A flag lieutenant worked within a larger organisation that included the chief of staff, senior flag lieutenant, signal personnel, and Beatty himself. Reginald Drax had completed the staff course and written on naval tactics, so as senior flag lieutenant he should have trained and supervised Seymour while Chief of Staff Rudolph Bentinck managed the staff above him. If Drax lacked time for that duty, the failure points to a staff already compensating for deeper organisational problems. Responsibility therefore sits with a command system in which supervision, training, and decision-making failed together, rather than with one junior officer.
Notable Point · 1:28:22-1:32:40
Jutland signalling failures involved a whole staff
The familiar focus on Lieutenant Seymour misses the command and staff system that should have trained, checked, and executed Beatty's signals.