A construction drumbeat accelerates welding experience

Could welding save enough weight for another carrier, or was its adoption chiefly a technological timing problem?

Repeated construction could encourage greater use of welding in later scout carriers and Ark Royal, although no weight saving is calculated.

A steady series of carriers would give designers and yards repeated opportunities to adopt welding. Early ships could remain largely riveted, while later vessels become substantially or wholly welded as confidence grows. That experience could carry into Ark Royal's generation. The response does not calculate the weight saved or establish whether it would permit an additional ship within the treaty allowance.