The world's first aircraft carriers

 The world's first aircraft carriers can be categorized based on their evolving functions, ranging from modified versions of other ships to ships designed specifically to carry aircraft.

Here are some milestones in the history of the world's first aircraft carriers:

Hōshō (Japan): The world's first ship designed and built specifically from the outset as an aircraft carrier (not a modified version), and was successfully commissioned in December 1922. Although the British began construction on a similar ship earlier, the Japanese completed it faster.

HMS Argus (England): The first aircraft carrier to feature a full-length flat deck, allowing aircraft to take off and land freely. This ship entered service in September 1918, but was modified from an unfinished merchant ship.

HMS Hermes (England): The first ship designed specifically as an aircraft carrier from scratch (its keel was laid in 1918), but due to various tests and budget constraints, it was not officially commissioned until 1924, after Hōshō.

USS Langley (United States): The US Navy's first aircraft carrier, commissioned in March 1922. It was converted from a coal carrier called the USS Jupiter.

The carrier was sunk in the waters around Cilacap, Central Java, Indonesia, by Japanese bombers on February 27, 1942.