Could the H-class losses at Narvik still count as success?

Could the outnumbered H-class action at Narvik be treated as a costly tactical success?

Only in a qualified sense: the ships did what the emergency required, but they were fighting outside their intended role because heavier destroyers had not entered service in sufficient numbers.

The action can be interpreted as a success within its immediate mission, but that result does not validate the H-class for the role. These utility destroyers were not meant to fight stronger German ships on those terms. Wartime necessity pushed them into the engagement while too few Tribal-class and follow-on fleet destroyers were available. Larger British orders planned for 1941 and 1942 would have changed that force mix if war had begun later. The exchange separates courage and local achievement from evidence that procurement doctrine was sound.