The US Navy's change from the unreliable 1.1-inch gun to Bofors matched early Pacific conditions: dispersed operations, carrier battles, and a need for useful medium-range coverage. Force Z showed that HMS Prince of Wales's Bofors mount attracted attention mainly because its tracer made distant fire conspicuous, not because attacking aircrews could identify the weapon. Kamikaze attacks changed the requirement because deterring a pilot or spoiling bomb aim was no longer enough; the aircraft itself had to be destroyed. The octuple pom-pom's concentrated belt-fed fire then looked attractive again, pointing toward postwar systems that combined reach with sustained ammunition supply.
Chapter · 1:15:53-1:21:30
Pacific combat shifted the balance from reach back toward volume
Bofors reach suited early Pacific carrier warfare, but kamikaze attacks renewed interest in sustained, concentrated fire that physically destroyed an aircraft.