The carrier could normally keep only two to four fighters airborne at once, with the larger number reserved for periods of greatest risk. The aim was endurance from before dawn until after dusk, sustained over several days of convoy or fleet movement. Fleet air defence depended on repeated recovery, refuelling, rearming, and relaunch as much as it did on aircraft performance. A limited air group had to keep producing patrols throughout the day.
Notable Point · 9:38-11:26
A small air group sustaining continuous patrols
With roughly fifteen Fulmars and twenty Albacores at full strength, Formidable had to turn a modest air group into day-long fighter cover for convoys and fleet movements.