Cuxhaven and early seaplane-carrier operations

Churchill accepted Lord Kitchener's request that the Royal Naval Air Service defend Britain from the air, freeing the Royal Flying Corps for field operations on the continent. Because airships were initially treated as the principal threat, Churchill favoured offensive attacks on their sheds rather than waiting for Britain's defences to mature. German advances and aircraft range soon put land-based targets beyond reach, making seaborne aviation necessary. HMS Engadine, HMS Riviera, and HMS Empress were converted from 18-to-21-knot cross-channel passenger ships with canvas shelters and seaplane-handling booms. Their unsuccessful Christmas Day 1914 attack at Cuxhaven nevertheless became the first open-water naval battle in which both sides used aircraft as striking weapons, while the opposing surface ships exchanged no fire and the submarines proved ineffective. Winter experience then prompted larger aft hangars, whose slab-sided structures protected aircraft but made the ships harder to handle in strong winds.