Even if a powerful Japanese destroyer enjoyed an advantage over one Fletcher, its value depended on the number of opponents it faced. American and British preferences favoured concentrating several ships against an opponent when possible. In that approach, a one-on-one encounter meant something had gone wrong. The individual Japanese design's advantage would not compensate automatically for an enemy's ability to bring several destroyers to the same fight. Construction volume helped determine the force available at the point of engagement.
Notable Point · 39:51-40:36
A superior destroyer still faced multiple Fletchers
A hypothetical advantage over one Fletcher is tested against the ability of larger navies to concentrate several ships in an engagement.