A seaplane carrier could fall behind whenever it stopped to launch or recover an aircraft. Engadine was not fast enough to separate casually from a battle fleet already changing course at high speed. Radio failures or unclear orders could then leave a pilot searching the vast North Sea for a ship whose position had changed. Bringing Rutland back quickly reduced that rendezvous risk and let the carrier rejoin the formation. Technological and command constraints explain the decision to recover him.
Chapter · 55:20-56:27
What Jutland revealed about seaplane carriers
Recovery delays, limited speed, radio trouble, and uncertain orders made a seaplane carrier difficult to integrate with a fast-moving battle fleet.