The imagined comparison gives Yamato nine 18.1-inch guns and a speed of 27 knots, against Incomparable's six 20-inch guns and proposed 35 knots. Replacing Incomparable's machinery in the 1930s could free weight for armour, perhaps sufficient to resist 16-inch shellfire while reducing speed to about 32 knots. The long hull would also offer room for dual-purpose secondary guns. Radar could then supply the range and bearing data needed to use a small, slow-firing main battery at long range. Combined with a speed advantage, it could let Incomparable choose the range of a gunnery action. These are conditional improvements to an unbuilt design, rather than measured performance from a completed refit.
Notable Point · 31:16-35:23
Refitting Incomparable for radar-controlled gunnery
A 1930s refit and radar fire control could turn Incomparable's slow-firing 20-inch guns from an unreliable spectacle into a credible long-range threat.