The exchange returns to the sequence of the two programmes: Albany's conversion was already well advanced, and she was undergoing sea trials by the time De Zeven Provinciën entered dry dock. That timing rules out a simple story in which the Americans could inspect the completed Dutch result and copy it. Earlier, systematic information sharing among the nascent NATO navies could still have prevented duplicated expense and recurring problems. Distinguishing impossible imitation from missed cooperation gives a more useful way to compare parallel weapons programmes.
Notable Point · 18:04-18:54
Parallel NATO conversions and the limits of imitation
Project chronology rules out Albany copying a completed Dutch conversion, while still leaving room for earlier NATO cooperation to reduce duplicated cost and technical trouble.