Naval Historywith Dr. Alex

Q&A · 2:29:53-2:30:00

Could an M-class submarine carry a Swordfish?

A compact answer rules out the Fairey Swordfish because the submarine concept depended on much smaller purpose-designed aircraft.

Fairey SwordfishM Class SubmarinesNaval AviationSubmarine Aircraft Carriers
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Question

Would an M-class submarine aircraft carrier have been able to hold a Fairey Swordfish?

Short answer

No, because the concept depended on much smaller aircraft designed for the submarine's limited space.

Notes

The answer is a direct no. The M-class submarine aircraft concept used very small aircraft designed around the available space. A Fairey Swordfish would therefore fall outside the practical size of the arrangement. The exchange is brief, but it identifies aircraft dimensions rather than the mere presence of a hangar as the limiting factor.