The British Aircraft Carrier (Hardback)
In Two World Wars
Pages: 320
Illustrations: 16 colour illustrations, 250 mono illustrations
ISBN: 9781399033138
Published: 9th June 2025
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The Royal Navy invented the aircraft carrier and most of the key innovations which have enabled carriers to remain effective, exploiting continuing changes in aircraft technology, from biplanes to supersonic jets. This work, in two volumes, tells (and explains) how that happened over more than a century of British carrier development, based largely on declassified official documents, both British and US.
Major themes include British domination of the early years of carrier development, and the audacious and highly original plans for their use during World War I, which inspired later naval thinking on the potential of carrier aviation. The introduction of armoured flight decks in the 1930s was only the first of a sequence of British innovations, the most important of which made it possible for carriers to operate jet aircraft (the angled deck, the steam catapult, and the mirror landing sight). These British developments, particularly the steam catapult, were crucial to the survival of the US carrier force in the postwar era, to an extent often forgotten, and covered in the next volume (subtitled 'in the Cold War Era and Beyond' is to be published June 2025.)
This book covers all British-built carriers, including those in Commonwealth and foreign service, with the historical context, both operational and technical, explained in detail, as is the connection to larger British national concerns. The book is heavily illustrated with photographs, but also reproduces official plans from the National Maritime Museum, many of which have never previously been published.
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"The British Aircraft Carrier in Two World Wars is a deeply-researched book, providing a highly detailed analysis of the development of British carrier airpower from the First World War through to the Second World War, and the foundations for its post-war evolution. Alongside the text, there is an excellent selection of photos with detailed captions, ship schematics, including a colour section. For those with an interest in the history of the Royal Navy, and particularly carrier airpower, The British Aircraft Carrier in Two World Wars will provide an invaluable reference and will greatly appeal. It is certainly recommended."
The Naval Review
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"This new book justifies the publisher’s decision to add another title to the large number of books on British aircraft carriers and provides much new insight into the many key choices made in developing these designs."
Warship International magazine - December 2025
The book is not just about the ships, but cover every design factor from meeting the need for piston engine aircraft to warm up engines to wartime tactics for the FAA to gain air superiority disabling the enemy’s carriers before they could attack- in short Friedman covers every facet of carrier development. This book has all the hallmarks of a Norman Friedman masterpiece; comprehensive and interesting text as a result of detailed research, numerous and well annotated photographs, and operational and technical explanations exploring the rationale for the different steps on the design path of each class, and all wonderfully published. Very highly recommended.
Peter Wykeham-Martin - Warship World
Norman Friedman is a naval analyst and historian with an outstanding international reputation for his incisive books on the design and development of warships and weapons systems.
Australian Naval Institute
The British Aircraft Carrier is well up to the high standards set by the author in his previous books published by Seaforth and is the culmination of many years’ work...
Overall this is an important book with significant detail about carrier designs that were of direct interest to the RAN. My copy now occupies a valued place in my library and I thoroughly recommend it to ANI members as an important work describing the development and design of some of the RAN’s most important warships as well as the RN ships.
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About Norman Friedman
NORMAN FRIEDMAN is arguably America’s most prominent naval analyst, and the author of more than thirty books covering a range of naval subjects, from warship histories to contemporary defence issues. His most recent titles in a series of successful works for Seaforth are the two volumes of his history of British Submarines.
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