What the Alaska class could have done in 1941

Were the Alaska-class large cruisers worth building?

Yes, especially if completed earlier, when their speed and firepower could have shaped major wartime surface actions.

In service by 1941 rather than 1944-45, the Alaskas could have fought Kongo-class ships and participated in a much wider range of Pacific or Atlantic operations. Their success would also pressure Britain to build a comparable fast, heavily armed cruiser alongside Vanguard. Their late arrival, rather than a fundamentally useless design, explains much of their disappointing reputation in this interpretation. The same ship can appear extravagant in 1945 yet become a celebrated cruiser killer if available during the war's earlier surface campaigns.