A reading from Chris Baker's What Happened to the Battleship follows Duke of York through the Home Fleet's postwar manpower crisis. Her limited activity after July 1947 included October main-armament firings from B turret. The winter of 1947-48 brought what official papers called the immobilisation of the Home Fleet, with only a handful of ships in Britain fully operational. A March 1948 assessment classed Duke of York as immobilised, with A and Y turrets at one month's notice and radar equipment suffering from maintenance constraints. Restoring readiness required attention to the anti-aircraft armament as well as the main guns. A refit added six Bofors mountings and equipment for refuelling other ships at sea, followed by exercises and trials. Missing logs from September 1948 onward limit the day-by-day account of her later service.
Chapter · 1:21:54-1:24:14
Duke of York and the Home Fleet's manpower crisis
Personnel shortages and neglected equipment left Duke of York immobilised before a 1948 refit restored more of her capability.