One minute read. Written by Aryan Pratap Singh, a grade 7 student.

Aircraft carriers are the largest ships in any navy’s fleet. They are basically floating airfields, capable of carrying several fighter planes. There are 2 types of aircraft carriers: VTOL (vertical takeoff and landing) and STOVL (short takeoff and vertical landing).

Here is a list of the top five in descending order

5. Cavour

The flagship of the Italian navy, it has a full load displacement of 30,000 tons. With a 232.6m x 34.5m flight deck, Cavour is capable of accommodating fighter aircraft including the AV-8B Harrier and the F35 Lightning II as well as helicopters. The 2444 m long ship can also hold up to 24 tanks. It can travel up to a speed of 16 knots, thanks to its six diesel generators.

4. Queen Elizabeth Class

The largest ships ever built for the UK’s royal navy are the third-largest aircraft carriers in the world. The Queen Elizabeth Class is a class of two with HMS Queen Elizabeth being commissioned in December 2017, while HMS Prince of Wales is expected to be commissioned in 2020. Both the vessels have a displacement of around 65,000 tons and measure 280m in length. Featuring the latest technology and automated systems aboard, these vessels require only a crew of 679 for a combat operation as compared to 4,000 required for the largest aircraft carriers.

3. Charles De Gaulle

The first nuclear surface ship built by France, Charles De Gaulle has been in service since 2001. The ship has a total displacement of 36,000 tons and is the only nuclear-powered carrier in service other than the ones in service with the US Navy.

2. Gerald R ford class

The title of the world’s biggest aircraft carrier belongs to the US Navy’s Gerald R Ford Class. The lead ship of its class, USS Gerald R. Ford, was commissioned in 2017 and its brethren are still under construction. The Gerald R Ford is expected to be fully operational by 2020 and features a displacement of 100,000 tons. Its 78m wide flight deck features a one-of-a-kind electromagnetic launching system as well as advanced arresting gear. It is capable of carrying over 75 aircraft and accommodating a total of 4539 personnel.

1.Nimitz class

The US Navy’s ten Nimitz class nuclear-powered aircraft carriers are the best in the world. Named after the World War II Pacific Fleet Admiral Chester Nimitz, the lead ship USS Nimitz, was launched in May 1975 and the last ship, USS George W. Bush was commissioned in January 2009. With a displacement of 97,000 tons, these ships have a 4.5-acre flight deck capable of carrying over 60 aircraft. They can accommodate up to 4000 crew and are powered by two nuclear reactors allowing them to reach a speed of 30 kt.

Written by Aryan Pratap Singh.
Aryan is a grade 7 student in Modern School, New Delhi. He is a keen writer and his current interests are World War II, warships and fighter planes, world leaders, mobile video games, Greek and Egyptian mythology. 

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