Summary: The HMS Hermes, a Centaur-class aircraft carrier, served the Royal Navy from its completion in 1959 until it was decommissioned and sold to India, where it served as INS Viraat until 2017.

Britain’s Falklands campaign relied entirely on HMS Hermes, its crucial floating base for war operations. Argentina’s strategy was simple but bold: destroy the British carriers and secure victory. On ...

In April 1942, just days after crippling two British cruisers off Ceylon, Japanese carrier-based dive bombers struck again. Their target: the Royal Navy’s hms Hermes, Britain’s first aircraft carrier.