Flight-deck parking constrains sortie generation

The early Forrestal flight deck left very little true dead space. Aircraft parked near the elevators and island could intrude toward the centreline, while aircraft queued for the waist catapults could prevent simultaneous landings. Limited room also reduced the number of aircraft kept at deck alert and complicated refuelling and rearming without striking them below. Those delays mattered during high-tempo flight operations even when crews found workable routines. An imagined chief petty officer asking where the aircraft were supposed to park captures the value of operational deck experience during design.