Naval historian Marcus Faulkner is recommended for further reading on this problem. The counterfactual begins with Germany entering the war with even one aircraft carrier. Such a ship would not provide a conventional answer to the Royal Navy battle fleet. Its aircraft could still threaten shipping across a much larger area than a gun-armed surface raider, placing the carrier at the top of British target priorities because of the danger to trade. An analogy with a detected enemy ballistic-missile submarine illustrates the proposed priority: the danger from one ship could make its destruction the overriding objective.
Notable Point · 5:13-6:30
How one German aircraft carrier might have changed commerce raiding
In a counterfactual scenario, a German carrier used as a commerce raider could threaten shipping across such a wide area that its destruction would become a top Royal Navy priority.