Talk:Early Fall 2018 Event/@comment-2A01:5C0:1B:D540:B910:6AB7:CBC0:3279-20180911154910/@comment-29537063-20180911174709

Ahh i see what he meant. Yes, the sub can tank the carriers but only on shelling phase. But you want AACI to prevent the carriers attack the other ships during aerial phase.

AACI happens after fighter combat (and regardless whether your own fighters got destroyed or not), that is true. But remember, before shelling phase, there is an aerial phase where the carriers bomber (not the fighter one that on earlier). This is where AACI is useful to prevent these bomber shooting your whole fleet. AACI shoot down these bombers, which mean, you have a chance for preventing damage to your fleet from the enemy bombers.

TL:DR AACI prevent damage to your fleet during aerial phase (after fighter combat and before shelling phase)