The Dardanelles and adjacent Adriatic waters produced reconnaissance, bombing, sustained air support, and the first successful aerial torpedo attacks. Ark Royal was the first ship purpose-built to operate aircraft, even though she was a seaplane carrier rather than a later flight-deck design. Together with Ben-my-Chree, she made naval aviation a continuing feature of the Gallipoli campaign from an early stage. The ships could find targets and attack positions that surface observers or guns could not otherwise reach. Seaplane carriers were operational assets in a major joint campaign.
Chapter · 40:58-42:57
Seaplane carriers in the Dardanelles campaign
Ark Royal and Ben-my-Chree made aircraft a persistent part of operations around the Dardanelles, while the wider campaign included the first successful aerial torpedo attacks.