Fighter placement in sea zones during setup

Probably just a quirk in the printing. Fighters in sea zones have to start on the carrier.

It MAY be a quirk in the printing, however, it is implicitly printed that the fighters for the U.S. are (Carrying two fighters).  While the others just simply state that the fighters are located in that SZ to start.

This led me to just assume that these fighters start off loitering, not landed in the water.  This might be intentional in the case of separate movement and/or defensive engagement in the opening round (e.g. I am not positive, but I think landing the planes on the carrier counts as a movement).  Whereas, starting the carrier’s movement with the fighters parked on them at the start allows for the full movement of the fighters following this, additionally.

There aren’t any rules that simulate fighters landing and taking off from carriers; there’s no such thing in Axis & Allies as having one fighter “in the air” and another fighter “on the runway.”

It’s simpler than that: fighters can move over both land and sea zones. If a fighter is in a sea zone at the end of the turn, and there aren’t enough carriers to support it, then the fighter is dead. Otherwise, fighters hang out in sea zones just like any other sea-capable unit.

So, yeah, you don’t have to worry about what the setup charts say; there’s no subtle opportunity created by having fighters ‘off’ their carrier. There’s just fighters that start on land and fighters that start at sea.

No doubt an unnecessary clarification, but to avoid any new players getting the wrong end of the stick - fighters that start or finish at sea must have a carrier in that sz. Up to 2 fighters per carrier.