331 MIDWAY-CLASS AIRCRAFT CARRIERS: 1945-92

The history of the US Navy's biggest aircraft carriers to be built during World War II, which found a second life as the backbone of the Cold War fleet. Explains how the Midway class was the US Navy's attempt to build a much larger and much more survivable version of the wartime Essex-class. The importance of these ships in conducting presence missions in the European theater early in the Cold War will be highlighted. The basic soundness of the original design will also be highlighted. Two of the ships in the class enjoyed prolonged careers, which will also be traced, and Midway ended its career as a museum ship in San Diego, the only non-Essex-class American carrier to be preserved. Illustrated throughout with 40 photos and 8 pages of colour illustrations.