A class of aircraft carrier commonly used during World War II.
The Essex-Class Carrier was designed to carry two squadrons of airplanes. An Essex-Class carrier was equiped with Mark 12 radar, which allowed it to keep track of ships and enabled a multi-carrier force to maintain a high-speed formation at night or in foul weather. It was powered by eight Babcock and Wilcox boilers producing 150,000 horsepower at 32.7 knots. Known as the fast carriers, the Essex Class had a range of 15,000 nautical miles at an economical speed of 15 knots per hour.