Q&A · 10:30-10:59

Could Commonwealth dockyards have accommodated HMS Hood?

Commonwealth governments could create dockyards for ships as large as HMS Hood if they sustained the necessary capital investment.

Question

Could Commonwealth countries have built dockyards large enough for HMS Hood?

Short answer

Yes, if they had been willing to make the necessary long-term investment in dockyard and supporting infrastructure.

Notes

Physical possibility was not the binding constraint. A sufficiently large dock could have been created in a Commonwealth country. The deciding issue was whether governments would fund the dry docks, machinery, workshops, transport links, and skilled workforce required to support a capital ship. Australia theoretically possessed dry-dock space for HMS Tiger, but that still did not supply the complete repair system around the dock. Fitting a hull inside a basin and maintaining the warship once it was there required different levels of capability.