The comparison draws on the interwar Royal Navy's destroyer culture and the U.S. Navy's wartime replacement of overly cautious submarine commanders. Andrew Cunningham is an example of a major wartime commander formed in the Royal Navy's destroyer service. Destroyers and frigates are large enough to require experienced officers but replaceable enough to permit demanding exercises and honest failure. The High Guard's group-defense frigates could serve as the proving ground for ship commanders. A rigid theoretical career system instead allows poor habits to survive until officers command irreplaceable cruisers.
Notable Point · 3:24:13-3:30:11
Use frigates to preserve aggressive command skill
Small combatants can preserve wartime initiative during peace by giving future senior officers room to practice aggressive command before they reach capital ships.