Aircraft carriers have transformed from wooden vessels carrying balloons to nuclear-powered ships capable of carrying numerous fixed-wing and rotary-wing aircraft. Since their inception, they have enabled naval forces to extend their air power capabilities over long distances without relying on nearby bases for aircraft operations.
During the 19th and early 20th centuries, balloon carriers were the pioneering vessels that launched manned aircraft primarily for observation purposes. The introduction of fixed-wing aircraft in 1903 was succeeded in 1910 by the inaugural flight from a US Navy cruiser's deck. Subsequently, seaplanes and support ships like HMS Engadine emerged. The progression towards flat-top vessels led to the creation of the first large fleet of ships. This advancement gained momentum in the early to mid-1920s, resulting in the deployment of ships such as Hōshō (1922), HMS Hermes (1924), Béarn (1927), and the Lexington-class aircraft carriers (1927).
Most early aircraft carriers were conversions of ships that were laid down (or had even served) as different ship types: cargo ships, cruisers, battlecruisers, or battleships. During the 1920s, several navies started ordering and building aircraft carriers that were specifically designed as such. This allowed the design to be specialized to their future role and resulted in superior ships. During the Second World War, these ships would become the backbone of the carrier forces of the US, British, and Japanese navies, known as fleet carriers.
During World War II, aircraft carriers were used on a large scale for the first time. This led to further improvements in their launch and recovery processes, resulting in different design variations. To provide air support for convoys and amphibious invasions, the USA constructed small escort carriers like the USS Bogue as a temporary solution. Later, they developed light aircraft carriers like the USS Independence, which were a larger and more militarized version of the escort carrier concept. Despite carrying similar air groups as escort carriers, light carriers had the advantage of higher speed as they were converted from cruisers under construction.
In 1903, Samuel Langley attempted to fly the Langley Aerodrome from a houseboat, but the experiment ended in failure as the aircraft crashed into the Potomac River. Despite this, the houseboat was equipped with a catapult to help provide the aerodrome with airspeed.
The first documented use of a ship for airborne operations dates back to 1806, when Lord Cochrane of the Royal Navy launched kites from the 32-gun frigate HMS Pallas to distribute propaganda leaflets. These leaflets, written in French and denouncing Napoleon Bonaparte, were attached to kites whose strings were set on fire. Once the strings burned through, the leaflets landed on French soil.
More than four decades later, on 12 July 1849, the Austrian Navy vessel SMS Vulcano was employed to release incendiary balloons. Several small Montgolfiere hot air balloons were launched to release bombs on Venice. Despite the effort being mostly unsuccessful as the balloons were pushed back over the ship by unfavourable winds, one bomb did manage to reach the city.
Following the Peninsula Campaign during the American Civil War, gas-filled balloons were utilized for reconnaissance on Confederate positions. As the battles shifted inland to densely forested areas where balloons were impractical, a coal barge named USS George Washington Parke Custis was modified to accommodate the gas generators and equipment necessary for the balloons. Professor Thaddeus S. C. Lowe, the Chief Aeronaut of the Union Army Balloon Corps, conducted his initial ascents over the Potomac River from this barge and reported the success of the first aerial mission launched from a watercraft via telegraph. Additional barges were adapted to support military balloons in the eastern waterways, although none of these vessels ventured into the open sea during the Civil War.
Balloons launched from ships led to the development of balloon carriers, or balloon tenders, during World War I, by the navies of the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Italy, Russia, and Sweden. About ten such "balloon tenders" were built, their main objective being aerial observation posts. These ships were either decommissioned or converted to seaplane tenders after the war.
The introduction of the seaplane in March 1910 paved the way for the earliest aircraft carrier design, which emerged in December 1911 with the French Navy's Foudre, the first seaplane carrier. Originally serving as a seaplane tender, this vessel housed seaplanes in hangars on the main deck and used a crane to lower them into the sea. In 1912, Foudre took part in tactical exercises in the Mediterranean. Subsequently, in November 1913, Foudre underwent further modifications, including the addition of a 10-meter flat deck for launching seaplanes.
HMS Hermes, temporarily converted as an experimental seaplane carrier in April–May 1913, was also one of the first seaplane carriers, and the first experimental seaplane carrier of the Royal Navy. She was originally laid down as a merchant ship but was converted on the building stocks to be a seaplane carrier for a few trials in 1913, before being converted again to a cruiser, and back again to a seaplane carrier in 1914. She was sunk by a German submarine in October 1914. The first seaplane tender of the US Navy was the USS Mississippi, converted to that role in December 1913.
