Starting with a somewhat larger, more heavily armed Sumner-style destroyer raises an unresolved production problem. American yards would have needed to deliver enough ships to replace the Fletcher program. Lower output would affect availability and the size of the operational force. Whether the Navy could have obtained enough destroyers under that approach remains open.
Notable Point · 43:25-44:10
Would a Sumner-first program have produced enough destroyers?
It remains unresolved whether a more heavily armed starting design would have reduced output and fleet availability.