Saratoga Class

Background:
The Saratoga Class Ultra Carrier is Earth's Next Generation Ultra Carrier, which is preceded by the Odyssey Class Ultra Carrier. It will be the largest ultra carrier and the largest starship Earth Fleet has ever constructed, with a width of 2km-3km and a length of up to 5km. The Saratoga Class is expected to enter production in the late 2240s, with the first ship, the UFES Saratoga, to be commissioned in 2249. The ship's design is similar to one of the Earth Navy Aircraft Carrier, the UFES Gerald R. Ford, design. 4 ships have been planned so far, with each ship costing up to $20.7 trillion E$ (Earth Dollars). An estimated 24 to 30 ships will be built in total. Each ship will have an estimated life span of 120 years. The Saratoga Class is developed to counter the increasingly lethal Communist Union threat and to promote World Peace among the galaxies.

Design:
The Saratoga Class will be able to use both dark matter drive and warp drive to increase efficiency in its propulsion, unlike previous classes. It will have a significantly smaller bridge towards the rear of the ship to provide more space for more defence platforms so they will be able to target enemy ships without the bridge blocking. There will be more defence platforms built on the sides of the ship for greater combat power. There will also be a secondary bridge located at the bottom of the ship with another Captain (on usual occasions, he/she will be in reserve) for back up in case the main bridge is destroyed. The ship will also have smaller crew quarters for more space to accommodate more aircraft and increases the size of the hangar bays, thus increasing the maximum capacity from 300 to 550 aircraft. The ship will also have additional phaser banks with wide-beam abilities installed for greater combat power. It will also be fitted with new multi-purpose torpedoes which have just entered mass production. The ships will also have improved dilithuim and nuclear reactors for more power and improved shields will also be installed for greater protection. GATO experts stated that the Saratoga Class is "invincible" and displays a huge influence as a "power projection asset" to smaller nations. State-of-the-art radar and sensors will be fitted onto the ship's bridge. The ship will have a radar range of up to 350 light years and a sensor range of up to 460 light years away. The ship's sensor systems are also able to detect and track cloaked starships, although it is unable to differentiate the cloaked target from friend or foe.

Construction:
The first two ships, the UFES Saratoga and the UFES Midway, are being constructed at the Earth Fleet Naval Shipyard in the colony Star Trek. The different parts of the ships will be manufactured elsewhere before being shipped to the shipyard. The UFES Saratoga is expected to be completed in 2249 and the UFES Midway in 2250. The third and fourth ships have yet to receive funding from Congress yet and will most likely be completed in 2252 and 2253 respectively. The Saratoga Class will be the first class of starships to utilize the new Earth Mk14 Ship building system which can build starships effectively and efficiently.

Propulsion:
The Saratoga Class Ultra Carriers will be powered by 2 dilithuim-powered reactors and 2 uranium-powered reactors, providing power of up to 500 (MV). It will be capable of travelling up to Warp 12 and has a maximum impulse speed of impulse 14. 4 warp nacelles, along with 2 warp drives, both dark matter and warp drives.

Armament and protection:
The Saratoga Class has a huge array of weapon systems and defense systems to protect itself against missiles, torpedoes, hostile aircraft and starships. It has multiple defense platforms with built-in phaser banks, torpedo launchers and fastruptor cannons to shoot down incoming missiles/aircraft. The Red-tailed phaser banks, the standard phaser bank for all Earth Combat Starships, has a range of around 50 light years and has a damage percentage of up to 24% per beam. It has recently been upgraded to have the wide-beam capability to increase combat power against large-scale attacks by multiple smaller-sized warships. The ships also carry Quandom and Criston torpedoes for defensive and offensive capabilities respectively. The Quandom torpedo is a short-range, area-damage torpedo with a range of up to 35 light years. The Criston torpedo is a long-range, anti-starship torpedo with a range of up to 75 light years. Both torpedoes are fired using the 8-cell torpedo launcher built into the defense platforms. Fastruptor cannons are for last-ditch attempts to intercept and destroy incoming projectiles such as missiles, aircraft and torpedoes. It has a range of up to 12 light years and is also fitted on the defense platforms. The ships are protected with Mk5 Shield System and Mk6 Egg Shields, which are effective against incoming torpedoes, missiles and phasers. For countermeasures, the ships are equipped with jamming sensors to confuse and detonate missiles before they hit the ship. The ship can also launch the Mk5 Chaff system to reduce the chances of missiles from striking the ship. According to Earth Fleet tradition, each ultra carrier carries at least 50 nuclear warheads, each capable of causing significant damage to major population centers. However, due to Earth's Constitution and the Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD) Treaty, the weapons cannot be used in warfare unless absolute necessary, which is to be authorized by Congress and Pentagon.

Carrier Air Wing:
Each carrier has four carrier air wings of up to 1,200 aircraft. The aircraft include:

At least 220 C-19 Stealth Bombers

At least 245 C-18 Stealth Fighters

At least 20 Pelican Dropships

Not more than 45 Concorde Class Shuttles

10 Longbow Class transport vessels for surface-attack (number may be varied)

At least 85 drones, ranging from anti-submarine warfare, to precision strike missions.

Flight deck and aircraft facilities:
The Saratoga Class will have a 3.9 km long flight deck built into the starship, with 5 flight decks in total, each optimized for its own roles. The first and second flight deck below is used for reserve and to shelter aircraft, while the third flight deck above the second one is the main flight deck. The fourth and fifth above the third one are used for reserve too, occasionally launching stealth bombers or fighters from there if the third flight deck is full. There are no hangar bays for the strike fighters and bombers, except for 20 small hangars to accommodate the 10 Longbow Class transport vessels and to allow troops to board the transports without having to cross the flight deck. Deck facilities will include several aircraft cranes to lift aircraft up for maintenance or maintenance checks. There will be 5 to 6 elevators, each can accommodate up to 10 aircraft, to move aircraft up and down the 5 flight decks. 220 aircraft-handling vehicles will also be carried to move the aircraft around for launching or maintenance.

Strike Groups:
There isn't any official statement for the strike groups of the Saratoga Class yet but this is the main components of an Earth Ultra Carrier Strike Group:

12 FFX Frigates, 3 on each compass angle (North, South, East, West)

24 Nautilus Class Assault Cruisers, 6 on each compass angle

12 Ranger Class Guided Missile Cruisers, 3 on each compass angle

28 Eneterprise A Consituation Class Heavy Cruisers, 7 on each compass angle

4 Fearless Class Mine Sweeping/Multi-Role Starships, 1 on each compass angle

16 Resilient Class Supply Ships for Fleet Replenishment duties, 4 on each compass angle