1942 Design Light Fleet Carrier The 1942 Design Light Fleet Carrier , commonly referred to as the British Light Fleet Carrier , was a light aircraft carrier design created by the Royal Navy during World War II , and used by eight naval forces between 1944 and 2001 . They were designed and constructed by civilian shipyards to serve as an intermediate step between the expensive , full - size fleet aircraft carrier s and the less expensive but limited - capability escort carrier s . Sixteen Light Fleet carriers were ordered , and all were laid down to the Colossus " class design during 1942 and 1943 . However , only eight were completed to this design ; of these , four entered service before the end of the war , and none saw front line operations . Two more were fitted with maintenance and repair facilities instead of aircraft catapult s and arresting gear , and entered service as aircraft maintenance carriers . The final six were modified during construction to handle larger and faster aircraft , and were redesignated the Majestic " class . These six ships were still under construction at the end of the war , and work was suspended ; five were eventually completed ( the last commissioning in 1961 ) , but the sixth was dismantled for spare parts and scrap . Although not completed in time to fight in World War II , the carriers in Royal Navy service participated in the Korean War and the Suez Crisis . During the latter , two " Colossus " - class ships performed the first ship - based helicopter assault in history . Four " Colossus " es and all five completed " Majestic " s were sold to seven foreign nations : Argentina , Australia , Brazil , Canada , France , India , and the Netherlands . No " Majestic " was ever operated by the Royal Navy , and three ships served in three different naval forces during their careers . Foreign - operated Light Fleets took part in the Korean War , the First Indochina War , the Vietnam War , the 1971 Indo - Pakistani War , and the Falklands War . With the exception of the " Majestic " - class , which was preserved as a museum ship , all of the Light Fleet carriers were broken up for scrap . Design and construction . Experiences during the early part of World War II had demonstrated to the British that the Royal Navy needed access to defensive air cover for Allied fleets and convoys , which could only be provided by more aircraft carriers . In mid - 1941 , the Director of Naval Construction was instructed to investigate how best to achieve this without the lengthy construction times normally associated with carriers . The options were to refit the surviving " Hawkins " - class cruisers with flight decks and aviation facilities , convert additional merchant vessels and passenger liners into vessels similar to but more capable than previous merchant aircraft carrier s , or create a new design for a cheap , lightly armed , and unarmoured ship similar to the Woolworth carrier s . In December 1941 , it was decided that a new design was the best option . This ship was conceived as an intermediate step between the expensive fleet carriers and the limited - capability escort carrier s . The design had to be as simple as possible so construction time was kept to a minimum and so more shipyards ( particularly those with no naval construction experience ) could be used . However , the ships had to be capable of operating in fleet actions . Originally designated the ' Intermediate Aircraft Carrier ' , the ships were reclassified as ' Light Fleet Carriers ' . Because naval design staff were overworked , the carrier was primarily designed by shipbuilders at Vickers - Armstrong . The Light Fleet design , completed at the start of 1942 , was effectively a scaled - down " Illustrious " . Each carrier would displace 13 , 190 tons at standard load and 18 , 040 tons at full load , have a length of at the flight deck and overall , a maximum beam of , and a draught of at standard displacement , and at full load displacement . The hull was built to Lloyd ' s specifications for merchant vessels from keel to maindeck , but incorporated better subdivision of compartments to reduce secondary damage by flooding . The propulsion machinery was of a similar design to that used in cruisers — some of the steam turbines were sourced from cancelled cruisers . The machinery was arranged in two compartments ( each containing two Admiralty 3 - drum boiler s and a Parsons geared turbine ) , which were staggered " en echelon " , with the starboard compartment forward of the port . These provided 40 , 000 shaft horsepower to two propeller shafts , driving the carriers at a maximum speed of , with as the designated economical speed . The carriers were intended to be ' disposable warships ' : to be scrapped and replaced at the end of World War II or within three years of entering service . However , all exceeded this planned service life , with one ship operating from 1945 to 2001 . " Colossus " class . Construction was approved by the Naval Board in February 1942 , with the first two ships , and , laid down in March . During 1942 and 1943 , another fourteen Light Fleet carriers ( named the " Colossus " class after the lead ship ) were laid down under the 1942 Programme , to be constructed by eight British shipyards . Although it was originally planned that each Light Fleet would be ready for service in 21 months , modifications to the design saw the planned construction time increase to 27 months . Even with the omission of several important pieces of backup equipment , only two