The jet age wasn't in full swing by the time of the Korean War. The P-51 and the F4U Corsair was still widely used. I'm thinking the IJN carriers could house Mustangs, Corsairs, or even older Zeros.
What if the Japanese battleship Nagato was reactivated and pressed into JMSDF service?
- Thread starter Gillan1220
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Yes it was. In 1950 USN Carriers were flying F9F Panthers, and F2H Banshees. True the navy did fly the F4U Corsair for the first year of the Korean War, and the A-1 Skyraider served through the Vietnam War, but they could see they needed bigger carriers, with angled steel flight decks, and steam catapults. In 1949 the Corsair was in limited production, the Mustang was a land based fighter, and the Zero was obsolescent in 1945.
In 1949 Japan just couldn't afford the cost of operating aircraft carriers, and didn't want do deal with any remilitarization issues. Aircraft Carriers are for sea control, and offensive action, what would an occupied Japan need ships like that for?
If you need a symbolic flagship why not use MIKASA? A warship from a more distant war and is giving the Soviets the finger instead of the Americans. And at least the MIKASA won the war she participated in. Plus at this time both are old, outdated, and in terrible condition.
Regarding the AKIZUKI class while you could make them into helicarrier the question is why? They are going to be replaced soon and their primary mission is providing AA fire for the fleet so it would make more sense to put the helicopters on the asw dedicated ships instead.
And
I've read a few articles about post-war Japan from 1945 to 1980s. The U.S. primarily used Japan as an island chain that would block Soviet ships or subs from entering that second island chain in the Pacific. Hence we see most of the JMSDF perform ASW and area denial.