Why can fighters only attach and detach from their carrier during non-combat?
Historically, each countrys navy maintained and controlled its own Naval Air Force, so it was very unusual for fighters dispatched from a carrier on a combat mission NOT to return to their carrier after the mission (presuming, of course, they survived combat). Likewise, land-based fighters (controlled by the Army or a separate service arm like the RAF or Luftwaffe) seldom (if ever) ended combat missions by landing on a carrier. [Land-based and carrier-based fighters were not interchangeable; fighters used on carriers had design elements unique to their role. More importantly, not every fighter pilot was trained for carrier duty, where take-offs and landings required greater precision and pilot skill. So this rule is something of a compromise between history and the playing pieces provided with the game, which offers only one type of fighter].
