Giussano protection and the range a fleet needed

The predecessor carried 20 mm deck armour, a 24 mm belt, 23 mm turret protection, and a 40 mm tower. Those figures suit an ultra-light cruiser built around speed. Its range of 3,800 nautical miles at 18 knots made sense only in relation to the geography where the fleet expected to operate. A Mediterranean fleet did not need the endurance of a force crossing the Pacific, while coastal routes through the South China Sea and East China Sea imposed different demands again. Fuel was excluded from standard displacement, but its tanks, pumps, piping, pressure controls, and balancing gear still consumed space and weight.