Diesel destroyer endurance and the Narvik problem

The proposed raiding forces become more useful if destroyers can accompany them on outward and return passages. A suitable cruiser could escort the carrier throughout a longer operation. The endurance comparison moves from roughly 2,000 nautical miles to more than 5,000, though the accompanying cruising-speed figure is unclear. Narvik supplies the warning: lack of fuel is identified as the reason the German destroyers remained exposed there. Some diesel destroyer projects are dated to 1938-39 or earlier, with their introduction delayed by a complicated approval process and repeated concern about matching steam-turbine top speeds. The practical preference is a 34-knot destroyer that can join an operation over a 36-knot ship without the range to participate.