Aquila
| Type | Aircraft carrier |
|---|---|
| War | Second World War |
| Main guns | 8 × 5.3″ guns |
Service
| to 1941 | Roma Passenger liner | |
| from 1941 | Aquila Taken over for conversion to a carrier |
Italy's first aircraft carrier, rebuilt from the liner Roma after Taranto and Matapan showed what the fleet lacked. Nearly finished at the armistice, she was seized by the Germans at Genoa; Italian frogmen damaged her in April 1945 so she could not be sunk as a blockship, and she was scrapped after the war.
Armament and specifications
Armament
- 8 × 135 mm (5.3 in) /45 cal guns
- 12 × 65 mm (2.56 in)/64 cal guns
- 132 × 20 mm (0.79 in) Breda 20/65 mod.35 AA guns
Armour
- Deck: 8 cm (3.1 in)
| Builder | Ansaldo, Sestri-Ponente shipyard, Genoa |
|---|---|
| Displacement | 23,500 long tons (23,877 t) (standard) 27,800 long tons (28,246 t) (full load) |
| Length | 235.5 m (772 ft 8 in) |
| Speed | 30 kn (56 km/h; 35 mph) |
| Complement | 1,420 (107 officers) |
As built, from the ship's Wikipedia article. Figures there may cover later refits too.
Career
She isn't listed in any of the fleet actions covered here.
Renamed Aquila
1941 · Taken over for conversion to a carrier
Fate
Seized by Germany and the Italian Social Republic in 1943. Sabotaged and partially sunk by Italian royalist Co-Belligerent commandos to prevent its use as a block ship in 1945. Raised after the war and demolished by 1952