Naval Historywith Dr. Alex

Q&A · 10:09:23-10:10:04

Why Admiral Scott chose San Francisco at Cape Esperance

Command accommodation is offered as the reason Scott chose San Francisco despite the radar advantage of other ships.

Battle Of Cape EsperanceCommand And ControlGuadalcanal CampaignNaval RadarUS NavyUSS San Francisco
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Question

Why did Admiral Scott choose San Francisco at Cape Esperance despite its inadequate surface-search radar, and did the Americans get lucky?

Short answer

The proposed explanation is that San Francisco had the command space for his staff; the question about luck is not separately answered.

Notes

Admiral Scott's choice of San Francisco is explained here by the command space available for his staff. A flagship needed to accommodate the people helping him direct the force. That requirement competed with the advantage of choosing a ship with better surface-search radar.