[Olefin]

I have always said that the authors didnt know how to handle naval matters - modules like Med Cruise (sorry but 18 men cant run a submarine 24/7 - its just not possible), Satellite Down (the last battle makes no sense - if she still has missiles on board that can be fired then why didnt they use them?), and the complete destruction of the US fleet to the point that there is nothing left on the West Coast at all?

And also they dont understand the difference between a fleet being shattered and a fleet being completely sunk.

After Leyte Gulf the Japanese fleet was shattered - but they had dozens of ships still left in commission and were still a dangerous force - however the days of Japan controlling the oceans was over.

There is a much more probable fate for the USN that still works within the game boundaries - a force that no longer put together fleets and control whole oceans but is lucky to be able to put together small task forces like you see in the Indian Ocean and during the evacuation from Europe. And one where there are still lots of ships left afloat but its more like what the Japanese fleet had by August of 1945 - i.e. where most of their navy was either too damaged, too low on ammo or too low on fuel to be of much use. With them having on both coasts a small but effective force of submarines, destroyers and other craft left but not one that could control an ocean, at least not for a long time to come

Meaning that instead of worrying about enemy fleet actions you need instead to do things like protect fishing boats and coastal commerce. Given that rationale for what you need a navy for now, even if major USN combatants are still around and still able to fight, you really would be better off using their crews and what fuel you have to keep cutters and patrol boats going and only use the majors if really needed - like in A River Runs Thru It when they used one of their destroyers for fire support.

Heck just the USN having very few missiles left would make them a much diminished force - read "The Seventh Carrier" sometime - its a series of books where a Chinese missile defense system being launched means that nothing jet or rocket powered can fly and suddenly the USN, with the exception of a few battleships and heavy cruisers, is reduced to ships that only have a single naval gun as their only weapon and are completely helpless before old WWII ships that still have their full complement of naval guns. It would be much the same here - a Ticonderoga class cruiser without any missiles left to fire is not really that effective a ship to use what little is left of your naval fuel to keep active.

You would get a much better bang for your buck using that fuel to keep transport ships and patrol ships and coast guard cutters going - especially considering that the only real effective fleet in the world, which is the French one, has more than enough to do just trying to keep France from being inundated by refugees, guarding against attacks by pirates on what is left of their commercial sea traffic and supplying their forces in Africa and the Middle East.