Naval Historywith Dr. Alex

Q&A · 3:43:02-3:48:33

If the Nevadas became 28-knot battlecruisers

Two fast Nevada-derived battlecruisers would join the Grand Fleet in wartime, provoke British design responses, and complicate treaty treatment of the Kongō class.

BattlecruisersKongo Class BattlecruisersNevada Class BattleshipsUS NavyWashington Naval Treaty
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Question

What if the Nevada class had been built as two 28-knot battlecruisers?

Short answer

They would join the British battlecruiser fleet and become valuable interwar carrier escorts, while affecting British construction and treaty categories.

Notes

Reaching 28 knots would require a longer, narrower hull and more machinery than the historical Nevada design. An initial proposal retains triple turrets, while an alternative uses eight 14-inch guns in four twin turrets so the hull can be narrower. HMS Tiger supplies the comparison for trading armament for speed without an excessive increase in cost. If ready during the First World War, the ships would join the British battlecruiser fleet. Afterward they would be valuable counters to the Kongō class and the US Navy's fast carrier escorts, with strong pressure to rebuild them beyond 30 knots. Their existence could also encourage a separate treaty category for battlecruisers and an earlier British response with larger, 15-inch-gunned versions of Tiger.