Peacetime plans assumed that reinforcing troops could use Norwegian ports, raising the question of why Britain still needed amphibious shipping and LSTs. Michael Clapp and Julian Thompson argued that those ports could be unusable within twenty-four hours of war, while a brigade with its heavy equipment would take longer to deploy. Their warning echoed the 1940 Norwegian campaign and helped preserve amphibious shipping despite proposed cuts. Landing ships let the formation arrive together with vehicles, logistics, and supplies instead of trickling into a damaged port in small packets. The argument turns sealift into insurance against an enemy's ability to deny normal access.
Notable Point · 27:53-29:19
Why landing ships survived cuts for Norway
Clapp and Thompson defended Britain's landing ships by showing that Norwegian ports could be disabled before a brigade arrived.