A 28-knot Queen Elizabeth class changes what rival planners must expect from later British and American capital ships. Japan has limited industrial capacity to answer that change and could no longer accept Yamato's historical 27 knots without reconsidering boiler count, funnels, secondary armament, and weight allocation. Italy faces a related problem because a 30-knot Littorio has too little margin over a 28-knot opponent to control engagement range reliably, perhaps producing a greater design break between the first ships and Roma. A roughly three-knot advantage is treated as the margin needed to control the pace and range of a gunnery engagement reliably.
Chapter · 58:24-1:02:54
Japan and Italy face a new battleship speed floor
If Anglo-American battleships make 28 knots the baseline, Yamato and Littorio designs may need more machinery, altered layouts, or a sharper redesign to preserve tactical speed advantages.