By the end of the war, the distinction between motor gun boat and motor torpedo boat could describe a planned role as much as an exact weapons fit. British planners considering the East China Sea and Sea of Japan wanted small craft for close patrols and hostile coastal traffic while larger warships remained under air cover for tasks that required them. The adaptable Fairmile D could be assigned to that work in either a torpedo or gun configuration. Some boats therefore carried MTB numbers despite having little or no practical torpedo-launching capability after gun-focused modifications. MTB 727 retained visible torpedo gear, while MGB 606 had lost the launch flaring in a gun-only configuration. Damage repair could also become an opportunity to rebuild a boat around additional guns.
Notable Point · 1:09:57-1:13:04
Why gunboats regained the MTB label
Late-war British planning for close coastal work in East Asian waters helped return some motor gun boats to the motor torpedo boat category.