ships met this target . The ships were launched from late 1943 onwards , with the first commissioned in December 1944 . However , the delays meant that only four ships ( , , , and ; formed up as the 11th Aircraft Carrier Squadron ) were completed before the end of World War II , and only eight of the sixteen planned Light Fleets were completed as " Colossus " - class carriers . During operational service , the living conditions aboard the " Colossus " - class ships were criticised , which resulted in the abolishment of hammocks in favour of fixed bunks and the introduction of centralised eating arrangements in later warship designs . Maintenance carriers . The impracticality of shore - based repair establishments in the Far East and Pacific theatres of World War II saw a requirement for aircraft maintenance carriers . Instead of building new ships from scratch , two under - construction " Colossus " es , and , were marked for conversion as they would enter service quicker , and could be converted back into operational aircraft carriers if required , a need which never arose . Both ships were completed before the end of the war , with " Pioneer " sailing to the Pacific in company with the 11th Aircraft Carrier Squadron , but neither ship saw active service . As the ships were designed with the repair and transportation of aircraft in mind , much of the equipment required for carrier flight operations , including control facilities , arresting gear , and catapult , were not installed . This space was instead used for additional hangar room , repair and maintenance workshops , and system testing facilities . " Majestic " class . The six remaining Light Fleet hulls were originally to be completed as " Colossus " - class ships , but the rapid development of carrier - based aircraft and anti - aircraft weapons required modifications to the original design . The catapult , arrestor cables , and aircraft elevators had to be upgraded to handle faster and heavier aircraft , while the flight deck was reinforced . Improved weapons and radars were fitted , and equipment to perform replenishment at sea was installed . The modifications increased the full - load displacement by 1 , 500 tons , and the draught by . This led to the six ships being reclassified as the " Majestic " class in September 1945 . Five carriers were launched before the end of World War II , with the sixth launched in late September 1945 . Following the war ' s end , work on the " Majestic " class was suspended , then restored to a low - priority status , with the rate of work increasing as foreign nations purchased the ships . Two , " Magnificent " and " Terrible " , entered service more - or - less as designed , but the next three were heavily upgraded with three British developments allowing the operation of large , fast , jet - propelled aircraft : the angled flight deck , the steam catapult , and the mirror landing aid . The sixth , " Leviathan " , was not completed . Work was suspended in May 1946 , and plans to convert her into a commando carrier or missile cruiser , or sell her to a foreign buyer , fell through . During the 1950s , she was used as an accommodation ship , and in 1966 , her boilers were removed and sold to the shipyard refitting the " Colossus " - class for Argentine service . " Leviathan " was scrapped in May 1968 . None of the completed " Majestic " - class vessels saw service in the Royal Navy . In 1943 , eight ' Improved " Majestic " s ' were planned , but developments in carrier aviation and the rapid obsolescence of the Light Fleets and the wartime armoured carriers required a larger and more capable design , which became the four - ship " Centaur " class . Weapons . Aircraft . In the original design , each ship was capable of carrying 41 aircraft . A redesign of the available parking area on the flight deck in March 1942 saw the ships ' air group expanded to 24 Fairey Barracuda torpedo bombers and 24 Supermarine Seafire fighters , or 18 Barracudas and 34 Seafires . In RN service , the Barracuda was later replaced by the Fairey Firefly , and the Seafire was superseded by the Hawker Sea Fury during the Korean War . Early in their careers , and were fitted out for night flying operations : these carriers were to embark a 32 - strong air group ; mixed between Fireflies and Grumman F6F Hellcat s supplied by the United States as part of the Lend Lease program . To launch and recover aircraft , the carriers were initially equipped with hydraulic catapult s , arresting gear , and crash barriers . Aircraft were stored in a single hangar measuring , with a height clearance of . This allowed the Light Fleets to later operate aircraft that the fleet carriers , which generally had two hangars with lower clearance in each , could not . The hangar was serviced by two aircraft lifts . Armament . The Light Fleets were the first British aircraft carriers where the ship ' s air group was seen as the ' main armament ' ; any mounted weapons were to be for close - range anti - aircraft defence . The " Colossus " design called for six quadruple barrelled 2 pounder gun mounts , and 16 twin Oerlikon 20 mm cannon s . Two guns were originally included , but an increase in the design ' s flight deck length in March 1942 saw them displaced . The ships were unarmoured , as increasing the size of the vessels was deemed more important than protection . Lessons learned during the early part of the Pacific War showed the superiority of the Bofors 40 mm gun to other anti - aircraft weapons . By the end of the