From biplanes to drones: How the Navy's carrier aircraft have dominated battlefields for almost a century
Summary List Placement American aircraft carriers are one of the most dominant naval weapons in existence. Since their trial by fire in World War II, US carriers have played key roles in all US wars and become essential to US force projection.
Virtually all of that is due to each carrier's air wing. Despite humble beginnings, US naval aviators have flown some of the most sophisticated aircraft ever built.
Here is how carrier air wings have secured control of the seas, dominated the sky, and supported ground operations.
The first carrier aircraft
The first American plane to take off from a US aircraft carrier was the Vought VE-7 "Bluebird." The carrier, USS Langley , was a collier that had been converted into an aircraft carrier in an effort to catch up to other naval powers.
The first generation of carrier aircraft were biplanes. The VE-7 was the Navy's frontline fighter until 1928. The arrival of Lexington-class carriers in 1927 gave the Navy the ability to field dedicated carrier aircraft, including...
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