Timing explains why the improvised conversions saw more success. They entered service when few alternatives existed and revealed what amphibious forces actually needed. The purpose-built Mark Is arrived after slower, shallower ships had proved capable of the essential work in much larger numbers. Speed, range, and elaborate machinery therefore lost priority to shallow draft, simpler construction, and mass production. The conversions were useful ships and full-scale experiments, while the purpose-built class arrived with requirements that experience had already reduced.
Chapter · 29:33-30:44
Why the conversions outshone the purpose-built ships
The improvised conversions arrived when alternatives were scarce, while the elaborate purpose-built ships entered service after simpler landing vessels had proved adequate.