List of aircraft carriers of the Royal Navy - Definition and Overview

Royal Navy lists

Aircraft carriers

Amphibious assault shipping

Battlecruisers

Battleships

Corvettes and sloops

Cruisers

Destroyers

Escort carriers

Fast patrol boats

Frigates

Minesweepers

Monitors

Submarines

Survey vessels

Fleet bases

Air stations

Aircraft wings

Fleets

Squadrons and flotillas

Active ships

• Invincible class
  • Invincible (1977)
  • Illustrious (1981)
  • Ark Royal (1981)
• Ocean (1995) helicopter carrier

Planned ships

• CVF (full-sized, CTOL aircraft carriers) of 55,000+ tonnes
  • HMS Queen Elizabeth (2012)
  • HMS Prince of Wales (2015)

Decommissioned ships

• Argus (1916)
• Furious (1916)
• Glorious class
  • Glorious (1916)
  • Courageous (1916)
• Vindictive (1918)
• Hermes (1923)
• Eagle (1923)
• Ark Royal (1938)
• Unicorn
• Illustrious class
  • Illustrious (1939)
  • Formidable (1939)
  • Victorious (1939)
• Indomitable (1940)
• Implacable class
  • Implacable (1942)
  • Indefatigable (1942)
• Colossus class
  • Colossus (1943), sold to France in 1946 and renamed Arromanches
  • Glory (1943)
  • Ocean
  • Theseus (1944)
  • Triumph (1944)
  • Venerable, sold to the Netherlands in 1948 and renamed Karel Doorman, then to Argentina and renamed Veinticinco de Mayo
  • Vengeance (1944), sold to Brazil in 1956 and renamed Minas Gerais
  • Warrior (1944), loaned to Canada, sold to Argentina in 1958 and renamed Independencia
  • Perseus (1944)
  • Pioneer (1944)
• Majestic class
  • Majestic (1945), sold to Australia in 1955 and renamed Melbourne
  • Hercules (1945), sold to India in 1957 and renamed Vikrant
  • Leviathan (1945), was never completed
  • HMCS Magnificent
  • Powerful (1945), sold to Canada in 1952 and renamed Bonaventure
  • Terrible (1944), sold to Australia in 1948 and renamed Sydney
• Centaur class
  • Centaur (1947)
  • Albion (1947)
  • Bulwark (1948)
  • Hermes (1953), sold to India and renamed Viraat
• Audacious class
  • Eagle (1946)
  • Ark Royal (1950)