Parilla-class aircraft carrier
 RS Angel on my Shoulder (left) and Burdened Souls Still Unbroken (right) in 1977
| |
| Class overview | |
|---|---|
| Name: | Parilla-class aircraft carrier |
| Builders: | Ardiaei Constructs |
| Operators: |
 Navy of the Syaran Republic |
| Preceded by: | Asakumo-class |
| Succeeded by: | Chryse-class (Never produced) |
| In commission: | 1961-1993 |
| Planned: | 2 |
| Completed: | 2 |
| Cancelled: | 0 |
| Lost: | 1 |
| Retired: | 1 |
| Preserved: | 0 |
| General characteristics | |
| Type: | Aircraft carrier |
| Displacement: | 33,000 tons |
| Length: | 265 meters |
| Beam: | 51.2 meters |
| Draft: | 8.6 meters |
| Propulsion: |
|
| Speed: | 32 knots |
| Range: | 12,000 kilometers |
| Armament: | 8 x 100mm AA guns |
| Aircraft carried: | 40 |
The Parilla-class aircraft carriers were a class of Aircraft carriers built by the Republic of Syara. They were the only aircraft carriers ever fielded by the Navy of the Syaran Republic after the Siduri War and as of 2022 remain the last carriers ever built by Syara.
Following the end of the Great War Era in Tyran and the Broken Years, the Syaran Admiralty identified the need for a renewed naval force capable of preserving Syaran autonomy and enforcing Syaran maritime interests. Although the Republic did not wish to reassert itself as a major naval power as it had in years prior, there was concern the Republic Navy had been left too weak during the Broken Years and would be unable to effectively protect Syara from the other major naval powers of the world. The response was the Parilla-class aircraft carriers, first envisioned in 1952 as class of four carriers to be built between 1955-1962. Zovahr later reduced this number to two, both as a way of preventing the image of Syaran re-armarment and also to acknowledge the difficulty of the task. The Parilla-class would be the largest ships ever built by the Republic's shipyards, and the largest since the construction of the Zovahr-class battleship in 1935.
The two ships were constructed between 1956-1961 and were commissioned into the fleet after completed, christened the Angel on my Shoulder and the Burdened Souls Still Unbroken. Both ships weighed in at 33,000 tons and could carry 40 aircraft. Angel on my Shoulder was assigned to the Northern Fleet and was stationed out of Sena, while Burdened Souls Still Unbroken was stationed out of Moddra. Both ships saw intermittent service during the Granika Border War and Hayren War, where they occasionally carried out strikes against Ruvelka. By 1977 there were ongoing discussions on replacing the Parilla-class; although they had only been in service for 16 years the design of the class had been outstripped by technological developments. In particular their was a desire for a new class of carriers that could better support the recently acquired Nephele fighter aircraft; the relatively small size of the Parilla-class limited the number of Nepheles that could be deployed from the carriers.
The intended replacement, the Chryse-class, was selected for production in 1982 but was never completed due to the outbreak of the Refusal War. During the Refusal Crisis Angel on my Shoulder was docked in Moddra and quickly seized by the Wardens with the support of most of the crew. The Burdened Souls Still Unbroken was on maneuvers in the Nuadan Ocean during the crisis and a fight broke out aboard the ship between the Warden crew and Royalists supporters. The Wardens managed to gain control of the ship and attempted to sail for Scitaria. They were intercepted by the Royalist Navy and the Warden crew scuttled her to prevent her capture. Angel on my Shoulder served throughout the war for the Wardens, flying air support for Warden operations and was damaged several times during the conflict. Following the establishment of the Syaran Commonality Navy there was discussion about her continued service, but damage sustained during the fighting and a shift in doctrine led her to being decommissioned in 1993 after spending several years in port for repairs. She was broken up for scrap in 1995.