Why spotting mattered before carrier strike matured

Early naval aviation centered on reconnaissance, counter-reconnaissance, and gun spotting before aircraft acquired the ship-killing weapons they would carry in World War II. Airships such as Mayfly represented the scouting problem that fighters were meant to deny, while larger aircraft helped battleships correct their fire. Early torpedo bombers could attack, but unescorted daylight strikes against organized air defence were highly vulnerable. Night harbour attacks might work after adapting the available system, yet spotting offered the interwar fleet a dependable way to multiply the reach of artillery it already possessed.