Escorting capital ships depends on the mission and sea room

How many escorts should a pair of capital ships have in an ideal World War II task force?

It depends on mission and area; a high-speed Atlantic crossing might need very few escorts, while other missions would require a more substantial screen.

The speakers reject a universal number of heavy and light escorts because mission and sea room determine the screen. In an open Atlantic transit, high speed and zigzagging could make a fast capital ship extremely difficult for a U-boat to attack. Some liners moved quickly enough to outrun torpedo solutions and overtax the turbines of cruisers assigned to accompany them. A slower operation, confined sea, or mission requiring the ships to remain on station would create a very different escort requirement.