Prewar U.S. 5-, 6-, and 8-inch autoloaders

How would other navies react if the United States fielded automatic 5-, 6-, and 8-inch guns before the Second World War?

They would be alarmed, particularly by the faster-firing 5- and 6-inch weapons; an 8-inch autoloader would be formidable but constrained by visual fire control and ammunition supply.

Automatic 5- and 6-inch guns are expected to cause the greatest alarm, although an early Des Moines-style 8-inch system would also be dangerous. Without mature radar fire control, the 8-inch gun could not exploit its theoretical output as fully. Every fast-firing weapon would also empty its magazine quickly. Ammunition endurance would therefore limit how long its high rate of fire could be sustained.