Killing Carriers

[stilleto69]

I''ve always gone for the following:
For the Battle of GIUK Gap (Late Nov): NATO attacked with CV-59 USS Forrestal, CV-60 USS Saratoga, CV-66 USS America, CVN-69 USS Dwight D Eisenhower & HMS Illustrious. NATO sunk the CV Kusnetsov, CVGH Kiev & CVGH Baku.
The Soviets manage to counter using various tactics from massed attacks to just plain luck. The result is the Forrestal is damaged by AS-4s (Flight Deck, Port Elevator, 1 Starboard Elevator & Arrester Gear) & the HMS Illustrious is sunk. Forrestal sails to Newport News for repairs escorted by the Saratoga. Thus NATO only has 2 carriers in the North Atlantic.
Saratoga is ordered to report to the Med to replace the John F Kennedy after it was damaged by a Shkval torpedo (thanks Chico)
CVN-71 USS Theodore Roosevelt ordered to replace the Saratoga, and the RN orders the HMS Ark Royal to replace the Illustrious. Thus NATO Strike Fleet Atlantic is down to 4 carriers for the Battle of the Norwegian Sea.

Battle of the Norwegian Sea (12/3-12/24): NATO attacks w/CV-66 USS America, CVN-69 USS Dwight D Eisenhower, CVN-71 USS Theodore Roosevelt & HMS Ark Royal. The Soviets again counter this time by using a variety of new "superweapons", i.e. Kh-31 AAMs to down NATO AEW & AWACS aircraft & SS-N-27 missiles against Aegis cruisers & destroyers (thanks again Chico), but the result is the same, NATO wins, but at the cost of the America (Damaged by AS-4s off the coast of Norway) & HMS Ark Royal (Damaged by AS-4s just south of Norway) America docks in Tromoso, Norway.

Thus after 2 "successful" battles NATO Strike Force Atlantic commander recommends a "pause" to allow his forces to rest and a chance to reevaluate NATO's tactics.

Sorry for the rambling, but that pretty much how I manage to explain how NATO Strike Force Atlantic came to be without the Soviets using nuclear weapons.