The divergence is deliberately narrow: the Royal Navy retains only the aircraft and personnel directly needed by the fleet. The RAF still forms, while the retained force begins with ship-operating reconnaissance and strike units rather than a competing strategic air service. From that institutional choice, naval requirements could reshape carrier aviation, procurement, and wartime readiness. This boundary establishes which later changes follow from the premise and which parts of British air organization remain historical.
Chapter · 0:59-2:26
A naval air arm retained in 1918
The alternate-history premise keeps the RNAS fleet units under Royal Navy control, changing carrier operations, interwar choices, and the pace of aviation development.