Furious had been fitted during the First World War with a flying-off and landing deck, but the latter proved largely unusable because of the strong air currents around the superstructure and exhaust gases from the funnel.
She was laid up after the war, but was converted to an aircraft carrier between June 1921 and September 1925.
Her design was based on the very limited experience gained with the first two British carriers: Argus, less than three years old, and Eagle, which had carried out only 143 deck landings during preliminary sea trials in 1920.

Furious's superstructure, masts, funnel and landing deck were removed and she was given a 576-by-92-foot (175.6 by 28.0 m) flight deck that extended over three-quarters of her length.
This flight deck was not level; it sloped upwards about three-quarters of the way from the stern to help slow down landing aircraft, which had no brakes at the time it was designed.
That era's fore-and-aft arresting gear, initially 320 feet (97.5 m) long on Furious, was not intended to stop landing aircraft—the landing speeds of the time were low enough that this was unnecessary given a good headwind—but rather to prevent aircraft from veering off to one side and potentially falling off the flight deck.
Various designs for the flight deck were tested in a wind tunnel by the National Physical Laboratory which showed that the distinctive elliptical shape and rounded edges minimised turbulence.
To minimise any turbulence over the flight deck, Furious was flush-decked and lacked an island, like Argus; instead she was provided with a retractable charthouse at the forward end of the flight deck.

A two-storey hangar was built under the flight deck, each level being 15 ft (4.6 m) high.
The lower hangar was 550 ft (167.6 m) long by 35–50 ft (10.7–15.2 m) wide and the upper was 520 by 50 ft (158.5 by 15.2 m).
Each hangar could be sectioned off by electrically operated steel shutters on rollers.
Her boilers were ducted down the side of the ship to exhaust either out of gratings at the rear of the flight deck, or, when landing operations were in progress, out of the side of the lower hangar at the rear of the ship.
This solution proved to be very unsatisfactory as it consumed valuable space, made parts of the lower hangar unbearable and interfered with landing operations to a greater or lesser degree.
Her original flying-off deck remained in place for use by small aircraft like fighters so that the ship could simultaneously land aircraft on the main flight deck while fighters were taking off on the lower deck and could speedily launch her aircraft from both decks.
Doors at the forward end of the upper hangar opened onto the lower flying deck.
Two 47-by-46-foot (14.3 by 14.0 m) lifts (elevators) were installed to transfer aircraft between the flight deck and hangars.
Two 600-imperial-gallon (2,700 l; 720 US gal) ready-use petrol tanks were provided for aircraft and the ship's boats on the upper deck.
An additional 20,000 imperial gallons (91,000 l; 24,000 US gal) of petrol were in bulk storage.
The longitudinal arresting gear proved unpopular in service and it was ordered removed in 1927 after tests aboard Furious in 1926 had shown that deck-edge palisades were effective in reducing cross-deck gusts that could blow aircraft over the side.
Furious's long exhaust ducting hampered landing operations, and restricted the size of the hangars and thus the number of aircraft that she could carry.

Glorious and Courageous were converted to aircraft carriers after Furious began her reconstruction, Courageous at Devonport starting on 29 June 1924, and Glorious at Rosyth on 14 February 1924.
The latter was moved to Devonport to complete the conversion after Furious was finished.
Their design was based on Furious with a few improvements based on experience gained since she was designed.
All superstructure, guns, and fittings down to the main deck were removed.
A two-storey hangar, each level 16 ft (4.9 m) high and 550 ft (167.6 m) long, was built on top of the remaining hull; the upper hangar level opened onto a short fl
Furious had been fitted during the First World War with a flying-off and landing deck, but the latter proved largely unusable because of the strong air currents around the superstructure and exhaust gases from the funnel. She was laid up after the war, but was converted to an aircraft carrier between June 1921 and September 1925. Her design was based on the very limited experience gained with the first two British carriers: Argus, less than three years old, and Eagle, which had carried out only 143 deck landings during preliminary sea trials in 1920.
Furious's superstructure, masts, funnel and landing deck were removed and she was given a 576-by-92-foot (175.6 by 28.0 m) flight deck that extended over three-quarters of her length. This flight deck was not level; it sloped upwards about three-quarters of the way from the stern to help slow down landing aircraft, which had no brakes at the time it was designed. That era's fore-and-aft arresting gear, initially 320 feet (97.5 m) long on Furious, was not intended to stop landing aircraft—the landing speeds of the time were low enough that this was unnecessary given a good headwind—but rather to prevent aircraft from veering off to one side and potentially falling off the flight deck. Various designs for the flight deck were tested in a wind tunnel by the National Physical Laboratory which showed that the distinctive elliptical shape and rounded edges minimised turbulence. To minimise any turbulence over the flight deck, Furious was flush-decked and lacked an island, like Argus; instead she was provided with a retractable charthouse at the forward end of the flight deck.
A two-storey hangar was built under the flight deck, each level being 15 ft (4.6 m) high. The lower hangar was 550 ft (167.6 m) long by 35–50 ft (10.7–15.2 m) wide and the upper was 520 by 50 ft (158.5 by 15.2 m). Each hangar could be sectioned off by electrically operated steel shutters on rollers. Her boilers were ducted down the side of the ship to exhaust either out of gratings at the rear of the flight deck, or, when landing operations were in progress, out of the side of the lower hangar at the rear of the ship. This solution proved to be very unsatisfactory as it consumed valuable space, made parts of the lower hangar unbearable and interfered with landing operations to a greater or lesser degree. Her original flying-off deck remained in place for use by small aircraft like fighters so that the ship could simultaneously land aircraft on the main flight deck while fighters were taking off on the lower deck and could speedily launch her aircraft from both decks. Doors at the forward end of the upper hangar opened onto the lower flying deck. Two 47-by-46-foot (14.3 by 14.0 m) lifts (elevators) were installed to transfer aircraft between the flight deck and hangars. Two 600-imperial-gallon (2,700 l; 720 US gal) ready-use petrol tanks were provided for aircraft and the ship's boats on the upper deck. An additional 20,000 imperial gallons (91,000 l; 24,000 US gal) of petrol were in bulk storage. The longitudinal arresting gear proved unpopular in service and it was ordered removed in 1927 after tests aboard Furious in 1926 had shown that deck-edge palisades were effective in reducing cross-deck gusts that could blow aircraft over the side. Furious's long exhaust ducting hampered landing operations, and restricted the size of the hangars and thus the number of aircraft that she could carry.
Glorious and Courageous were converted to aircraft carriers after Furious began her reconstruction, Courageous at Devonport starting on 29 June 1924, and Glorious at Rosyth on 14 February 1924. The latter was moved to Devonport to complete the conversion after Furious was finished. Their design was based on Furious with a few improvements based on experience gained since she was designed. All superstructure, guns, and fittings down to the main deck were removed. A two-storey hangar, each level 16 ft (4.9 m) high and 550 ft (167.6 m) long, was built on top of the remaining hull; the upper hangar level opened onto a short fl
Courageous-class aircraft carrier