page_title: List of escort carriers of the Royal Navy
section_title: Ruler class
hierarchical_section_title: List of escort carriers of the Royal Navy / Key / Ruler class
caption_attribution_description: British Bogue/Ameer class escort aircraft carrier HMS QUEEN moored to a buoy at Scapa Flow.
context_page_description: The escort aircraft carrier, also called a "jeep carrier" or "baby flattop" in the USN or "Woolworth Carrier" by the RN, was a small and slow type of aircraft carrier used by the Royal Navy in the Second World War. They were typically half the length and one-third the displacement of the larger fleet carriers. While they were slower, less armed, unarmoured and carried fewer aircraft, they were less expensive and could be built more quickly. This was their principal advantage, as escort carriers could be completed in greater numbers as a stop-gap when fleet carriers were scarce. However, the lack of protection made escort carriers particularly vulnerable and several were sunk with great loss of life. The light carrier was a similar concept to escort carriers in most respects, but they were designed for higher speeds for deployment with fleet carriers.
  Escort carriers were too slow to keep up with the main forces consisting of fleet carriers, battleships, and cruisers. Instead, they were used to defend convoys from enemy threats such as submarines and planes.
caption: HMS Queen
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