Q&A ยท 1:01:34-1:02:36

A third carrier hull as a missile cruiser

It would create an exceptionally powerful global-presence ship, but one huge cruiser would not materially fix the fleet's wider strategic position.

Question

Would converting a third Queen Elizabeth-class carrier hull into a cruiser have improved the Royal Navy's strategic position?

Short answer

It would create an exceptionally powerful global-presence ship, but one huge cruiser would not materially fix the fleet's wider strategic position.

Notes

Converting a third Queen Elizabeth-class carrier hull would produce an enormous missile cruiser. The imagined armament gives it roughly three times the firepower of a Daring-class destroyer and a very large Tomahawk load. Such a ship would make a dramatic military and diplomatic statement wherever it arrived. One concentrated asset, however, would leave the Royal Navy's wider problems of fleet numbers, availability, and global commitments in place.