How would a Panama Canal built fifty feet wider affect US naval design?
Short answerAmerican designers would exploit the extra beam, producing proportionally wider ships without the same canal constraint.
NotesA wider Panama Canal would free American naval architects from one of their most restrictive dimensional limits. Broader hulls could be considered without sacrificing canal transit. The immediate payoff is design freedom rather than a prescribed new class. Ships could become wider or longer according to the requirement the Navy valued most.