Ibuki's carrier form reveals the type of reconnaissance ship Japan should have begun building by about 1936. Producing several such ships required more than ordering hulls; it required yards able to build and fit them out. Japan knew in advance that it intended to leave the treaties, creating time to expand those facilities before wartime demand peaked. Synthetic-oil plants belonged to the same preparation because new ships without reliable fuel would not solve the strategic problem. Platform choice, industrial capacity, and logistics had to form a single programme.
Notable Point · 3:05:33-3:06:58
Treaty exit needed carriers, yards, and fuel plants together
If reconnaissance carriers were the real need, Japan should have paired their construction with the yards and synthetic-fuel capacity required to sustain them.