The postwar United States possessed more Wickes- and Clemson-class destroyers than peacetime budgets could keep active. A wrecked training ship could be scrapped and replaced from storage. Scrap proceeds could help pay for bringing the replacement into use. That material depth reduced the institutional cost of hard exercises and practical experimentation. The connection drawn here is that readily available replacements helped the Navy train destroyer commanders to act aggressively.
Notable Point · 55:37-56:40
A deep destroyer reserve made aggressive training affordable
Postwar surplus hulls let the U.S. Navy accept training losses and encourage destroyer commanders to take risks.