The Fleet Problems formed a cumulative experimental program. Fleet Problem Twelve tested defense of the Panama Canal, while the following exercises examined Hawaii, advanced-base seizure, and full fleet engagements. By 1934, Fleet Problem Fifteen linked canal defense, base capture, and battle in a three-phase event. Fleet Problem Sixteen then operated between Alaska and Hawaii in five phases explicitly modeling War Plan Orange. Its scale and geographic direction made the intended Japanese opponent difficult to disguise and risked turning doctrinal realism into diplomatic provocation. For the Navy, repeated large exercises validated carrier requirements and fed directly into Yorktown-class design and the next generation of fleet aviation.
Chapter · 1:34:29-1:40:06
Fleet Problems grow into realistic War Plan Orange rehearsals
Fleet Problems Twelve through Sixteen progress from Panama and Hawaii defenses to a five-phase War Plan Orange exercise so realistic that Japan sees it as provocative.