During World War I in September 1914, the Imperial Japanese Navy seaplane carrier Wakamiya achieved the world's first effective naval-launched air raids in the Battle of Tsingtao. Using its crane, the carrier deployed four Maurice Farman seaplanes into the water, which then took off to attack German forces before being recovered from the surface.
The initial naval air raid on the Western Front took place on 25 December 1914. Twelve seaplanes from HMS Engadine, Riviera, and Empress (steamers converted into seaplane carriers) launched an attack on the Zeppelin base at Cuxhaven. While the raid did not achieve complete success, it did result in damage to a German warship. This event highlighted the viability of ship-borne aircraft attacks and underscored the strategic significance of this innovative weapon in the European theatre.
During the inter-war years, numerous cruisers and capital ships commonly carried a seaplane launched by a catapult for reconnaissance and target spotting. These seaplanes were launched via catapult and retrieved using a crane after landing in the water. Their effectiveness continued into World War II, with notable achievements early in the conflict. For instance, during the Second Battle of Narvik in 1940, the float-equipped Swordfish from HMS Warspite successfully guided the British warships' artillery, leading to the destruction of seven German destroyers and the sinking of the German submarine U-64 with bombs.
In November 1910, Eugene Ely made history as the first pilot to take off from a stationary ship. The launch occurred from a platform mounted above the forecastle of the US armoured cruiser USS Birmingham at Hampton Roads, Virginia. Following approximately five minutes in flight, he safely landed near Willoughby Spit.
On January 18, 1911, he achieved yet another milestone of being the first aviator to successfully land on a motionless ship. Departing from the Tanforan racetrack, he touched down on a makeshift platform at the rear of the USS Pennsylvania, moored at the San Francisco waterfront. The ad hoc braking mechanism of sandbags and ropes guided him to the arrestor hook and wires below. Subsequently, his plane was manoeuvred for takeoff, allowing him to depart once more.
Commander Charles Rumney Samson, Royal Navy, became the first airman to take off from a moving warship, on 9 May 1912. He took off in a Short S.38 from the battleship HMS Hibernia while she steamed at 15 kn during the Royal Fleet Review at Weymouth, England.
HMS Ark Royal is considered by many to be the first operational aircraft carrier, as it was equipped with armed seaplanes for combat and military missions. Originally constructed as a merchant vessel, it was later converted into a hybrid aircraft/seaplane carrier while still in the shipyard. Launched on 5 September 1914, the ship played a role in the Dardanelles campaign and was active throughout World War I. Due to its slow speed, it was deemed unsuitable for operations with the Grand Fleet and in the North Sea, leading to its relocation to the Mediterranean in mid-January 1915 to participate in the Gallipoli campaign.
HMS Furious was the pioneering ship to introduce the fundamental characteristics of contemporary aircraft carriers. It was the first to feature a flight deck for aircraft, albeit initially in two sections rather than a continuous full-length deck. The vessel underwent reconstruction in 1925, acquiring a full-length flight deck, and actively participated in combat missions throughout World War II. In contrast, HMS Ark Royal functioned as a seaplane carrier, lacking a conventional flight deck. Instead, the planes it transported would perform take-offs and landings on the sea, subsequently being lifted on board using shipboard cranes.
By the late 1930s, carriers around the world typically carried three types of aircraft: torpedo bombers, also used for conventional bombings and reconnaissance; dive bombers, also used for reconnaissance (in the U.S. Navy, aircraft of this type were known as "scout bombers"); and fighters for fleet defence and bomber escort duties. Because of the restricted space on aircraft carriers, all these aircraft were of small, single-engined types, usually with folding wings to facilitate storage. In the late 1930s, the Royal Navy also developed the concept of the armoured flight deck, enclosing the hangar in an armoured box. The lead ship of this new type, HMS Illustrious, was commissioned in 1940.
Before the war, President Franklin D. Roosevelt observed a lack of new aircraft carriers scheduled to join the fleet before 1944. In response, he suggested converting existing Cleveland-class cruiser hulls that had already been constructed. These conversions were meant to augment the fast carriers, as escort carriers were not fast enough to keep pace with the fleet carriers and their escorts. These converted ships were officially designated as small aircraft carriers, rather than light carriers, although they were initially classified simply as aircraft carriers until July 1943.