war , all " Colossus " - class ships had swapped all their other weapons for Bofors in single and twin mountings , and the " Majestic " design had been modified to carry 30 of the guns : 18 single mountings , and 6 twin mountings . The number of Bofors carried by the Light Fleets was reduced after the war , with British ships carrying only eight . Royal Navy service . World War II and aftermath . Although four " Colossus " - class ships were completed before the end of World War II , they did not see front - line action : the war in Europe had proceeded to the point where aircraft carriers were of limited use , and by the time the carriers reached the Pacific , Japan had surrendered . The four ships , assigned to the British Pacific Fleet , were instead used for the transportation of returning soldiers and rescued prisoners - of - war , to help alleviate the shortage of troopships and liners . As with the " Colossus " class , the maintenance carriers were completed but did not enter active service before the end of the war . They were reclassified as Ferry Carriers , and used to transport aircraft to British bases and ships across the world . During the late 1940s and early 1950s , the carriers were used as testbeds for new aircraft and technology . Throughout late 1945 , " Ocean " was used to trial several new aircraft : the Hawker Sea Fury and de Havilland Sea Hornet piston - engine fighters during August , and the de Havilland Sea Venom jet - propelled fighter - bomber in December . On 3 December 1945 , a de Havilland Sea Vampire became the first jet aircraft to land on a carrier — two months before , " Ocean " s flight deck saw the last landing of a Fairey Swordfish torpedo bomber . The angled flight deck concept ( which would later be installed on several of the " Majestic " - class carriers ) was first trialled aboard " Triumph " : the straight - line deck markings were removed , and markings for an angled landing painted on . After a two - year loan to Canada , " Warrior " served as a testbed for rubberised flexible decks and skid - like landing gear during 1948 and 1949 . During 1951 and 1952 , " Perseus " was used as a trials ship for the under - development steam catapult . Korean War . The " Colossus " class first saw combat during the Korean War . Following the invasion of South Korea by North Korea on 25 June , ships of the British Far East Fleet that were operating in Japanese waters , including the carrier , were placed under the United States Far East Commander , to operate in retaliation to the invasion under the instructions of the United Nations Security Council . The first carrier attack began on 3 July 1950 , with aircraft from " Triumph " and United States carrier performing air strikes on North Korean airfields . Between them , the " Colossus " - class carriers " Triumph " , , , and , along with the " Majestic " - class , maintained a constant British aircraft carrier presence for the duration of the Korean War . The Light Fleets were cheaper to operate than the armoured fleet carriers while providing a similar sized air group , but during the war proved to be slower , less comfortable , and more prone to wear - and - tear than other RN carriers . Financial and manpower restrictions meant that only one Light Fleet could be deployed to Korea at a time . also contributed to the Korean War effort by transporting replacement aircraft from the United Kingdom to British bases throughout the Far East region , which were then drawn upon by the active carriers . Following the end of the Korean War , " Warrior " and " Sydney " returned to Korean waters on separate deployments , to ensure that the armistice was enforced and hostilities did not re - ignite . Suez Crisis . and were part of the British response to the 1956 Suez Crisis . The two ships were not used as aircraft carriers ; instead they were equipped with helicopters and tasked with transporting 45 Commando , a battalion of the Royal Marines , ashore , in order to secure harbours and other landing points for heavy equipment . This , the first ship - based helicopter assault , was successful , and prompted the development of the amphibious assault ship . Decommissioning and disposal . The two maintenance carriers were decommissioned during the 1950s and scrapped : " Pioneer " was sold in 1954 , and " Perseus " in 1958 . With the exception of HMS " Triumph " , the " Colossus " - class carriers that remained in RN service were disposed of during the early 1960s . None were significantly modernised during their service life . " Triumph " left service in 1958 , underwent a major conversion into a Heavy Repair Ship , and re - entered service in 1965 . Foreign service . As Britain was unable to maintain the size of her wartime fleet after the end of World War II , several " Colossus " - class ships were placed into reserve , while work on the " Majestic " class was initially halted at the end of World War II , then restored to a low - priority status . Demands for fiscal cutbacks , combined with the rapid obsolescence of the carriers by the development of jet aircraft , saw four of the eight " Colossus " es and all five completed " Majestic " s sold off to other nations . The majority of the Light Fleets in foreign service were modernised , either during construction or afterwards , to operate jet aircraft . This usually consisted of the installation of an angled flight deck , upgrading the aircraft catapult to be steam - powered , and installing an optical landing system : Australian " Majestic " - class carrier HMAS " Melbourne " was the third aircraft carrier in the world , after and , to be constructed with these features instead of having them added later . Argentina . After a two - year loan to Canada , and a second period in Royal Navy commission , " Warrior " was sold to the Argentine Navy in 1958 , and commissioned as on 11 November . " Independencia " served as the Argentine flagship until she was replaced by the Dutch " Karel Doorman " ( formerly HMS " Venerable " ) , which was sold on to Argentina in 1969 . " Independencia " was struck from service in 1971 and broken up for scrap . The new carrier was commissioned as . " Veinticinco " was initially equipped with A - 4 Skyhawk jet fighters , but these were replaced with Super Étendards in the 1980s . The carrier provided air cover for the Occupation of the Falkland Islands in 1982 , but remained confined to port for the rest of the Falklands War , particularly after the British submarine sank the Argentine cruiser . Problems with her propulsion machinery meant that " Veinticinco " was effectively inoperable from June 1986 , although it was not until the start of 1999 that she was marked for scrapping . Australia . In 1944 , the Australian government suggested that Australian personnel be used to help counteract a personnel shortage in the Royal Navy by manning an aircraft carrier , one or more cruisers , and six destroyers . The Admiralty deemed a " Colossus " - class Light Fleet to be the most appropriate aircraft carrier , and " Venerable " was initially proposed for transfer to the Royal Australian Navy as a gift or on loan . The plan was deferred on the Australian end until a review of manpower requirements across the entire war effort was completed . The ship manning proposal was revisited in mid - 1945 , but the surrender of Germany in May meant that British shortages were not as problematic ; as a counteroffer , the purchase of the " Colossus " - class " Ocean " by Australia was suggested . The Australian government decided against the purchase of " Ocean " in June . Following World War II , a post - war review suggested that the Royal Australian Navy acquire three aircraft carriers as the core of a new fleet ; funding restrictions saw the number of proposed carriers dropped to two . To this end , Australia acquired two " Majestic " - class ships : , which was commissioned in 1948 as ; and , which was upgraded for jet operations and commissioned in 1955 as . While waiting for " Majestic / Melbourne " to finish modernisation , the " Colossus " - class was loaned to Australia from 1952 until 1955 , allowing them to operate a two - carrier fleet . The first aircraft carrier acquired by the Royal Australian Navy , " Sydney " was deployed to Korea in order to maintain a consistent British Commonwealth carrier presence in the conflict . Operating between September 1951 and January 1952 , " Sydney " was the first carrier owned by a Commonwealth Dominion to see combat . Reclassified as a training ship in 1955 , " Sydney " was decommissioned in 1958 but reactivated in 1962 as a fast troop transport . In her troopship role , " Sydney " travelled to Vietnam 25 times between 1965 and 1972 . She was decommissioned in November 1973 , and sold to a South Korean company for scrapping in 1975 . Although deployed to the Far East Strategic Reserve on several occasions , and assigned to escort " Sydney " to and from Vietnam on three occasions , " Melbourne " was not directly involved in any conflict during her career . However , she collided with and sank two plane guard destroyers — in 1964 , and in 1969 — which , along with several minor collisions and incidents , led to the reputation that the carrier was jinx ed . " Melbourne " was sold to China for scrapping in 1985 ; instead of being broken up , she was studied as part of the nation ' s top - secret carrier development program , and may not have been dismantled until 2002 . There were plans to replace " Melbourne " with the British carrier , but " Invincible " was withdrawn from sale following her service in the Falklands War , and a 1983 election promise to not replace the carrier saw the end of Australian carrier - based aviation . Brazil . After " Vengeance " was returned from her loan to Australia , she was sold to the Brazilian Navy on 14 December 1956 . From mid - 1957 until December 1960 , the carrier underwent a massive refit and reconstruction at Verolme Dock in Rotterdam ; the work performed included the installation of an 8 . 5 - degree angled flight deck and a steam catapult , strengthening of arresting gear , and reinforcing of the hangar elevators . The carrier was commissioned into the " Marinha do Brasil " ( MB , Brazilian Navy ) as " Minas Gerais " on 6 December 1960 . The Brazilian carrier was equipped with S - 2E Tracker aircraft , and helicopters of the ASH - 3D Sea King , AS - 355 Ecureuil , and A - 332 Super Puma types : Brazilian law prevented the MB from operating fixed - wing aircraft , so two separate air groups had to be embarked . In 1999 , the MB acquired A - 4KU Skyhawk s — the first time Brazilian naval aviators were permitted to operate fixed - wing aircraft until the carrier ' s 2001 decommissioning . " Minas Gerais " was replaced by NAe " São Paulo " ( the former French carrier ) . " Minas Gerais " was the last of the World War II - era light aircraft carriers to leave service , and at the time of her decommissioning was the oldest active aircraft carrier in the world . The carrier was marked for sale in 2002 , and