Lists of aircraft carriers operational during World War II

The planning and outcomes of naval initiatives involving carriers were a function of the number that were "operational", ready for combat. The lists below indicate the number of carriers that were "operational," not just "afloat". Carriers are included as non-operational if they are in port being repaired for combat damage or undergoing an overhaul or refitting. They are also included as non-operational if they have been commissioned but were still undergoing shakedown trials). Finally, they are included as non-operational if they are in use only as a barracks ship or for storing goods. Carriers kept in port or otherwise not engaged in naval initiatives because of shortages of aircrews or fuel remain included as "operational."

Nineteen forty-two was the pivotal year of the war. Axis powers worldwide reached their maximum territorial expansion before mid-year but were virtually contained by year-end. In the global maritime war, the Allies had won decisive victories in the Pacific and had kept the vital shipping lines open in both the Pacific and the Atlantic theaters.[18] Aircraft carriers contributed significantly to this result. Four of the war's six major carrier battles were fought in 1942. Twelve of the combatants' fleet and light carriers were sunk, more than any other year and equal to 46% of the total lost during the entire war. The lists indicate the location, combat activity, and operational status of all carriers during 1942. Such information for all war years is available at World War II Database.[19]

Letters in these lists indicate the war zone, combat activity, and operational status of each carrier. For example, a carrier's location is indicated with an "a" if she were in the Atlantic Ocean and an "m" if in the Mediterranean Sea. If she were engaged in one of the six carrier battles during the month, a "B" is included. If she were lost in combat, an "L" is included. Entries in the "Carrier Battles" row indicate the month of major carrier battles, specifically Coral Sea (CS), Midway (MI), Eastern Solomons (ES), and Santa Cruz Islands (SC). Other abbreviations used in the lists are shown below.

1. Combat action during month

• B Engaged in one of the six carrier battles
• C Commissioned
• L Lost due to sinking or scuttling as a result of combat.
• Q Provided air cover for amphibious invasion
• R Engaged in carrier raid

2. Ship location at end of month

• a Atlantic Ocean
• g Arctic Ocean
• i Indian Ocean
• m Mediterranean Sea
• p Pacific Ocean

3. Operational status at end of month

• d Non-operational due to combat-related damaged.
• k Non-operational in use as a barracks or for storage.
• o Non-operational due to being refitted or overhauled.
• s Non-operational due to still in initial shakedown period or in transit to place for completing fitting-out or for initial embarkation of aircraft. This includes carriers transporting an load of aircraft from US to UK as part of going to UK to undergo completion to become fully operational.
• t Operational as a training vessel and/or engaged only in trials.
• v Non-operational, in reserve.
• x Operational but lacked sufficient crew, aircraft, or fuel to engage in combat operations.

The Atlantic Ocean, Mediterranean Sea, and Arctic Ocean are included with the "Atlantic theater." The Pacific Ocean and Indian Oceans are included with the "Pacific theater."

Entries on the "Operational Carriers" rows indicate separately the total number of carriers available for combat in the Atlantic and Pacific theaters at the end of each month that were afloat and not undergoing repairs due to combat damage, overhauling or refitting to upgrade performance, or otherwise not available for combat activity.

US hull numbers are included, when appropriate, to help avoid double-counting of the thirty-eight carriers transferred to Britain under Lend-Lease agreements. They also help with identifying carriers with the same names, such as Yorktown (CV-5) and Yorktown (CV-19).

The following table lists all American aircraft carriers that were operational between December 1941 and August 1945. It also includes information about their combat activity, location, and operational status for the end of each month from November 1941 to December 1942. The table reflects how America's carriers made hit-and-run raids on Japanese conquests, possessions, and even the homeland itself for the first five months of the war and then engaged in carrier-against-carrier battles. These four battles resulted in major attrition of naval strength on both sides. For a short period around the end of October 1942, America did not have an operational aircraft carrier in the Pacific Theater. But because of the losses inflicted upon Japan's carrier fleet during these battles, America gained the strategic initiative for the rest of the war.

Notes:

• 1 Long Island-class converted from the C-3 hulled Mormacmail by Sun Shipbuilding and Dry Dock Company, Chester PA.
• 2 Charger-class converted from C-3 cargo ship hulls by Sun Shipbuilding and Dry Dock Company, Chester PA.
• 3 Bogue-class converted from C-3 cargo ship hulls by Seattle-Tacome Shipbuilding Corp., Tacoma WA, Ingalls Shipbuilding of Pascagoula MS, or Western Pipe and Steel Company, San Francisco CA.
• 4 Sangamon-class converted from fast fleet, T3 tanker Cimarron-class oiler hulls by Federal Shipbuilding or Dry Dock Company of Kearney NJ and Sun Shipbuilding and Dry Dock Company, Chester PA.
• 5 Casablanca-class (aka Kaiser-class) built on S-4-S2-BB3 merchant hulls by Kaiser Company at its Vancouver Yard in Washington state.
• 6 Commencement Bay-class built on T3 tanker hulls.

