"Kentucky"s construction was plagued by suspensions. Her keel was laid down at the Norfolk Navy Yard, Portsmouth, Virginia, on 7 March 1942. However, work on the ship was suspended in June that year, and "Kentucky"s bottom structure was launched to make room for LST construction on 10 June. While her construction was suspended, the Bureau of Ships considered an aircraft carrier conversion proposal for "Kentucky" and "Illinois" in the aftermath of the Battles of Coral Sea and Midway. As proposed, the converted "Kentucky" would have had an long by wide flight deck, with armament identical to the carriers of the : four twin 5-inch gun mounts and four more 5-inch guns in single mounts, along with six 40 mm quadruple mounts. The idea was abandoned after the Bureau of Ships decided that the converted ships would carry fewer aircraft than the "Essex" class, that more "Essex"-class carriers could be built in the same amount of time, and that the conversion project would be significantly more expensive than new "Essex"es. Instead, "Kentucky" and "Illinois" were to be completed as battleships, but their construction was given very low priority. Work on the ship resumed on 6 December 1944, when the keel structure was returned to the slipway. Work on the battleship proceeded at a slow pace, and her completion was projected for the third quarter of 1946. In December 1945 it was recommended that "Kentucky" be completed as an anti-aircraft battleship, and work on the ship was suspended in August 1946 while this was considered. Construction resumed again on 17 August 1948 without any decision having been made on her final design. Work on "Kentucky" continued until 20 January 1950, when it was decided to halt work on the ship. Following this, she was floated out of her drydock to clear a space for repairs to sister ship , which had run aground en route from Hampton Roads.