Eighteen aircraft is proposed as a useful building block for carrier air groups. Royal Navy experience linked multiples of eighteen with the ability to guarantee a combat air patrol of at least four aircraft. An embarked total therefore needs to be judged by the patrol strength it can sustain. The same force-generation test can be applied when choosing aircraft numbers for a fictional carrier.
Notable Point · 32:31-33:24
Why carrier air groups can be built in modules of eighteen
Multiples of eighteen aircraft are proposed as a way to sustain a four-aircraft combat air patrol.