Archive for April, 2009
Supercarrier Class Aircraft Carriers
Aircraft carriers of the largest type are given the unofficial term “Supercarrier” generally referring to Aircraft carriers displacing over 70,000 long tons. Not many countries operate medium aircraft carriers like the Charles de Gaulle, we see more light Aircraft carriers around the 20,000 ton class like the HMS Illustrious. Supercarriers held the title along with some oil tankers as the largest ships in the world until the more recent cruise ships. The newer mammoth ships over 1000’ ft long like the Voyager class cruise ships and even larger Freedom class which are 1,020 ft. long and are more than 137,000 gross tons. MS Voyager of the Seas and the larger Queen Mary 2 are the largest ships in the world today.
The New York Times described the HMS Ark Royal in 1938 as a Supercarrier first. The unofficial classification moved to the Midway class carriers in 1943 double in tonnage 45,000 ton carriers. Then latter on post war Supercarriers migrated to the USS Forrestal proposed as standard for the United States.
The USS Forrestal displaced 60,000 tons dubbed by the American press as the first operational Supercarrier.
Some may argue that the armored Japanese carrier Shinano of World War II might be considered a Supercarrier. Possibly but she lacked some of the defining characteristics like arrestor wires, angled flight decks and most of all catapults. Her job was only an auxiliary support carrier and was never meant to be a multi-purpose fleet strike carrier like the US carriers. Like the USS Kitty Hawk, USS Forrestal class and USS Enterprise class are designated.
The Ulyanovsk of the Soviet Union would have been comparable in size the the American Supercarriers but at 40% complete they canceled her in 1991. She would have been an 85,000 ton nuclear aircraft carrier. This occurred due to post cold-war funding cuts as well as the planned sister ships to the Ulyanovsk.
We have located some of the top listing for these Supercarriers you may want to add to your collection.
You can find most all of the the Supercarriers are available in the:
Model Ship Store.
As more become available they will be added so check back often.
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 Radio Control Challenger Navy Aircraft Carrier Model  US $700.00
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 HASEGAWA 1 350 IJN AIRCRAFT CARRIER AKAGI 1941 MODEL US $399.97
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 FUJIMI 1 350 IJN AIRCRAFT CARRIER SHOKAKU MODEL KIT US $329.97
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 TAMIYA 1 350 US AIRCRAFT CARRIER ENTERPRISE MODEL KIT US $224.97
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 Fujimi 1 350 IJN Zuikaku Aircraft Carrier Model Canada US $205.91
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 TAMIYA 1 350 JAPANESE AIRCRAFT CARRIER MOGAMI MODEL KIT US $199.97
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 USS Forrestal CVA 59 Aircraft Carrier Plastic Model US $145.00
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 USS Saratoga CV 60 Aircraft Carrier Plastic Model CV60 US $145.00
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 USS Nimitz CVN 68 Aircraft Carrier Plastic Model US $145.00
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Santa Maria
The largest of the three ships The Santa Maria de la Inmaculada Concepción, The Immaculate Conception of Mary, was used by Christopher Columbus in his first voyage across the Atlantic Ocean in 1492. The Santa Maria’s master and owner was Juan de la Cosa.
Known as a carrack or “nao” The Santa Maria was about 70 feet long Columbus used her as his flagship for the expedition. There were about 40 men that manned her crew. She was constructed of wood from the Bialowieza forest from pine and oak.
Columbus’ expedition included 2 other ships of the caravel-type. The Santa Clara was the name of one of the other 2, which everyone would remember as The Nina. This means “The Girl” a joke on the name of her owner Juan Nino. Then there was the Pinta which means “The Painted” thought to refer to her excessive makeup. The three ships were second hand and never meant to be used for exploration.
La Gallega which means “The Galician” was The Santa Maria’s original name. She was constructed in Pontevedra, Galicia and her sailors knew her as Marigalante, which is Spanish for “Gallant Mary”.
