Several Lexington dimensions remained close to the battlecruiser design because the ships had to fit through the Panama Canal. The United States faced two-ocean obligations before it possessed the resources for two independent fleets. The canal locks imposed hard limits on length and beam. British passage through the Suez Canal offers a useful comparison: a draft problem could sometimes be solved by offloading fuel and refueling after transit, while a ship too large for a lock could not pass at all.
Notable Point · 27:24-29:34
The Panama Canal sets the Lexingtons' design boundaries
Panamax dimensions mattered because the US Navy needed to shift scarce capital ships between two oceans through canal locks.