 A 70 @-@ metre @-@ long ( 229 ft 8 in ) flight deck was built above the stern and stretched forward to the rebuilt aft superstructure . The flight deck was 29 metres ( 95 ft 2 in ) wide at its forward end and 13 metres ( 42 ft 8 in ) at the stern . It overhung the stern and increased the overall length of the ships to 219 @.@ 62 metres ( 720 ft 6 in ) . A pair of rotating gunpowder @-@ propelled catapults were fitted on the sides of the hull , forward of the aft superstructure where they partially restricted the arc of fire of the two amidships turrets . They could launch aircraft up to 4 @,@ 600 kilograms ( 10 @,@ 100 lb ) in weight and required 30 seconds to launch each aircraft . The flight deck had eight permanent storage positions connected by rails to the catapults and the hydraulically operated aircraft lift that brought the aircraft up from the hangar below on the trolleys used to move the floatplanes about . Two aircraft were intended to be stowed on the catapults and three more in temporary positions on the flight deck for a total of thirteen . 
