The Royal Navy's carrier force lacked operational and maintenance slack. Illustrious took 1,124 days to build and Formidable 1,256, while Victorious and Indomitable each took more than 1,400. The class average was 1,320 days. A 1,200-day allowance sits between the first two ships' actual building times and assumes continued construction without an exceptional acceleration. It puts Formidable in service in September 1940, Victorious in August 1940, and Indomitable in February 1941. Earlier ships would create room for the maintenance that serving carriers needed.
Notable Point · 24:35-26:17
Earlier carrier completion would create maintenance time
An illustrative 1,200-day build time would bring Formidable, Victorious, and Indomitable into service earlier and ease pressure on the existing carrier force.