Stalingrad belongs alongside cruisers, destroyers, sensors, and a carrier in this proposed force. In good weather, information from carrier aircraft lets the surface elements operate farther out. In bad weather, the ships close around the carrier and become more difficult to penetrate. The carrier supplies reconnaissance and search capability while the escorts provide layered protection. Together they form a worked-up North Atlantic task group with scouting, screening, and heavy surface firepower.
Notable Point · 18:31-21:19
A layered Soviet carrier battle group
The class makes most sense as one layer in a force that scouts with aircraft and concentrates its surface ships when weather closes in.