If Afridi and Gurkha survived Norway, the Royal Navy would probably send the extra Tribals toward the Mediterranean Fleet. Their eight high-angle guns would make them smaller and cheaper anti-aircraft escorts that still retained destroyer torpedoes and surface firepower. C-class conversions using the same ammunition could reinforce the screen and make formations such as Force K more flexible. The tactical benefit is a longer corridor of heavy bursts through which an attacking pilot must hold aim before reaching the light anti-aircraft envelope. The Taranto comparison explains why extending that pressure at sea matters, while noting that ships at sea do not face the Italian defenders' concern about firing over a civilian town.
Notable Point · 48:54-52:18
Tribals and C-class cruisers reinforce the Mediterranean
Surviving Tribal destroyers and 4.7-inch-armed C-class cruisers could give Mediterranean formations continuous heavy anti-aircraft fire without surrendering surface capability.