Capital Ships: HMS Ark Royal is Dwarfed by USS Nimitz at Norfolk, Virginia

(Image: U.S. Federal Government, public domain)

She pioneered the angled deck and was capable of projecting the strength of 50 aircraft to distant corners of the world, but HMS Ark Royal (scrapped in 1980) was dwarfed by the massive American-built aircraft carrier USS Nimitz.  Seen here docked at Norfolk, Virginia shortly before decommissioning in 1978, Ark Royal will posthumously remain Britain’s largest carrier until the introduction of the first new Queen Elizabeth class aircraft carrier around 2020.