Why tropical peacetime trials could miss pom-pom ammunition faults

Would testing the 40 mm two-pounder pom-pom in tropical conditions during the 1920s have exposed its ammunition problems?

Not necessarily. Tropical tests occurred, but they did not recreate the sustained firing, rapid loading, and production pressures of war.

The guns were tested in tropical conditions, yet routine trials did not subject ammunition, loading, and manufacture to the same tempo as combat. A weapon can appear satisfactory in testing and reveal problems in wartime service. Peacetime crews could take days to load a ship and fire limited practice rounds, while wartime supply and sustained engagement compressed the same work into hours. Climate trials alone would therefore not reproduce the interaction among rapid manufacture, handling, storage, and repeated firing that exposed ammunition faults.