Should navies bring back dazzle or splinter camouflage?
Short answerThey could be more adventurous because modern sensors dominate long-range detection, although peacetime requirements still shape a ship's appearance.
NotesDazzle and splinter schemes remain visually appealing, but modern detection depends far more on radar and other sensors than on eyesight. At engagement ranges measured in hundreds of miles, even a brightly painted hull is unlikely to be found visually. Paint therefore has increasing room to serve peacetime identification, appearance, and signaling rather than acting as the ship's primary wartime concealment.