was actively sought after by British naval associations for return to England and preservation as a museum ship , although they were unable to raise the required money . Just before Christmas 2003 , the carrier was listed for sale on auction website eBay , but was removed because the site ' s rules prevented the sale of military ordnance . Sometime between February and July 2004 , the carrier was towed to the ship breaking yards at Alang , India for dismantling . Canada . Following wartime experience showing the effectiveness of naval aviation , the Royal Canadian Navy decided to acquire an aircraft carrier . The Canadian government decided to purchase the " Majestic " - class carrier " Powerful " , and have her upgraded to modern standards . The " Colossus " - class vessel was transferred on a two - year loan from 1946 to 1948 , so the experience gained by providing ship ' s companies for two British escort carriers during the war could be maintained . The upgrading of " Powerful " took longer than expected , and as " Warrior " had to be returned by 1948 , the " Majestic " - class " Magnificent " was completed to the basic " Majestic " design and loaned to the Royal Canadian Navy in 1948 as . On her return to Britain , " Warrior " was used as a trials ship , then modernised before her sale to Argentina . The loan of " Magnificent " continued until " Powerful " s completion in 1957 , at which point " Magnificent " was returned to the British . She was to be sold to another nation , but after no buyers came forward , the carrier was scrapped . In the meantime , " Powerful " had been upgraded to operate jet aircraft . The modifications included an 8° angled flight deck and steam catapult , and she was equipped with American weapons , radars , and jet aircraft instead of their British equivalents . She was commissioned in 1957 as . The carrier ' s design could not keep up with the advances in naval aircraft during the early 1960s , and in 1964 , the ship ' s McDonnell F2H Banshee fighters were removed , leaving an anti - submarine warfare ( ASW ) focused air group of Sikorsky CH - 124 Sea King helicopters and Grumman S - 2 Tracker ASW aircraft . " Bonaventure " received a major mid life refit in 1967 , but was withdrawn in 1970 after defence cuts . Her departure marked the end of Canadian carrier - based aviation . France . Lead ship was loaned to the French Navy in August 1946 and renamed . The vessel remained in French service , and was purchased outright in 1951 . She was deployed to French Indochina , and operated during the First Indochina War from 1949 to 1954 . After the war ' s end , the carrier was assigned to the Mediterranean . She participated in the 1956 Suez Crisis , but unlike her British sister ships , " Arromanches " role consisted of air strikes against Egyptian positions around Port Said . A modernisation from 1956 to 1958 saw the installation of a 4° angled flight deck , allowing " Arromanches " to operate Breguet Alizé anti - submarine aircraft . " Arromanches " was replaced in active service by the French - built " Clemenceau " class , and was converted into a training ship in 1960 . Apart from a short stint as an anti - submarine carrier in 1968 , the ship remained in this role until her 1974 decommissioning . " Arromanches " was broken up for scrap in 1978 . India . Work on the " Majestic " - class was suspended in May 1946 , with the ship about 75 % complete . The carrier remained in an unfinished condition until January 1957 , when she was purchased by the Indian Navy . Fitted with an angled flight deck , " Hercules " was commissioned into the Indian Navy as in 1961 . " Vikrant " was not involved in the 1962 Sino - Indian War or the 1965 Indo - Pakistani War because she was docked for maintenance and refits on both occasions . She did operate during the 1971 Indo - Pakistani War , with her air group performing strike and interdiction operations in East Pakistan . A major upgrade between 1979 and 1982 saw the carrier fitted with a new propulsion system , an updated radar suite , and a 9 . 75° ski - jump ramp to be used by Sea Harriers . The carrier was last deployed in 1994 , and she was decommissioned in 1997 . " Vikrant " helped the Indian Navy to become the dominant regional power . Following her decommissioning , " Vikrant " was marked for preservation as a museum ship , although a lack of funding has prevented progress on the ship ' s conversion for this role . " Vikrant " is opened to the public by the Indian Navy for short periods , but as of April 2010 , the Government of Maharashtra has been unable to find an industrial partner to operate the museum on a permanent , long - term basis . Netherlands . The Royal Netherlands Navy acquired the " Colossus " - class in 1948 , and commissioned her as . Initially , the carrier operated piston - engined aircraft , but underwent modernisation from 1955 to 1958 , including a steam catapult , reinforced flight deck and aircraft lifts , and an 8° angled deck . Between the upgrade and 1964 , " Karel Doorman " possessed a mixed air group of jet fighters , anti - submarine aircraft , and helicopters ; the fixed - wing aircraft were removed in that year . In 1968 , " Karel Doorman " was heavily damaged by fire . She was repaired with equipment stripped from British Light Fleet Carriers in reserve and awaiting disposal . However , before the fire , the Royal Netherlands Navy was reconsidering carrier - based operation , and instead of returning her to service , " Karel Doorman " was sold to Argentina .