List of aircraft carriers

Included in this list are ships which meet the above definition and had an official name (italicized) or designation (non-italicized), regardless of whether they were or were not ordered, laid down, completed, or commissioned.

The following is a complete list of all the US Navy's carriers and classes to date, and their status: Active Under construction Planned Reserve Retired (preserved as museum ships) Retired (other) Retired (scrapped) Sunk († scuttled) Cancelled before completion Escort aircraft carrier The United States Navy also had a sizable fleet of escort aircraft carriers during World War II and the era that followed.

To that end, many of these ships were transferred to the Royal Navy as part of the US-UK lend-lease program.

While some of these ships were kept for a time in reserve after the war, none survive today, as they have all since been sunk or retired and scrapped.

Their primary purpose though, is usually to serve as the centerpiece and flagship for an Expeditionary Strike Group or Amphibious Ready Group, carrying US Marine Corps Expeditionary Units and their equipment close to shore for amphibious landings and departures.