The early conception of a flying boat in the days before the war was due to the aeronautical rather than the marine community, and the whole problem was regarded in the light of aeronautical experience. It was thus inevitable that whilst the flying boat had a comparatively satisfactory aerostructure, its marine functions were given somewhat primitive treatment. As a result the hulls were fragile, unseaworthy, and of high resistance. During the war this attitude of mind became well entrenched and the constructional method it involved was highly developed. Nevertheless the more logical system of making a boat that would fly rather than an aeroplane that would float soon received the attention that was its due. By 1918 the flying boat was definitely recognised as an amphibious machine, and its marine and aeronautical functions were being given full and separate consideration.