HMS Manchester's rapid radar and anti-aircraft upgrades

Manchester received degaussing equipment, a secondary high-angle director, splinter protection, Bofors 40 mm guns, Oerlikon 20 mm cannon, and several radar sets. Type 286 was replaced by Type 273 for surface search; Type 279 provided early warning, Type 284 served the main armament, Type 285 the four-inch guns, and Type 282 the pom-pom directors. The sequence shows a design advantage: the Town class had enough space and displacement margin for equipment that was difficult to fit into smaller, crowded cruisers. Dido and Leander-class ships had less room, while the Towns combined an Arethusa-style layout with a larger hull. Their growth capacity resembled the Tribal-class destroyers' and helped keep the Towns useful as wartime requirements changed.