The Santa Maria was the slowest of the three ships had a single deck and three masts. She performed very well in the Atlantic crossing. The old girl ran aground off what is known today as Mole Saint-Nicolas, Haiti in December of 1492 on Christmas day and was lost. Her timbers were salvaged and used to build Mole Saint-Nicolas. Originally they called it La Navidad meaning Christmas because the grounding occurred on Christmas Day.
Many believed that this historic voyage was composed of criminals but this is untrue. It is known that the Spanish Sovereigns offered amnesty to convicts who would sign up for the voyage, but only four men took up the offer: one who had killed a man in a fight, and three of his friends who then helped him escape from jail. Columbus’ crew consisted of many experienced seamen from the town of Palos and the coastal area of Galici.
Some of the crew members were also from Andalusia. The voyage money came from the syndicate of seven Genovese bankers in Seville.
There are no known reproductions of the Santa Maria but we have located some of the top models of what she is believed to have looked like. She would make a fine addition to anyone’s collection or displayed in a Hotel lobby or fine Restaurant.
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 Fully Assembled Wooden Ship Model Santa Maria 1492 US $616.12
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 Mamoli wood ship kit Santa Maria US $339.00
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 SANTA MARIA SHIP WOODEN MODEL BOAT HANDCAFT FINISHED US $290.00
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 Mantua Santa Maria wood ship kit Model 775 US $219.00
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 Artesania Latina Santa Maria wood ship kitATL 22411 US $179.00
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 MANTUA SANTA MARIA nave boat ship Sergal Panart US $178.80
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 Wooden Ship Model kit Santa Maria 1492 US $155.46
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 NEW Latina 1 65 Carabela Santa Maria NIB FREE SHIP US $129.99
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 VINTAGE SANTA MARIA WOODEN SHIP KIT US $120.00
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Soleil Royal (1670)
The flagship of Admiral Tourville the Soleil Royal (Royal Sun) was a French ship with 104 guns. They built her in Brest sometime between 1669 and 1670. She was built by an engineer named Laurent Hubac and they launched her in 1670. She sat in the Brest harbor for years. When the War of the Grand Alliance broke out in 1688 they re-commissioned her with 112 guns and 1200 men. She was the flagship of Escadre du Ponant which meant (squadron of the Ponant).
It was told she was a good sailing ship and a sight to behold with decorations that were some of most elaborate of all baroque flagships. Louis XIV chose the emblem of the “SUN” as his personal symbol.
The Soleil Royal departed Brest on 22 June 1690 as flagship of Anne Hilarion de Tourville. She spent three days in Camaret-sur-Mer waiting for favorable wind before sailing to Isle of Wight where the English fleet was thought to be anchored.
The Battle of Beachy Head (known in french as "Bataille de Béveziers") began in the morning of the 10 July 1690 when the French surprised the English ships anchored. Soleil Royal led the centre of the French formation.
The Soleil Royal left Brest May 12, 1692 in the lead of a 45 vessel fleet. By surprise they met and English and Dutch fleet 97 ships strong known as the Battle of Barfleur. Greatly outnumbered the French attacked causing the enemy to flee with huge losses.
The Soleil Royal was severely damaged in spite of the tactical victory and returned to Brest. There she was beached in Cherbourg for repairs with the Admirable and Triomphant.
The Soleil Royal met her end in the Battle of La Hougue sometime during the night June 2nd and 3rd at the Pointe Du Hommet. She was attacked by 17 ships and she did manage to repel them with artillery fire. But, a fire-ship set her stern on fire and the fire soon reached the powder rooms. Even with the population of Cherbourg coming to the rescue, there was only one survivor among the strong crew of somewhere between 883 and 950 men.
The Soleil Royal lies buried beneath a parking space next to the Arsenal today.
A beautiful ship in any collection we have located a few models for your viewing pleasure.
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 Soleil Royal Limited French Gun Ship Model 32 Replica US $699.99
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 Le soleil royal high quality wooden model wood ship 40 US $499.99
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 Soleil Royal Wooden Tall Ship Sailboat Model 36 Boat US $439.99
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 Soleil Royal Tall Ship Wooden Model Sailboat 28 Boat US $299.99
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