Royal Navy Aircraft Carriers
In August 1917, Squadron Commander Edwin Dunning becomes the first person to land an aircraft on a moving ship (The HMS Furious), paving the way to the modern aircraft carrier. Commander Dunning performed the daring feat again, but unfortunately on his third attempt an engine failure caused the aircraft to crash taking him into the sea with it. He was knocked unconscious and drowned in his cockpit. Dunning’s huge sacrifice led to major steps in maritime tactics.Months later, HMS Argus was launched, the first aircraft carrier with a full-length flight deck.
Today’s Royal Navy has two aircraft carriers with which to take aircraft to sea. These two vessels, HMS Queen Elizabeth and HMS Prince of Wales, are the largest surface vessels ever built in the UK and each 280-metre-long ship normally has space for 40 aircraft on a four-acre flight deck, and over 70 aircraft at maximum capacity.
No class
Hull | Name | Class | Commisioned | Decommisioned | Status |
I-49 | HMS Argus | -- | 06-09-1918 | 1929 | Recommisioned as accomodation ship 1938, sold for scrape 05-12-1946 |
95 | HMS Hermes | -- | 18-02-1924 | -- | Sunk by Japanese aircraft, 9 April 1942 |
94 | HMS Eagle | -- | 20-02-1924 | -- | Sunk by U-73 during Operation Pedestal, 11 August 1942 |
91 | HMS Ark Royal | -- | 16-12-1938 | -- | Sunk by U-81, 14 November 1941 |
I-72 | HMS Unicorn | -- | 12-03-1943 | 17-11-1953 | Sold for scrap 1960 |
Courageous class
Hull | Name | Class | Commisioned | Decommisioned | Status |
50 | HMS Courageous | Courageous | June 1924 | -- | Battleship - Converted to aircraft carrier, June 1924 – February 1928 |
77 | HMS Glorious | Courageous | January 1917 | -- | Converted to aircraft carrier, 1924–1930 Sunk by Scharnhorst and Gneisenau, 8 June 1940 |
47 | HMS Furious | Courageous | 26-06-1917 | -- | Sold for scrap, 1948 |
Hull | Name | Class | Commisioned | Decommisioned | Status |
87 | HMS Illustrious | Illustrious | 25-05-1940 | February 1955 | Sold for scrap, November 1956 |
R-67 | HMS Formidable | Illustrious | 24-11-1940 | 12-08-1947 | Sold for scrap, January 1953 |
R-38 | HMS Victorious | Illustrious | 14-05-1941 | 13-03-1968 | Scrapped, 1969 |
R-92 | HMS Indomitable | Illustrious | 10-10-1941 | October 1953 | Sold for scrap, 1955 |
Hull | Name | Class | Commisioned | Decommisioned | Status |
R-86 | HMS Implacable | Implacable | 28-08-1944 | 01-09-1954 | Sold for scrap, 27 October 1955 |
R-10 | HMS Indefatigable | Implacable | 08-12-1943 | December 1946 | Sold for scrap, September 1956 |
Hull | Name | Class | Commisioned | Decommisioned | Status |
R-61 | HMS Colossus | Colossus | 16-12-1944 | -- | Loaned to France as Arromanches from Aug. 1946, sold to France 1951 |
R-62 | HMS Glory | Colossus | 02-04-1945 | 1956 | Scrapped 1961 |
R-68 | HMS Ocean | Colossus | 08-08-1945 | 1960 | Scrapped 1962 |
R-64 | HMS Theseus | Colossus | 09-02-1946 | -- | Scrapped 1962 |
R-16 | HMS Triumph | Colossus | 09-05-1946 | -- | Scrapped 1981 in Spain |
R-63 | HMS Venerable | Colossus | 17-01-1945 | 01-04-1947 | Sold to Netherlands 1948 and renamed Karel Doorman II then later sold in 1968 to Argentina as Veinticinco de Mayo. Scrapped 2000. |
R-71 | HMS Vengeance | Colossus | 15-01-1945 | 1952 | Transferred to the Royal Australian Navy from 1953 to August 1955. Sold to Brazil as Minas Gerais December 1956. Scrapped 2004. |
R-31 | HMS Warrior | Colossus | November 1948 | -- | Loaned to Royal Canadian Navy 1946-48 and not commissioned into RN until November 1948. Returned to UK 1956 and modernised. Sold to Argentina as Independencia 1958. |
