[gurps] Planes for a TL6 sub carrier

[Onno Meyer]

Eric replied to me:
> 
> the i-400 seemed to "cheat," and not have a real top-deck, only a
> catapult, 
> and it launched seaplanes with pontoons. It then used a crane to retrieve 
> the returned planes from the water.
> 
> the pontoons detacked for storage of the planes, and the wings folded.

Not a cheat, just not a 'carrier'. Once upon a time, cruisers carried 
seaplanes the way modern warships have helicopters. They could 
not waste their entire top deck to aviation, so they made do with 
seaplanes and catapults.

Consider http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Surcouf_(N_N_3)

> possibly a design problem of the i-400 -- the planes were all stowed in a 
> row.

I think the 'problem' was (a) the required disassembly and (b) the
lack of a rear hatch. Otherwise, the row could become an efficient
'assembly line' system - recover the plane, shove it into the rear 
hatch of the tube, repair minor faults, refuel, rearm, emerge from
the front hatch, launch again. 

Onno