Sloop movements and aerial identification suggest unused speed

In the June 1939 example, a sloop rated at 20 knots reportedly left with a Town-class cruiser, remained in station and arrived at the same time. The argument for greater speed rests on that shared timetable and the absence of any reported separation. A second example concerns Johnnie Walker's sloops in the Bay of Biscay, where German reconnaissance identified the formation as a British cruiser squadron. Turning towards the aircraft in a battle line presented a profile with three twin mountings, comparable to an Arethusa-class cruiser. Apparent speed is treated as another reason the pilots accepted that identification. The resulting report discouraged a German destroyer attack against the much smaller force. Neither example supplies a measured maximum speed, but both challenge treating a published rating as an absolute limit.