USS

The first aircraft carrier commissioned into the U.S. Navy was USS Langley (CV-1) on 20 March 1922. The Langley was a converted Proteus-class collier, originally commissioned as USS Jupiter (AC-3). It was soon followed by the other pre-World War II classes: the Lexington class; USS Ranger, the first U.S. purpose-built carrier; theYorktown class, and USS Wasp.

As World War II loomed, two more classes of carriers were commissioned under President Franklin Roosevelt: the Essex class, which is informally divided into regular bow and extended bow sub-classes, and the Independence-class ships, which are classified as light aircraft carriers. Between these two classes, 35 ships were completed. The Navy also purchased two training vessels, USS Wolverine and USS Sable, which were given the unclassified miscellaneous (IX) hull designation.

The Midway class and the Saipan class were built later in World War II, but entered service too late to serve in the war. The Midway class would serve during the entire Cold War.