Naval Historywith Dr. Alex

Q&A · 2:54:45-2:57:35

The Royal Navy's intended carrier replacement ladder

The planned fleet-carrier programme would retire pre-war conversions before deciding how many post-war Audacious- and Malta-class ships to sustain.

Aircraft CarriersAudacious Class Aircraft CarriersCentaur Class Aircraft CarriersForce StructureIllustrious Class Aircraft CarriersMalta Class Aircraft CarriersNaval ProcurementRoyal Navy
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Question

Which older Royal Navy carriers would Audacious- and Malta-class ships have replaced after the war?

Short answer

They would continue the planned retirement of the pre-war carriers, leaving the modern fleet-carrier classes to form the core force.

Notes

In the hypothetical completion of four Audacious- and four Malta-class carriers after the war, those eight ships would form the principal force while older carriers retired. The earlier replacement sequence had linked Ark Royal, the Illustrious group and the Implacables to the retirement of Eagle, Argus, Hermes, Furious, Courageous and Glorious. A different peacetime continuation could retain or repeat more of those intermediate designs. One suggested arrangement has nine fleet carriers in three squadrons, each supported by a Unicorn-type aviation support ship. These are alternative fleet-development possibilities whose outcome depends on the interval before another war. Jet aircraft would also push the development of angled flight decks.