If a destroyer crew captured a battleship, would the destroyer's captain command it or would a new commander be appointed?
Short answerThe senior destroyer captain would initially control the prize and would be unlikely to surrender it easily before formal reassignment.
NotesThe imagined example places Captain Philip Vian as the senior officer on the scene. A successful destroyer commander would be extremely reluctant to give up a captured battleship before higher authority made a formal arrangement. The prize could immediately become that officer's flagship and materially change his standing. The exchange treats capture as both a seamanship feat and a command problem created before a replacement battleship crew can be organized.