Treaty tonnage and the fast-task-force gap

France received a 60,000-ton carrier allocation under the Washington Naval Treaty. Bearn's 22,500-ton standard displacement left 37,500 tons for follow-on construction, so two additional carriers would have needed to average about 18,750 tons each unless Bearn received experimental treatment. The equal Italian allocation obscured different strategic burdens: France had merchant traffic and possessions across the Atlantic, Indian Ocean, and Far East, while Italy could concentrate much more heavily on the Mediterranean. Like Britain, France risked dispersing a small carrier force across global commitments, whereas the United States and Japan could concentrate more of theirs. Dunkerque-style fast battleships provided one half of a balanced task force, but France did not pair them with fast carrier aviation early enough.