Naval Historywith Dr. Alex

Q&A · 2:06:34-2:07:20

Why a larger carrier cannot use unlimited aircraft

A 107,000-ton carrier is physically plausible, but flight-deck organization makes an air group much above roughly 96 aircraft self-defeating.

Aircraft CarriersCarrier AviationFlight Deck OperationsNaval AviationShip Design
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Question

How impractical is an aircraft carrier displacing roughly 107,000 tons at full load?

Short answer

The ship is feasible, but operating much more than about 96 aircraft creates deck and organizational congestion that can erase the benefit of the larger air group.

Notes

The displacement itself is secondary to the aircraft the ship must operate and how they move through the deck cycle. The practical sweet spot is near 96 aircraft because larger air groups create disproportionate problems in spotting, launching, recovering, servicing, and coordination. Beyond that point, extra hull and aircraft can reduce usable sortie generation.