Q&A · 18:40-19:48

Where two Implacable-class carriers might have served

A two-carrier Implacable force could plausibly split between Cunningham's command and the Far East, but only if the wider war timeline left those assignments intact.

Question

If the Royal Navy had two Implacable-class carriers with large air wings, would one serve with Cunningham?

Short answer

Possibly, with the other in the Far East, but the result depends on Cunningham's post and on Japan not beginning the war earlier.

Notes

One Implacable-class carrier could serve with Cunningham while the other reinforced the Far East. The assignment depends on Cunningham still commanding in the Mediterranean when the ships become available. It also assumes that Japan waits long enough for a 1942 distribution plan to survive. Because Japanese resource pressures made a move in 1941 more likely in this counterfactual, the proposed air wings and theatre split cannot be treated as fixed.