The Royal Navy made a similar design which served both Britain and the Commonwealth countries after World War II. One of these carriers, HMS Hermes (1959), was in use as India's INS Viraat, until it was decommissioned in 2017.
To protect Atlantic convoys, the British developed what they called Merchant Aircraft Carriers, which were merchant ships equipped with a flat deck for six aircraft. These operated with civilian crews, under merchant colours, and carried their normal cargo besides providing air support for the convoy. As there was no lift or hangar, aircraft maintenance was limited and the aircraft spent the entire trip sitting on the deck.
These ships were used temporarily until dedicated escort carriers (CVE) could be constructed in the United States. Smaller than fleet carriers, CVEs typically carried 20 to 30 aircraft, primarily for anti-submarine operations. More than 100 escort carriers were either built or converted from merchant vessels. In the US, escort carriers were constructed based on two main hull designs: one adapted from a merchant ship and the other slightly larger and faster, derived from a tanker. Apart from safeguarding convoys, they were also utilized to ferry aircraft across the ocean. Despite this, some took part in the battles to free the Philippines, notably the Battle of Samar, during which six escort carriers and their accompanying destroyers boldly engaged five Japanese battleships and forced them to retreat.
As an emergency stop-gap before sufficient merchant aircraft carriers became available, the British provided air cover for convoys using Catapult aircraft merchantmen (CAM ships). CAM ships were merchant vessels equipped with an aircraft, usually a battle-weary Hawker Hurricane, launched by a catapult. Once launched, the aircraft could not land back on the deck and had to ditch in the sea if it was not within range of land. In over two years, fewer than 10 launches were ever made, yet these flights did have some success: 6 bombers for the loss of a single pilot.
During World War II, aircraft carriers played a crucial role. The Royal Navy had a significant advantage with seven aircraft carriers at the beginning of the war, as neither the Germans nor the Italians possessed carriers. However, the vulnerability of carriers in direct combat with battleships became evident when HMS Glorious was sunk by German battlecruisers during the Norwegian campaign in 1940. The first British carrier lost in the war was HMS Courageous, which was sunk by U-29 on 17 September 1939.
In November 1940, HMS Illustrious showcased its versatility by carrying out a successful long-range strike on the Italian fleet at Taranto. This marked the start of efficient mobile aircraft strikes using short-range aircraft. The operation resulted in disabling three out of the six battleships in the harbour, with two Fairey Swordfish torpedo bombers lost from the 21 attackers. Carriers were crucial in supporting Malta, through transporting planes and safeguarding convoys dispatched to provide aid to the island under siege. The utilization of carriers thwarted the Italian Navy and German aircraft based on land from gaining control over the Mediterranean theatre.
Germany and Italy also started with the construction or conversion of several aircraft carriers, but except for the nearly finished German Graf Zeppelin and the Italian Aquila, no ship was launched.
World War II in the Pacific Ocean involved clashes between aircraft carrier fleets. Japan started the war with ten aircraft carriers, the largest and most modern carrier fleet in the world at that time. There were seven American aircraft carriers at the beginning of the hostilities, although only three of them were operating in the Pacific. The Japanese began their advance through Southeast Asia, and the sinking of Prince of Wales and Repulse by Japanese land-based aircraft proved in finality that aircraft, and aircraft carrying warships, would dominate the seas. For the first time in naval history aircraft had sunk a battleship that was maneuvering at sea and fighting back.
In April 1942, the Japanese fast carrier strike force ventured into the Indian Ocean and successfully destroyed various ships, among them the vulnerable carrier HMS Hermes (1924). Due to their limited aerial defence, smaller Allied fleets had no choice but to withdraw or face annihilation. In response, the Doolittle Raid, which involved 16 B-25 Mitchell medium bombers taking off from the USS Hornet to attack Tokyo, compelled the Japanese strike force to return to their territory.
The Battle of the Coral Sea marked the world's inaugural carrier battle, where fleets clashed solely with aircraft. It was a tactical win for the Japanese but a strategic triumph for the Allies. The Battle of Midway followed, representing the first instance in history where aircraft, rather than warships, decisively determined the outcome of a naval confrontation. In this battle, planes from three American carriers managed to sink all four Japanese carriers involved, albeit losing one of their carriers in the process. This battle is widely regarded as the pivotal moment in the Pacific War. Notably, the Japanese orchestrated this battle to lure out the elusive and troublesome American carriers.
