Lower flying-off decks and the cost of rebuilding British conversions

Lower flying-off decks let British carriers launch fighters straight from the forward hangar when an attack appeared. Fighters could take off while torpedo aircraft remained ranged on the main deck, avoiding disruption to the strike group. Later proposals considered fitting an accelerator to keep the lower deck useful as aircraft developed. A more extensive rebuild would extend the main flight deck forward and enlarge the hangar, increasing capacity or preserving an air group of about 60 as aircraft grew. By the late 1930s the conversions were worn, and new carriers were entering service or construction. The suggestion that the Royal Navy had effectively abandoned the larger rebuild is an interpretation of those competing demands, rather than a stated formal decision.