Italian shell quality was a procurement problem

Did poor shell quality help drive Italian gunnery dispersion?

Yes. Inconsistent shell quality mattered, while political corruption is offered as an explanation for procurement failures.

Poor early shell quality contributed to Italian gunnery dispersion. The procurement criticism concerns political connections that protected inadequate suppliers. An anecdote has an admiral asking whether the local Mafia could provide better ammunition than a minister's friends. The source's accuracy is explicitly questioned, so the story illustrates the criticism without establishing that the exchange occurred.