A Royal Navy study considered turning the Lion class into a hybrid battleship and aircraft carrier, one of several paper options around an unfinished programme. The Third Sea Lord's dismissive reaction suggests that the proposal remained exploratory. Combining a flight deck with battleship guns answered a question that arose only in an exceptionally desperate fleet situation. A documented study does not show that the Navy regarded the hybrid as a plausible wartime choice.
Notable Point · 5:36-6:24
Why a Lion hybrid signaled desperation
A Royal Navy study for a hybrid Lion shows why a documented design option can still be an implausible answer to an already desperate fleet situation.