The reign of the battleship as the primary component of a fleet finally came to an end when US carrier-borne aircraft sank the largest battleships ever built, the Japanese super battleships Musashi in 1944 and Yamato in 1945. Japan built the largest aircraft carrier of the war: Shinano, which was a Yamato-class ship converted before being halfway completed to counter the disastrous loss of four fleet carriers at Midway. She was sunk by the patrolling US submarine Archerfish while in transit shortly after commissioning, but before being fully outfitted or operational, in November 1944.
Three major post-war developments came from the need to improve the operations of jet-powered aircraft, which had higher weights and landing speeds than their propeller-powered forebears. The first jet landing on a carrier was made by Lt Cdr Eric 'Winkle' Brown who landed on HMS Ocean in the specially modified de Havilland Vampire registration LZ551/G on 3 December 1945. Brown is also the record holder for the number of carrier landings, at 2,407.
Following the successful tests, doubts persisted regarding the feasibility of regularly deploying jet aircraft from carriers. LZ551/G was transported to Farnborough for trials involving the innovative "rubber deck". Despite considerable work invested in this concept and certain performance benefits resulting from eliminating the undercarriage, it was ultimately deemed unnecessary. With the implementation of angled flight decks, jet operations from carriers were underway by the mid-1950s.
In World War II, aircraft used to land on the flight deck aligned with the ship's hull's length. Parked aircraft at the bow end of the flight deck would be behind those that had already landed. A crash barrier was erected behind the parked planes to prevent any landing aircraft from overshooting the landing area if their landing hook failed to catch the arrestor cables. Such incidents often resulted in significant damage, injuries, and even destruction of the parked aircraft.
An important development of the early 1950s was the introduction by the Royal Navy of the angled flight deck by Capt D.R.F. Campbell RN in conjunction with Lewis Boddington of the Royal Aircraft Establishment at Farnborough. The runway was canted at an angle of a few degrees from the longitudinal axis of the ship. If an aircraft missed the arrestor cables (referred to as a "bolter"), the pilot only needed to increase engine power to the maximum to get airborne again, and would not hit the parked aircraft because the angled deck pointed out over the sea.
The angled flight deck was first tested on HMS Triumph, by painting angled deck markings onto the centerline flight deck for touch-and-go landings. This was also tested on the USS Midway the same year. In both tests, the arresting gear and barriers remained oriented to the original axis deck. During September through December 1952, the USS Antietam had a rudimentary sponson installed for true angled deck tests, allowing for full arrested landings, which proved during trials to be superior. In 1953 Antietam trained with both US and British naval units, proving the worth of the angled deck concept. HMS Centaur was modified with an overhanging angled flight deck in 1954. The US Navy installed the decks as part of the SCB-125 upgrade for the Essex class and SCB-110/110A for the Midway class. In February 1955, HMS Ark Royal became the first carrier to be constructed and launched with the deck, followed in the same year by the lead ships of the British Majestic-class (HMAS Melbourne) and the American Forrestal-class (USS Forrestal).
Commander C.C. Mitchell of the Royal Naval Reserve invented the modern steam-powered catapult, which is fueled by steam from the ship's boilers. Trials conducted on HMS Perseus between 1950 and 1952 demonstrated its superiority in power and reliability over the hydraulic catapults introduced in the 1940s, leading to its widespread adoption.
The Mirror Landing Aid, the first of the Optical Landing Systems, was a British innovation created by Lieutenant Commander H. C. N. Goodhart RN. It consisted of a gyroscopically-controlled concave mirror (later replaced by a Fresnel lens Optical Landing System) positioned on the port side of the deck. Adjacent to the mirror were green "datum" lights, with a bright orange "source" light directed into the mirror to form the "ball" (or "meatball" in later USN terms) visible to the approaching aviator.
The ball's position to the datum lights indicated the aircraft's glide path: above the datum meant the plane was high, below indicated it was low, and between signified it was on the correct path. The gyro stabilisation compensated for the deck movement, ensuring a consistent glide path. The initial trials of the mirror landing sight took place on HMS Illustrious in 1952. Before the introduction of OLSs, pilots relied on visual flag signals from Landing Signal Officers to guide their glide path.
