Why a navy might risk aircraft before a cruiser

Why expend aircraft against a cruiser rather than risk the ship closing with another warship?

Because aircraft and pilots can be replaced faster than a major warship and its trained crew, even though neither loss is desirable.

This is a choice under military necessity rather than indifference to pilots. A navy does not seek to lose either aircraft or ships, but it may have to expose one of them to stop an enemy cruiser. Aircraft can be mass-produced more quickly than a major warship can be built. Aircrew training also takes less time than assembling the full body of expertise represented by a ship's company. If the tactical choice is genuinely unavoidable, the comparatively replaceable aviation asset is therefore the less damaging risk.