Why Tribal-class turbines demanded frequent reconditioning

What was the Tribal class's turbine-maintenance problem?

Early mountings wore the turbines under sustained high-speed use, forcing repeated reconditioning that reflected both design limits and an exceptionally hard operating tempo.

The Tribals received an early generation of new turbines whose mountings could not be replaced during wartime without major hull reconstruction. Crews therefore reconditioned the machinery repeatedly as constant high-speed work wore it down. Their reputation as dry-dock queens can be misleading because the class often averaged roughly 18 to 20 knots in service. Destroyers with better availability were frequently operating at only 12 to 14 knots, so raw days at sea do not capture the different mechanical burden.