"Carrier-based aviation, because it can bring firepower to bear on a target without getting permission to land somewhere." Such flexibility is one of the essential the reason for the further development of the aircraft carriers.

The strongest argument in favor of the aircraft carrier is that no aircraft carrier built during or since World War II has been sunk in combat. This issue of aircraft survivability demonstrates the strength of the assets of the Air Force and Navy. The counter argument has been that the weakness of a carrier is that does not have to be sunk; it simply has to be damaged to the point where it can no longer sustain flight operations. With that said,

being that the nuclear threat has been diminished, at least in terms of our Post-Cold War status, the Weapons of Mass Destruction have become crude and simple weapons, of chemical and biological nature. Such weapons possess the killing power of nuclear weapons and are delivered by means of "row-boats and Ryder trucks."

Critics speak of alternatives to the aircraft carrier. Deployable aviation, non-carrier, must have airfields to operate from. America has conventionally depended upon its allies to provide bases for its deployed land-based forces. In more recent years American forces have complied with the "whims and requirements" of the host nation's government.

Aircraft carriers have survived to this date because of the contribution they have historically made in the vast majority of America's conflicts. From supplying air power to otherwise unreachable locations, deterrence through forward presence, evacuating hostages of terrorism or disaster or by using its evolving internal assets on peacekeeping missions, the aircraft carrier continues to provide flexible solutions to America's overseas problems. In conclusion, an historical argument for the continued development and employment of the modern aircraft carrier exists.

are unable to fight again for several months while undergoing repair has little historical fact to support it.

Khalilzad, Zalmay Sources of Conflict in the 21st Century, Regional Futures and U.S. Strategy. Santa Monica, CA, RAND, 1998.

Snow, Donald M. When America Fights, The Uses of U.S. Military Force. Washington, D.C., CQ Press, 2000.

national will in troubled areas on the other side of the planet. Only an aircraft carrier battle group conducting day and night fl

Some common words found in the essay are:
War II, Post-Cold War, Bandar Abbas, Beirut Lebanon, Mass Destruction, Harry Truman, Force Navy, Power Abroad, , aircraft carrier, University Press, war ii, forward presence, world war, world war ii, air power, built world war, aircraft carriers, peacekeeping missions, carrier sunk, air force, university press, aircraft carrier battle,
Approximate Word count = 939
Approximate Pages = 4 (250 words per page double spaced)