Q&A · 30:12-31:25

How Malta-sized carriers could have changed the Cold War fleet

A viewer asks whether Malta could have matched the Midway class's longevity, prompting a counterfactual British jet-carrier service life.

Carrier Air Groups Cold War Falklands War Fleet Air Arm Malta Class Aircraft Carriers

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Question

Could well-maintained Malta-class carriers have remained in service into the 1980s or 1990s like the Midway class?

Short answer

Yes; their size and late-1940s completion date could plausibly have supported 30 to 40 years of jet-age service.

Notes

HMS Hermes and the Audacious class provide the comparisons for a Malta air group of Phantoms, Buccaneers, Sea Kings, and fixed-wing airborne early warning aircraft. This is explicitly counterfactual, but the service lives of built carriers make continued operation into the 1980s or 1990s plausible.