What Happened To Japan’s Aircraft Carriers After World War II?
A once fearsome force neutered for good
In 1941 in the wake of the attacks on Pearl Harbor, Japan had ten aircraft carriers in its fleet, and all of them were operating in the Pacific. That gave them the largest carrier fleet in the world and the most concentrated. The United States only had three aircraft carriers in the Pacific in 1941, and the United Kingdom only had one carrier in the Indian Ocean. This gave the Japanese a clear advantage in firepower as well as tactical versatility at the outset of the war.
The fearsome carrier strike force was known as the Kido Butai, or Mobile Force. It ranged from Ceylon (modern-day Sri Lanka) to Darwin, Australia, to the island of Midway. In the early months of the war, the Kido Butai was the most terrifying naval force in the world, and it struck fear and loathing in the hearts of American sailors, airmen, and planners.
But what happened to Japan’s carrier force after the end of the war? Were they scrapped? Were the carriers sold? Are they on display somewhere?
This was the final fate of Japan’s once-mighty aircraft carrier force.
