Furious belongs with Courageous, Glorious, Eagle, and Argus in a period when conversions dominated carrier development. Courageous, Glorious, and Furious grew out of Jackie Fisher's Baltic battlecruiser ideas, Eagle from a battleship hull, and Argus from an ocean liner. The British conversions carried smaller air groups than Lexington and Saratoga, yet extensive development made them effective first-generation carriers. They were capable enough for the missions the Royal Navy needed. Furious makes the case especially clearly because her useful carrier career so thoroughly eclipsed the combat value of her original form.
Chapter · 0:00-3:31
Why HMS Furious became more valuable as a carrier
The opening compares Furious with other capital-ship conversions and argues that her carrier form was far more useful than her original battlecruiser concept.