Saipan-class aircraft carrier

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USS Saipan
Class overview
Builders	New York Shipbuilding Corporation
Operators	United States Navy
Preceded by	Independence class
Succeeded by	None
Built	1944
In commission	1946–70
Completed	2
Retired	2
General characteristics
Type	Light aircraft carrier
Displacement	14,500 (standard) 19,000 tons (full load)
Length	664 ft (202 m) wl 683 ft 6 in (208.33 m) oa 600 ft (180 m) (fd)
Beam	76.8 ft (23.4 m) (waterline) 115 ft (35 m) (overall)
Draft	28 ft (8.5 m)
Propulsion	geared steam turbines producing 120,000 horsepower turning four propellers
Speed	33 knots (61 km/h)
Complement	1,700+ officers and men
Armament	42 × Bofors 40 mm guns (5 quad, 11 dual mountings) 16 dual 20 mm guns AA
Aircraft carried	Planned complement of 42 aircraft: 18 Grumman F6F Hellcat fighters 12 Curtiss SB2C Helldiver scout-bombers 12 Grumman TBM Avenger torpedo planes

The Saipan-class aircraft carriers were a class of two light carriers Saipan (CVL-48) and Wright (CVL-49) built for the United States Navy during World War II. Like the nine Independence-class light carriers, they were based on cruiser hulls. However, they differed from the earlier light carriers in that they were built from the keel up as carriers, and were based on heavy rather than light cruiser hulls. Completed too late for the war, they served as carriers until the mid-1950s, then were converted into a command ship (Wright) and a major communications relay ship (Saipan) in the late 1950s, and served in those roles until 1970. They were both scrapped in 1980.