R-51 | HMS Perseus | Colossus | 19-10-1945 | 1954 | Scrapped 1958 |
R-76 | HMS Pioneer | Colossus | 08-02-1945 | 1954 | Scrapped 1954 |
Hull | Name | Class | Commisioned | Decommisioned | Status |
R-77 | HMS Majestic | Majestic | -- | -- | Sold to Australia in 1949, and completed in 1955 to a modified design and renamed as HMAS Melbourne. Sold for scrap in February 1985 |
R-49 | HMS Hercules | Majestic | -- | -- | Laid up till purchased by India in January 1957, renamed INS Vikrant, commissioned 1961, decommissioned 1997, scrapped 2014. |
R-97 | HMS Leviathan | Majestic | -- | -- | Never completed scrapped 1968 |
R-36 | HMS Magnificent | Majestic | 07-04-1948 | -- | Loaned to Royal Canadian Navy in 1948. Commissioned in RCN March 1948, returned to Royal Navy 1957 and scrapped 1965 |
R-95 | HMS Powerful | Majestic | 17-01-1957 | 03-07-1970 | Sold to Canada on 23 April 1952, then completed to a modified design and renamed HMCS Bonaventure and broken up in 1971 |
R-93 | HMS Terrible | Majestic | 16-12-1948 | 12-11-1973 | Transferred to Royal Australian Navy as HMAS Sydney 1948. Sold for scrap on 28 October 1975. |
Hull | Name | Class | Commisioned | Decommisioned | Status |
R-05 | HMS Eagle | Audacious | 05-10-1951 | 26-01-1972 | Sold for scrap 1978 |
R-09 | HMS Arc Royal | Audacious | 25-02-1955 | 14-02-1979 | Sold for scrap 1980 |
-- | HMS Eagle | Audacious | -- | -- | Cancelled January 1946 when 23% complete. Scrapped on slip. |
-- | HMS Africa | Audacious | -- | -- | Cancelled |
Hull | Name | Class | Commisioned | Decommisioned | Status |
R-06 | HMS Centaur | Centaur | 01-09-1953 | 1965 | Scrapped 1972 |
R-07 | HMS Albion | Centaur | May 1954 | 1973 | Scrapped November 1973 |
R-08 | HMS Bulwark | Centaur | 29-10-1954 | April 1981 | Scrapped April 1984 |
R-12 | HMS Hermes | Centaur | November 1959 | 1984 | Sold to India April 1986, as INS Viraat, decommissioned. |
-- | HMS Hermes | Centaur | -- | -- | Cancelled October 1945, scrapped on slip. |
-- | HMS Arrogant | Centaur | -- | -- | Cancelled October 1945, scrapped on slip. |
-- | HMS Monmouth | Centaur | -- | -- | Cancelled |
-- | HMS Polyphemus | Centaur | -- | -- | Cancelled |
Hull | Name | Class | Commisioned | Decommisioned | Status |
-- | HMS Malta | Malta | -- | -- | Cancelled 13 December 1945 |
-- | HMS New Zealand | Malta | -- | -- | Cancelled 13 December 1945 |
-- | HMS Gibraltar | Malta | -- | -- | Cancelled 15 October 1945 |
-- | HMS Africa | Malta | -- | -- | Cancelled 15 October 1945 |
Hull | Name | Class | Commisioned | Decommisioned | Status |
-- | CVA-1 | Queen Elizabeth | -- | -- | Cancelled 1966 |
-- | HMS Duke of Edinburgh | Queen Elizabeth | -- | -- | Cancelled 1963 |
-- | HMS Prince of Wales | Queen Elizabeth | -- | -- | Cancelled 1963 |
-- | HMS Princess Royal | Queen Elizabeth | -- | -- | Cancelled 19663 |
Hull | Name | Class | Commisioned | Decommisioned | Status |
R-05 | HMS Invincible | Invincible | 11-07-1980 | 03-08-2005 | sold for scrap in February 2011. |
R-06 | HMS Illustrious | Invincible | 20-06-1982 | 28-08-2014 | sold for scrap in 2016. |
R-07 | HMS Ark Royal | Invincible | 01-11-1985 | 11-03-2011 | sold for scrap in 2013. |
Hull | Name | Class | Commisioned | Decommisioned | Status |
R-08 | HMS Queen Elizabeth | Queen Elizabeth | 07-12-2017 | -- | In Service. |
R-09 | HMS Prince of Wales | Queen Elizabeth | 10-12-2019 | -- | In Service. |
Reference:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_aircraft_carriers_of_the_Royal_Navy
https://www.seaforces.org/marint/Royal-Navy