Carrier Expeditionary Air Wing

Carrier Expeditionary Air Wing (CVW)
The Carrier Expeditionary Air Wings (CVW) are formed by drawing on RAN Fleet Air Arm units to make the Air Wing to embark on the RAN's Aircraft Carriers, the centre of the Expeditionary Strike Groups. There is no definitive structure, as each Air Wing can be adapted and mixed to meet operational needs at any one time, however there is a basic model structure that is used as a reference point. The typical structure of a CVW amounts to around 100 aircraft.

Rotation
Each operational carrier embarks it's air wing as it becomes operational. No aircraft or air units are attached to any particular warship on a permananent basis. With the RAN's three part force generation cycle there are three carriers operational and three carriers readying at any one time, along with three carriers in the repair/regeneration cycle. As the repair/regeneration cycle does not require an air wing, that means there are six air wings formed at any one time. Three will be operational and three in the readying phase. It is then there fore expected that each of the three Fleet Air and Space Forces will put forward one operational and one readying carrier expeditionary air wings at any one time. This allows for a war time surge of six operational carrier expeditionary air wings if need be.

Structure

 * One Strike Fighter Squadron - 12 x F/A-33
 * Primarily for Air to Air Roles
 * One Strike Fighter Squadron - 12 x F/A-33
 * Primarily for Air to Ground Roles
 * One Attack Fighter Squadron - 8 x A-12
 * Primarlily for Air to Ground, Deep Strike roles
 * One Multi-Role UCAV Squadron - 10 x MQ-xx
 * Primarily for Recon/Strike Roles
 * One Maritime Combat Support Squadron - 8 x S-2020ASW
 * Multi Role Maritime Squadron for Airborne Sensors, Air to Air Refueling, Secondary Strike
 * One Electronic Combat Detachment - 6 EA-33
 * Electronic Combat and Strike
 * One Light Attack Detachment - 6 OV-101
 * Ground Support and Special Ops
 * One AEWC Detachment - 6 E-2020AEW
 * Airborne Early Warning and Control
 * One ELINT Detachment - 2 x E-2020ELINT
 * Electronic and SIgnals Intelligence and support
 * One Fleet Logisitic Support Detachment - 2 x C-2020COD
 * Cargo onboard delivery
 * One Recon Drone Detachment - 4 x MQ-9
 * Persitant Reconaissance, opportunistic strike
 * One Tilt-Rotor Sea Combat Squadron - 6 x MV-15
 * SAR, CSAR, NSW, MCM, VERTREP
 * One Helicopter Maritime Strike Squadron - 8 x SH-90
 * ASW, ASuW, Ground Support