How did the Navy adapt to use aircraft in their operations?

The adaptation of the Navy to incorporate aircraft into their operations was primarily achieved through the creation of aircraft carriers. This innovation allowed the Navy to launch and recover airplanes at sea, enabling them to project air power over greater distances and support naval operations more effectively.

Aircraft carriers serve as mobile airbases, facilitating a wide range of missions, including fleet defense, ground support, reconnaissance, and striking enemy targets. This development transformed naval warfare, allowing the Navy to operate aircraft in a way that was not possible with traditional ships.

Other options, while they may have contributed to naval change in different contexts, do not directly address the core adaptation to effectively utilize aircraft. Building larger ships may have been a part of naval strategy but it was the dedicated design and construction of aircraft carriers that specifically enabled the full integration of air power into naval operations. Limiting the use of naval aircraft and simply recruiting more aviators would not have allowed the Navy to leverage the unique capabilities of aircraft to the extent that aircraft carriers did.