CVA-01 was expected to displace around 60,000 tons and use catapults and arresting gear, but the programme was cancelled before construction. The Royal Navy then developed an allowed cruiser concept into the through-deck cruiser that became the Invincible class. Its helicopter-heavy anti-submarine role, large radar, missile battery, ski jump, and Sea Harriers let the service retain a form of fixed-wing carrier aviation. In this interpretation, both Labour and Conservative governments praised the workaround because abandoning carriers altogether carried political costs. The adaptation kept fixed-wing aviation alive, with operating limits that a full-sized conventional carrier would not have shared.
Chapter · 22:15-24:45
From cancelled CVA-01 to the Invincible class
After CVA-01 was cancelled, the Royal Navy preserved fixed-wing aviation through the through-deck cruiser that became Invincible.