Naval Historywith Dr. Alex

Q&A · 2:09:06-2:10:20

Did Royal Navy crews race to assemble boxed aircraft?

No formal contest record is cited, but a surviving China Station record implies informal competition over aircraft assembly speed.

Boxed AircraftChina StationHMS HermesRoyal Navy
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Question

Did Royal Navy cruiser crews compete to assemble boxed aircraft fastest?

Short answer

No official competition record is known, but a China Station assembly record associated with HMS Hermes strongly suggests informal rivalry.

Notes

No formal aircraft-assembly competition is documented in the answer. The Royal Navy certainly held contests for other shipboard skills, including boat preparation and rowing. HMS Hermes is described as having held an aircraft-uncrating or assembly record on the China Station. That surviving claim suggests ships compared performance even if no official competition order has been found.