The US Navy attempted to establish itself as a strategic nuclear force in conjunction with the United States Air Force (USAF) and its long-range bombers. They planned to construct the United States, a ship designed to accommodate long-range twin-engine bombers capable of carrying atomic bombs. However, the project was terminated due to pressure from the newly formed United States Air Force, resulting in a setback for carrier development. Despite objections from the Air Force, nuclear weapons began to be included in the carrier's arsenal starting in 1950 on the USS Franklin D. Roosevelt, and continuing in 1955 on the USS Forrestal. By the late 1950s, the Navy had a fleet of nuclear-armed attack aircraft.
The first aircraft carrier in the US Navy to be powered by nuclear reactors was the USS Enterprise, which had a total of eight nuclear reactors. Following the USS Long Beach, it was the second surface warship to have nuclear propulsion. Later nuclear supercarriers like the USS Nimitz adopted this technology to enhance their endurance, using just two reactors. Although several countries have nuclear-powered submarines, only France has a nuclear-powered carrier, the Charles de Gaulle.
The post-war years also saw the development of the helicopter, with a variety of useful roles and mission capabilities aboard aircraft carriers. Whereas fixed-wing aircraft are suited to air-to-air combat and air-to-surface attack, helicopters are used to transport equipment and personnel and can be used in an anti-submarine warfare (ASW) role, with dipping sonar, air-launched torpedoes, and depth charges; as well as for anti-surface vessel warfare, with air-launched anti-ship missiles.
During the late 1950s and early 1960s, the United Kingdom and the United States repurposed older carriers into helicopter carriers or Landing Platform Helicopters (LPH), such as the seagoing helicopter base HMS Bulwark. To downplay the costly associations of the term "aircraft carrier," the new Invincible-class carriers were initially labelled as "through deck cruisers" and were intended to function as helicopter-only escort carriers. The introduction of the Sea Harrier VTOL/STOVL fast jet allowed them to accommodate fixed-wing aircraft, despite having a limited flight deck.
Initially, the United States employed certain Essex-class carriers solely for anti-submarine warfare (ASW) purposes, carrying helicopters and fixed-wing ASW aircraft such as the S-2 Tracker. Subsequently, dedicated LPH helicopter carriers were created for the Marine Corps troops and their helicopter transports. These vessels progressed into the Landing Helicopter Assault (LHA) class and later into the Landing Helicopter Dock (LHD) class of amphibious assault ships, typically accommodating a small number of Harrier aircraft as well.
Yet another British advancement was the introduction of the ski-jump ramp as a substitute for existing catapult systems. Positioned at the end of a runway or flight deck, the ski-jump ramp enables an aircraft to utilize its forward momentum to gain altitude. The purpose is to extend the duration until the aircraft reaches the necessary airspeed, achieved through engine thrust, for sustained level flight. Additionally, STOVL aircraft can redirect some of their thrust downwards to enhance lift until the required airspeed is reached.
After the Royal Navy phased out its World War II-era carriers, they introduced smaller vessels equipped for helicopters and the STOVL Sea Harrier jet. The ski-jump feature boosted the Harriers' STOVL capability, enabling them to lift off with increased payloads. This innovation was later embraced by other countries' navies such as India, Spain, Italy, Russia, and Thailand.
Carrier operations against the North Korean Army by the United Nations command commenced on July 3, 1950, following the invasion of South Korea. Task Force 77 was initially composed of the carriers USS Valley Forge and HMS Triumph. By the armistice of July 27, 1953, twelve US carriers had completed 27 tours in the Sea of Japan under Task Force 77. During periods of intense air operations, up to four carriers were active simultaneously (as seen in the Attack on the Sui-ho Dam), although the standard deployment involved two carriers on duty with a third carrier on standby at Yokosuka ready to be deployed to the Sea of Japan promptly.
Task Force 95, a second carrier unit, was deployed as a blocking force in the Yellow Sea near the western shores of North Korea. This task force was comprised of a Commonwealth light carrier (HMS Triumph, Theseus, Glory, Ocean, and HMAS Sydney) along with typically a U.S. escort carrier (USS Badoeng Strait, Bairoko, Point Cruz, Rendova, and Sicily).
During the Korean War, more than 301,000 carrier sorties were conducted. Task Force 77's aircraft accounted for 255,545 sorties, Task Force 95's Commonwealth aircraft flew 25,400 sorties, and the escort carriers of Task Force 95 completed 20,375 sorties. The United States Navy and Marine Corps experienced 541 combat losses among carrier-based aircraft. Additionally, the Fleet Air Arm lost 86 aircraft in combat, while the Australian Fleet Air Arm lost 15 aircraft.
