When the Curtiss O-4 was selected to replace the old O-2s, the Texas Navy took note of the folding wings. The reduced storage area for an aircraft allowed them to carry more floatplanes per ship. More available aircraft meant they could spend more time scouting, as opposed to just observing during gunnery or surface engagement.
There was immediate interest in Naval Headquarters to develop a dedicated vessel to carry floatplanes exclusively for scouting purposes. Unfortunately, Congressional mandate halted all new ship construction until at least 1937, forcing the Navy to make a hard choice - wait for the moratorium to expire, or convert an existing hull? Converting and rebuilding hulls was allowed, and there were two hulls available for conversion:
The Navidad Class cruisers were twenty years old in 1933. They were scheduled for scrapping because in 1933, they couldn't even hold up against the newer destroyers in terms of firepower. If they were retained, they would have been reclassified as gunboats, but the Naval Staff was ready to dispose of them for a newer vessel. But when Congress clamped down on ship construction during the Great Depression, they were laid up in reserve instead of going to the cutter's torch.
Conferences were held with the Texas Air Force, who agreed that more aircraft at sea could increase the range at which the fleet could detect hostile ships, citing the US Navy's extensive use of aircraft carriers (developments that were closely watched by the Staff, but beyond possibility for Texas at that time) for the same purpose. When looking at the Navidad hulls, they were in decent shape, but still rather small and in need of new engines. It was estimated that a converted hull with an enclosed hangar could operate 4 O-4s easily with a catapult, six if needed with the additional two on the catapult and flight deck.
The Navy gave it's go-ahead in 1934, and the Navidad emerged from Gray's Iron Works in late 1935.
And lord, was she ugly. The conversion was an ugly process, too. Her after funnel was trunked worse than a macaroni strand, and the hangar built over the now-cleared space. A flight deck was constructed with considerable overhang from the hangar end to the stern. A crane was installed for aircraft positioning on the catapult, aircraft recovery, and boat handling. A single catapult was offset from the centerline to allow the planes to be moved with carts that ran on tracks in the deck. The forward 6"/53 was replaced with a single 5"/38, and a 3"/50 anti-aircraft gun was retained on the hangar roof. Interior spaces were provided for a larger complement of Air Force mechanics and support personnel.
The end result was functional, but not without problems. Aircraft on other ships were more easily repaired when the AVP was present, and major repairs could now be made at sea. But the flight deck slapped in heavy seas - buckling it more than once during their service. But that was to be expected from an ad-hoc conversion of a hull that was probably too small for a seaplane tender. The Navidad AVPs would serve only until better, purpose designed ships were built to replace them.
