Conservatism here has a practical basis: twin turrets were proven, affordable, and easy to improve incrementally. A three-triple ship also loses one-third of its main battery when a single turret is disabled, compared with one-fifth for five twins. Changing the calibre path compounds the risk because 13.5-, 14-, 15-, and possibly 16-inch weapons require different shells, storage arrangements, hoists, and handling machinery. Even a half-inch diameter increase becomes substantial when multiplied across hundreds of heavier rounds and all the equipment that moves them. The alternate-history exercise exposes the procurement and logistical pressures behind the historical choice.
Chapter · 26:01-29:30
Why the Royal Navy may have kept twin turrets
Established twin-turret practice, vulnerability concerns, and the logistics of changing gun calibre all make the historical choice more understandable.