American carriers in rough North Atlantic seas

How did British observers expect American carriers to fare in rough North Atlantic operations?

The joke was that heavy Atlantic weather would sweep aircraft from their decks before the Royal Navy had to defeat them directly.

The passage presents this as a British joke about American carriers rather than a formal performance calculation. Ships comfortable near the American coast in summer might lose aircraft from exposed decks when waves rise in the mid- or northern Atlantic. The joke connects carrier effectiveness to sea state, deck handling, and the security of parked aircraft rather than air-group strength alone. It also helps explain why British carrier design placed unusual weight on harsh-weather operations.