Fleets in the 1920s, 1930s, and Second World War still built battleships because potential rivals did. A credible postwar Soviet battleship programme might likewise have prompted Britain and the United States to answer with ships of their own. A battleship remained the clearest counter to another battleship or a possible Jutland-style fleet action. The losses of Yamato, Repulse, and Prince of Wales showed that aircraft could sink capital ships, though these cases required large attacks or involved unusual circumstances. The strikes on Taranto and Pearl Harbor hit ships in harbour, so they did not establish that every moving, mutually supporting task group was equally vulnerable.
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A battleship built to meet another battleship
Battleship construction followed the perceived need to defeat an opposing battle line, even when aircraft had shown their striking power.