The P.1154 catapult-and-vertical-recovery compromise

Could the catapult-capable Fleet Air Arm P.1154 have produced a catapult-launch, vertical-landing carrier?

Technically perhaps, but unused stores and airframe compromises make it a narrow and self-defeating operating concept.

The proposal aimed to launch the aircraft heavy by catapult and recover it vertically after fuel and stores had been expended. That promised gentler recovery loads on the airframe. A returning strike aircraft, however, might have to jettison unused bombs before it became light enough for vertical landing. The compromises needed for vertical recovery would also reduce the design's effectiveness in the strike role for which catapult launch was most valuable.