Why high-end fleet capacity starts before war

Rickover's case is strongest when high-end readiness is separated from indiscriminate gold-plating. The argument follows Theodore Roosevelt's pre-First World War belief that naval strength built in peacetime could deter conflict. Complex warships and the industrial capacity behind them cannot simply be created after a major war begins. The Royal Navy fought the Second World War largely with ships available or under construction at the outset, while much of the U.S. Navy's expansion relied on designs, orders, and plans made before American entry. Peacetime procurement therefore buys time that a navy may not have once a crisis starts.