Naval Historywith Dr. Alex

Q&A · 4:57:21-4:57:42

Why battlecruisers made the best carrier conversions

Battlecruisers provided enough hull size for effective carrier conversions, with the Lexington class among the strongest examples despite its inefficiencies.

Aircraft CarriersBattlecruisersCarrier ConversionsLexington Class Aircraft CarriersNaval Architecture
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Question

Which existing warships were best suited to aircraft-carrier conversion?

Short answer

Battlecruisers; the Lexington-class conversions were inefficient in some respects but still among the best converted carriers.

Notes

Battlecruisers offered enough size to be strong carrier-conversion candidates. The Lexington-class conversions are the example used to challenge the suggestion that converted ships could not make good carriers. They were inefficient in some respects, yet still ranked among the best conversions in this assessment.