You learn something new every day. Never heard of these in my life 'til someone posted this on a FB group. "Lily and Clover were two experimental floating airfields tested towards the end of the Second World War by the British Admiralty. Based on a similar concept to the Mulberry harbour used for the Normandy landings in 1944, Lily and Clover were two different types of floating airstrips that would allow the Royal Navy to operate aircraft before a shore base is secured and removed the need for an aircraft carrier. Lily was a collection of flotation units developed for the floating roadways used in the Mulberry harbour. Each was six feet across, plates being fitted on the top to form the runway. The complete structure could be towed and weighed 5,000 tons, taking 400 man-hours to construct. Clover was built mainly of wood with wooden deck planking which could take a load of eight tons. It weighed more than Lily at 5,200 tons but would take 21,000 man-hours to assemble. The resulting runway was 1,000 feet long and 90 feet wide with 12,500 square feet of parking area and 45,000 square feet for storage and maintenance. Trials were carried in the Firth of Clyde at Lamlash on the Isle of Arran. Both an Auster and Fairey Swordfish aircraft were used for the trials. The trial was a success and proved that both Lily and Clover could take aircraft up to 9,000 lb with a 60-knot landing speed in calm seas. Lily was tested successfully with 30-foot waves but became dangerous at 40-foot." Lily and Clover - Wikipedia
