The Ford replacement program will take decades, leaving the Nimitz class central to American naval power while future threats remain unknowable. Deterrence is difficult to quantify because success is an event that does not occur, yet peace is cheaper than war and disarmament has repeatedly failed to guarantee it. A submarine’s power comes from an adversary not knowing where it is; a carrier group instead announces that the United States is present, attentive, and backed by aircraft and escorts. That visibility makes the carrier uniquely suited to conflict management as well as combat.
Chapter · 2:11:12-2:17:56
Visible carrier deterrence and hidden submarine deterrence
Carriers deter by being conspicuously present, while submarines deter through uncertainty about an unseen ambush threat.