Aircraft Carriers are the ultimate tool of modern power projection.  They are symbols of both naval strength and air superiority.  This episode covers their history and their future: 1840s: Balloon Carriers are invented1900s: Seaplane Carriers are invented1910s: Modern aircraft carriers are invented1930s-1940s: WWII (five major carrier battles) Pearl Harbor: Japan's six carriers surprise the United States NavyCoral Sea: Japan's three carriers engage America's two carriers (both lose one carrier)Midway: America's three carriers engage Japan's four carriers and sink all four, with the help of codebreakers and reconnaissance.  Considered a turning point in the Pacific WarPhilippine Sea: America's sixteen carriers destroy or disable all but 35 of the 500 Japanese carrier-based aircraftLeyte Gulf: America's seventeen carriers decisively defeat the Imperial Japanese Navy in the largest naval battle in history WWII-present: US Carrier Strike Groups control the seas For more information, read: http://www.sandcastlevi.com/sea/carriers/cvchap1a.htm http://www.navy.mil/navydata/ships/carriers/cv-list.asp http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/world/carriers.htm http://science.howstuffworks.com/aircraft-carrier.htm http://www.combatreform2.com/submarineaircraftcarriers.htm The Pacific War Companion by Daniel Marston Jane’s Warship Recognition Guide Imperial Japanese Navy Aircraft Carriers (1921-1945) by Mark Stille US Navy Bluejacket’s Manual Military History Podcast is sponsored by Armchair General Magazine