nation that is on a much lower technological level compared to the CotD.
The Hailong's sorry state can be primarily attributed to the CotD's political priorities. After the democratic reformation, the CotD drastically changed its policy towards the Aos Si and geopolitics on the planet, cutting down much of its power projection, prioritizing small naval vessels that can deal with piracy efficiently instead. While the aircraft are modern, they are low in number, as any remaining funds for the navy have been diverted to social and cultural projects, along with space infrastructure and defense for the HFR as a whole.
The Hailong represents the high point of human power projection on Zhuque, ancient, yet still functional. However, with the increasingly volatile geopolitical changes on the planet between the Aos Si nations, the Commonwealth is in desperate need of a modern aircraft carrier. Better yet, it needs a complete soul-search, whether its pacifist attitude can truly maintain a sustainable peace on the planet between humans and the Aos Si.