A proposed alternative: fast carriers for the scouting role

Once treaty limits no longer applied, Japan might have converted suitable liners into fast escort carriers for reconnaissance. Existing passenger-ship construction offered hulls that could be redirected without waiting for an entirely new carrier programme. A dedicated aviation ship could sustain the search while cruisers concentrated on cruiser warfare. The alternative anticipated the logic behind Ibuki's later conversion. Japan's failure to pursue it earlier becomes another example of strong individual ideas that never formed a consistent long-term construction plan.