In the period following World War II through the 1960s, the United Kingdom, France, and the Netherlands employed their carriers during the decolonization conflicts of former colonies. During the 1946–1954 First Indochina War, France utilized the carriers Dixmude, La Fayette, Bois Belleau, and Arromanches for military operations against the Viet Minh.
During the 1956 Suez Crisis, the United Kingdom employed carrier-based aircraft from HMS Eagle, HMS Albion, and HMS Bulwark, while France utilized Arromanches and La Fayette to target Egyptian positions. The Royal Navy carriers HMS Ocean and Theseus were utilized as floating bases for transporting troops to the shore via helicopter in the first major helicopter-borne assault.
In 1962, the Royal Netherlands Navy dispatched HNLMS Karel Doorman and a supporting battle group to Western New Guinea to defend it against an Indonesian invasion. This action almost led to an assault on the vessel by the Indonesian Air Force, which planned to use Soviet-provided Tupolev Tu-16KS-1 Badger naval bombers armed with anti-ship missiles. Fortunately, the attack was cancelled due to a sudden ceasefire.
During the Konfrontasi conflict between Indonesia and Malaysia from 1964 to 1967, the Royal Navy utilized carriers such as Ark Royal, Centaur, and HMS Victorious from the Far East Fleet to support operations in Borneo. HMS Albion and Bulwark were assigned as commando carriers, while the Australian carrier HMAS Sydney functioned as a troop transport.
From August 2, 1964, to August 15, 1973, the United States Navy engaged in the most extensive, intense, and costly war within the realm of naval aviation in the South China Sea. This conflict, which involved carrier aircraft operating from Yankee Station and Dixie Station, supported military activities in South Vietnam and participated in bombing missions alongside the US Air Force in North Vietnam as part of Operations Flaming Dart, Rolling Thunder, and Linebacker. The number of carriers deployed varied throughout the conflict, with up to six carriers simultaneously engaged during Operation Linebacker.
Twenty-one aircraft carriers, excluding John F. Kennedy, were deployed to Task Force 77 of the US Seventh Fleet during the specified era. They conducted 86 war cruises and spent a total of 9,178 days in operation in the Gulf of Tonkin. A total of 530 aircraft were lost in combat, along with 329 in operational accidents, resulting in the deaths of 377 naval aviators. Additionally, 64 aviators were reported missing and 179 were captured. Tragically, 205 officers and crew members from the carriers Forrestal, Enterprise, and Oriskany lost their lives in significant shipboard fires. At times, some carrier groups were operating more than 19,000 km away from their home ports.
During the Falklands War, the United Kingdom successfully emerged victorious in a conflict that took place 13,000 km away from its homeland, largely attributed to the strategic deployment of the light fleet carrier HMS Hermes (1959) and the smaller "through deck cruiser" carrier HMS Invincible. This military operation underscored the significance of Short Take-Off and Vertical Landing (STOVL) aircraft, specifically the Hawker Siddeley Harrier, including both the Royal Navy Sea Harrier and requisitioned Royal Air Force Harrier models, in safeguarding the fleet and assault force against attacks from land-based aircraft while also engaging the enemy. The Sea Harriers successfully downed 21 fast-attack jets without suffering any aerial combat losses, although six were lost due to accidents and ground fire. Furthermore, helicopters from the carriers played a crucial role in troop deployment, medical evacuation, search and rescue missions, and anti-submarine warfare.
Another important takeaway from the Falklands War was the decision to remove Argentina's aircraft carrier ARA Veinticinco de Mayo along with its A-4Qs. The sinking of the Argentine cruiser ARA General Belgrano by the fast attack submarine HMS Conqueror highlighted the vulnerability of capital ships in the hunting areas of nuclear submarines.
The United States has utilized carriers in both the Persian Gulf and Afghanistan to safeguard its interests in the Pacific region. In the 2003 Iraq invasion, American aircraft carriers played a crucial role as the main hub for U.S. air power. Despite limitations in deploying aircraft to Middle Eastern airbases, the U.S. successfully conducted substantial air strikes through carrier-based squadrons. More recently, carriers have been offering air assistance for counter-insurgency efforts in the Middle East.
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