Q&A · 3:12:36-3:12:59

Why multihull carriers lose too much internal volume

Any stability gain comes at the cost of the continuous hull volume needed for the hangar, magazines, fuel, and machinery.

Question

Why is a multihull design unattractive for an aircraft carrier?

Short answer

It gives up too much internal volume for hangars, weapons, fuel, and machinery.

Notes

A multihull carrier may gain stability, but the design sacrifices too much contiguous internal volume to justify the trade. The flight deck is only one demand: the hull must also contain the hangar, aviation weapons, fuel, and engineering plant. Splitting the displacement among several hulls makes those spaces harder to arrange. Carrier design favors a large continuous volume beneath the flight deck over an abstract stability advantage.