Did aircraft make the Lexington battlecruiser role redundant?

Did aircraft make the Lexington-class battlecruiser's reconnaissance role redundant?

Not by themselves; cruisers and carriers scouted better, but American battle-fleet strategy and treaty limits were the decisive reasons not to retain the original battlecruisers.

Aircraft alone did not make the Lexington-class battlecruisers obsolete as scouts. Light cruisers and carriers were better reconnaissance platforms because a large battlecruiser was conspicuous and liable to be drawn into action. The deeper American problem was strategic: a fleet built around a decisive Pacific battle gained less from a commerce-oriented battlecruiser than the globally deployed Royal Navy did. Treaty limits then forced a choice between battleships and battlecruisers, making carrier conversion more attractive than retaining the original type.