The armored carriers already carried useful stores and repair capacity comparable to foreign contemporaries, so Unicorn was more than their mobile workshop. Royal Navy officers had developed multi-carrier concepts from the early 1930s, including combinations of fleet carriers, strike carriers, and fast capital ships. One proposed formation placed armored Illustrious-class ships in the exposed position while Ark Royal supplied a protected, concentrated strike. Aircraft could also be moved between cooperating carriers as tactical needs changed. Unicorn belongs beside this doctrine as the ship that sustained the aviation force over long distances instead of serving as a substitute for a missing flight deck.
Notable Point · 20:54-24:03
Royal Navy multi-carrier doctrine before the war
The Royal Navy's pre-war carrier plans paired specialized ships in multi-carrier formations rather than expecting every carrier to perform the same job.