The book's survival accounts lead into a design question about Article 5 of the 1936 Second London Naval Treaty. With a carrier limit above 23,000 tons, the Royal Navy might have retained armored protection while increasing the early-war air group from 36 aircraft to 48, or perhaps as many as 54. Possible 1939-1940 groups include 24 Swordfish with 12 Skua and 12 Fulmar aircraft, or a 24-Swordfish and 24-Fulmar combination. The extra capacity could strengthen both strike and fighter elements while allowing more spare parts and possibly heavier armament. The thought experiment uses treaty displacement to explain machinery, protection, weapons, and air-group choices without predicting an alternate war.
Notable Point · 14:18-18:15
Treaty tonnage and armoured carrier air groups
A treaty-design thought experiment asks how a 25,000-, 26,000-, or 27,000-ton limit might have enlarged British armored-carrier air groups without abandoning protection.