|
|
The Midway class aircraft carriers were the most powerful to be laid down during the Second World War, combining the large air groups of the Essex class with the armoured flight decks on British carriers. Although the three that were completed missed the war, they formed an important part of the post-war fleet, and upgrades and rebuilds meant that they matched the first generation of supercarriers, the Forrestal class. Two of the three remained in service just into the 1990s, with the last, USS Midway, not being decommissioned until 1992. Despite this long service they had rather limited combat records. None were used during the Korean War, instead spending most of that period with the 6th Fleet in the Mediterranean. All three served in the Vietnam War. The Midway was the only was to fight in two wars, taking part in the First Gulf War of 1990.
The key to the long lives of these carriers were the extensive modernisations they all underwent. This gave all three of them angled flight decks, which allowed them to operate powerful jet aircraft – indeed the most modern aircraft for much of their careers. In the case of the Midway herself we look at her second major modernisation, which gave her a massive angled flight deck and put her on par with the newer supercarriers. One interesting comment is that their large air groups were actually too large when they were first built – their straight flightdeck mean that aircraft couldn’t be landing and taking off at the same time, making it hard to juggle over 100 aircraft. Angled flight decks and the smaller number of aircraft carried in the jet age helped solved that problem.
This is a useful examination of these impressive carriers, which are often overlooked, falling between the wartime Essex class and the first true supercarriers, but they were the most powerful carriers in US service for over a decade, and remained important even after newer carriers began to appear.
Chapters
Design and Development
- Origins of the Midway Class
- Midway class modernization
Operational Histories: 1945-92
- Midway
- Franklin D. Roosevelt
- Coral Sea
Analysis and Conclusion
Author: Mark Stille
Edition: Paperback
Pages: 50
Publisher: Osprey
Year: 2024