WWII

World War II provided the ultimate test of the future of naval power. While the aircraft carrier reached maturity, projecting the strength of combat aircraft across the broad expanses of the world’s oceans and asserting that no surface ship was impervious to attack from above, the era of the great battleship was emphatically eclipsed. This conflict saw the last actions between these behemoths. During World War II, Allied aircraft carriers decided the fate of nations on the high seas, particularly in the Pacific. The carrier led the fight for air supremacy across the world and brought aircraft to the support of invasions of numerous Japanese-held islands. During the Battle of the Atlantic, carrier-based aircraft complemented the efforts of surface ships, hunting and killing German U-boats that threatened vital shipping lanes. By the end of World War II, modern navies had found new direction. With the aircraft carrier ascendant, nuclear power and the jet engine on the horizon, and continuing demand to ‘show the flag’, the significance of 20th century naval power was greatly enhanced.