Eight CVEs commissioned after the end of the war or acquired by the Navy but never commissioned are not included in the list.[lower-alpha 4]

The following table shows the number of British aircraft carriers of all types that had flight decks capable of launching and recovering aircraft and that were operational sometime during the period from September 1939 to August 1945. Battleships, cruisers, seaplane carriers, seaplane tenders (SPT), catapult aircraft merchant ships (CAM) fighter catapult ships (FCS), and aircraft maintenance ships (AMC) that launched using catapults and/or recovered using cranes are not included in the counts. During the war, the British Navy had at least thirty-five CAM, five FCS,[lower-alpha 5] one SPC,[lower-alpha 6] and one AMC[lower-alpha 7] that are not included in the table.

During the war, two of the escort carriers included below (Nabob and Puncher) were loaned to and operated by Canada. Aircrews aboard these carriers were British.

Thirty-eight of Britain's forty-four escort carriers were built in the United States and transferred to Britain under the American Lend-Lease|Lend-Lease Act. These carriers were typically assigned hull numbers and names by the US. These numbers and names, if assigned, are shown under the UK name for each carrier in parentheses to help avoid double-counting ships. Notes below the table identify the shipyard from which the ship was launched. A total of one-hundred twenty-eight American-built escort carriers (with US hull numbers BAVG 1 to 6 and CVE 1 to 122) were commissioned during the war, either by the US or UK navy. Thirty-eight of these were commissioned by the Royal Navy (with UK hull numbers in the range between D01 and D98) and engaged during World War II.

The status (i.e., whether carriers were operational, damaged, being refitted, in trials, etc.) at the end of each month is taken from Service Histories of 1,000 Royal and Dominion Navy Warships, including British Ships manned by Allied Navies.[62]

Notes:

• 1 Bogue/Ruler class escort carrier built by Seattle-Tacoma Shipbuilding Corp., Tacoma WA
• 2 Long Island class CVE built by Sun Shipbuilding & Drydock Co., Chester PA
• 3 Bogue/Attacker class CVE built by Western Pipe and Steal Co., San Francisco CA
• 4 Avenger class CVE built by Sun Shipbuilding, Chester PA
• 5 Bogue/Attacker class CVE built by Ingalls Shipbuilding, Pascagoula MS or by Seattle-Tacoma Shipbuilding Corp., Tacoma WA
• 6 Nairana class CVE built by Harland and Wolff, Belfast, No. Ireland or John Brown & Company, Clydebank, Scotland
• 7 German merchant ship Hannover converted to escort carrier
• 8 Merchantman built by Caledon Shipbuilding, Dundee, Scotland
• 9 Ocean liner Pretoria Castle built at Harland & Wolff shipyards, Belfast, Northern Ireland
• 10 New-build grain carrier
• 11 New-build oil tanker
• 12 Converted Royal Dutch Shell tanker

The following table lists all Japanese aircraft carriers that were operational between July 1937 and August 1945. It also includes information about their combat activity, location, and operational status for the end of each month from November 1941 to December 1942. The table reflects how Japan's six fleet carriers[lower-alpha 2] of the Kidō Butai effectively raided and supported invasions during the first five months of the war, and how battle attrition over the following eight months materially weakened Japan's ability to project naval power.

The Imperial Japanese Navy typically named their aircraft carriers after flying creatures, real and mythical. Several carriers, however, retained the names they had before being converted to aircraft carriers. Names and their meanings are included in the following table. Also included are alternative names/spellings used for the carriers in various publications.

France had one operational fleet carrier during the war, the Béarn. She patrolled in the Atlantic until the fall of France, after which she spent most of the war in Martinique and US ports. Her aircraft were never launched in combat. Construction of another carrier, the Joffre was begun but discontinued in 1940 when Germany occupied France. France also had a seaplane carrier, the Commandant Teste, that provided some aircraft transport service for Vichy France until she was scuttled in November 1942.

Germany worked on building aircraft carriers during the war but did not complete any in time for combat operations. The German fleet carrier, Graf Zeppelin, was launched in 1938 but was still under construction in 1945 as the war in Europe was ending. It was scuttled by the Germans but raised by the Russians, who used it as a target ship, sinking it in 1947.

Italy worked on but did not complete the aircraft carriers Sparviero and Aquila.

The table below shows the combat-related actions during the war that resulted in carriers not being "operational", i.e., not available for combat activity.