The Battlecruiser Force was less accurate by percentage than its German opponent, yet a higher volume of fire still produced a broadly comparable number of hits. Those hits did not translate into equivalent damage because too many British shells burst early, broke apart, or failed after penetration. Dogger Bank showed that defective shells could still hurt Blücher, Seydlitz, and Derfflinger, but occasional success did not make the ammunition reliable. An Italian Second World War quality-control problem offers a contrast because inconsistent shell balance degraded accuracy itself. The British Jutland problem therefore lay chiefly in terminal effect after a hit, rather than in shells physically flying in the wrong direction.
Notable Point · 1:06:46-1:09:23
British volume of fire hid poor shell effect
British battlecruisers could obtain a comparable number of hits by firing more rounds, but poor shell performance prevented that volume from producing proportional damage.