Lexington-class aircraft carrier

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The Lexington-class aircraft carrier was a class of early U.S. Navy fleet carriers originally designed as battlecruisers and later converted to pioneering large carriers that served prominently in the interwar period and early World War II.

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Statements (48)

Predicate Object
instanceOf United States Navy ship class
aircraft carrier class
airGroupSizeApproximate 70–90 aircraft
armamentInitial 5-inch guns
8-inch guns
armamentRole heavy defensive armament for an aircraft carrier
category World War II aircraft carrier class NERFINISHED
interwar aircraft carrier class
classLeadShip USS Lexington (CV-2) NERFINISHED
conversionReason Washington Naval Treaty limitations NERFINISHED
convertedTo aircraft carrier
countryOfOrigin United States of America
designedFor high speed
long range operations
displacementFullLoad about 43,000 long tons
displacementStandard about 36,000 long tons
fateOfUSS_Lexington_CV2 sunk in Battle of the Coral Sea
fateOfUSS_Saratoga_CV3 sunk as nuclear test target at Bikini Atoll
flightDeckType full-length flight deck
hullMaterial steel
hullOrigin Lexington-class battlecruiser design
influenceOn subsequent U.S. carrier design
isPioneerOf large fleet carrier design
laidDownPeriod 1920s
maximumSpeed about 33 knots
navalArchitectureFeature island superstructure on starboard side
stack gases trunked into island
notableBattle Battle of the Coral Sea NERFINISHED
Guadalcanal Campaign NERFINISHED
Pacific Theater operations NERFINISHED
notableUnit USS Lexington (CV-2) NERFINISHED
USS Saratoga (CV-3) NERFINISHED
numberOfScrews 4
numberOfUnitsCompletedAsCarriers 2 GENERATED
numberOfUnitsPlanned 6
operator United States Navy
originalDesign battlecruiser
powerPlantOutput about 180,000 shaft horsepower
propulsion geared turbines
oil-fired boilers
steam turbines
role capital ship of carrier task forces
secondShipOfClass USS Saratoga (CV-3) NERFINISHED
servedInConflict World War II NERFINISHED
servedInPeriod interwar period
serviceEntryPeriod 1920s
treatyContext Washington Naval Treaty of 1922 NERFINISHED
use fleet carrier

Referenced by (3)

Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.

CC-1 laterPartOfClass Lexington-class aircraft carrier
Ranger class precededBy Lexington-class aircraft carrier
Lady Lex shipClass Lexington-class aircraft carrier
subject surface form: USS Lexington (CV-2)