Were British aircraft carriers treated as capital units?

Did the Royal Navy regard aircraft carriers as capital units?

Yes; doctrine emphasized airborne warning and ready strike aircraft, though employment and damage-control failures sometimes defeated it.

The Royal Navy did treat carriers as capital units and expected Swordfish patrols to provide warning while a strike group remained ready. Glorious lacked that posture, Courageous was risked in an anti-submarine role, and Ark Royal's loss exposed the consequences of poor counter-flooding and damage control in a top-heavy ship.