A missile-centred navy can struggle to adopt a gun even when technical development continues. The railgun comparison places doctrinal acceptance before the funding and engineering needed to deliver it. Japan is offered as a case where the weapon already fitted the intended doctrine. The first Type 22 batch illustrates the earlier preference for ships without a main gun. Heavy naval gunfire in the Falklands exposed the usefulness of guns and the consequences of allowing replacement-barrel production to lapse.
Chapter · 30:22-32:31
Missile doctrine and the return of naval gunfire
Railguns and Type 22 frigates illustrate how doctrine can determine whether a navy makes room for a weapon.