Naval Historywith Dr. Alex

Q&A · 5:05:47-5:07:30

The unresolved tradeoffs in putting Chobham armour on warships

The proposed substitution could improve protection, especially on armoured flight decks, while leaving saltwater durability and weight effects unresolved.

Armoured Flight DecksBattleshipsChobham ArmourIllustrious Class Aircraft CarriersMaterials EngineeringWarship ArmourWarship Design
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Question

What if British homogeneous steel armour were replaced by Chobham armour with depleted-uranium inserts in May 1941?

Short answer

The proposed protection could improve, but saltwater durability and the effects of additional weight would need to be resolved.

Notes

The first uncertainty is whether the proposed armour would tolerate saltwater exposure. The response anticipates stronger protection while also expecting added weight to make ships slower and sit lower in the water. Those effects would require corrections to the ships. On an Illustrious-class carrier, a deck of the proposed material is expected to raise the level of bomb needed to penetrate it. The estimate explicitly stops short of making the flight deck proof against every contemporary bomb.