During the battle of the coral sea 1 American carrier and 1 Japanese light carrier were sunk. During the course of the pacific war many more carriers would be sunk. What happened to the planes that were assigned to these carriers? Were they able to land on other ships or doomed to die without a place to land? Did regulations regarding this change during the war for either side?
These linked answers should not be taken as final, as there can always be further posts on the matter. Whilst we wait for new contributions, you may be interested on this previous thread on the matter, with contributions from u/thefourthmaninaboat, u/DBHT14, and u/When_Ducks_Attack.