What was the purpose / reason the navy had wooden decks on the aircraft carriers and other ships ?

Question

What was the purpose / reason the navy had wooden decks on the aircraft carriers and other ships ?

Answer 1

Ease of construction, and to save weight also. Dan's comment about the kamikaze going through the deck is correct to a point. It was The BOMB carried that often went through the flight deck, into the hanger etc. Because of their light weight j*p planes had a tough time even at a 75degree dive going through the flight deck (A/C to light/flimsy). Also when these carriers were built, nobody imagined the suicide tactics employed would occur, and that the CAP would keep all attacks to a minimum. British carriers (many modified cruiser hulls) had armored flight decks and suffered much less. The US Navy learned from this and all future carriers had steel decks, the older Essex class were also modified later in their service life.

Answer 2

not only would it make it lighter and save steel it would make repairs easier when a aircraft crashed into it, and probably better traction

Answer 3

--Ease of battle damage repair.

Answer 4

Don the Essex-class and the light carriers had wooden decks to save steel and to help lighten the ships. Some of the battleships had wood decks on top of the steel to make the ships interior less hot. The carrier's wood decks were part of the reason that the Japanese Kamakazi's did so much damage to them. The British navy carriers had steel decks and  the crashers on them just crumpled up and were swept over the side.

Regards,

Dan

Answer 5

There was a treaty, I can't recall the name of it, that limited the size of carriers by weight. They used wood as a way of having larger, lighter aircraft carriers.

Answer 6

the weight  savings of steel the british made some of there best fighters of wood (spruce) mosquito