During the 1950s, the advent of the atomic age forced the U.S. Navy to look at a number of alternate basing schemes for naval aviation. One such scheme was AN-1, an enormous nuclear-powered submarine that could launch eight fighter jets in just under eight minutes.
Although AN-1 was never built, it's a fascinating look at a ship that could have been.
The overwhelming firepower of nuclear weapons against naval forces, demonstrated at Bikini Atoll in 1946, prompted the Navy to consider alternate basing schemes for aircraft. One possibility was making jet fighters amphibious, able to take off directly from the sea, a concept that resulted in the failed Convair XF2Y Sea Dart. Another, bolder idea: placing aircraft carriers underwater.
