An aircraft has to be available to fight

The Gannet's competitor offered better performance on paper, but the Gannet prototypes reportedly achieved roughly twice as much flying because they were easier to maintain and more reliable. A carrier cannot compensate for a maintenance-heavy type simply by adding spare aircraft beyond the capacity of its air group. The same reasoning applies to the Sea Fury's selection over the Spiteful or Seafang. An illustrative comparison gives a superior aircraft four hours of daily availability and its less capable rival sixteen: the latter can cover periods when the former cannot fly. These figures describe a hypothetical example, not measured operating rates for the named aircraft. Maintenance demands therefore affect how much usable air power a carrier can generate.