Intoduction to Carriers

Personal Insights

Although my personal circumstances never gave me the opportunity to serve in the armed services of the United States, as long as I can remember, I've had an interest in naval vessels and, in particular, aircraft carriers. I guess this interest developed because my father used to build scale models of ships and as a young boy, he introduced me to this fine hobby, which I still enjoy -- some 40 years later. I remember that at the age of 12, I received for Christmas a 2-foot powered model of what then was (and in my mind still is) the mightiet ship in the world -- the nuclear aircraft carrier USS Enterprise. In recent years, I've put together two histories that relate to this subject. One is These Are the Voyages, a detailed history of some 75 vessels of sea, air, and space that have carried the name Enterprise. The other is Carriers: Airpower at Sea, a shorter history of the development of the aircraft carrier as an important element of many of the world's navies.

This section of Sandcastle V.I. contains the full text of Carriers: Airpower at Sea, including a directory of the world's aircraft carriers -- past and present -- that is as complete as I can possibly make it. Please let me know what you think and, also, please email me if you have any updates or corrections to the directory of ships.