The Most Cost-Effective Cruiser - Page 2 - Aircraft of World War II

BombTaxi · 08-17-2009, 03:41 PM

I believe it is traditional for the stated cost of British warships NOT to include guns and equipment - so the Leanders are probably a bit dearer than suggested so far. Nonetheless, they were cheap compared to US ships because they did not have the sheer level of creature comfort of a US ship (no automatic spud peelers or soda fountains on a Town Class CL!!!), and they generally had somewhat less advanced fire-control equipment (Admiralty tables for the main guns and the truly dire HACS system for AA). As several folks have already suggested, RN ships had to be built cheap, if only because governments of the interwar period were extremely reluctant to spend on defense until it was almost too late. The Didos and the Towns and thier derivatives were then only RN CLs built as part of the re-armament plans and were IMHO, the best, as the only others were the under-gunned Leanders and the antiquated Ds and Es of WW1, many of which had been converted for AA use by 1939-40 anyway.

PJay · 08-29-2009, 02:59 PM

The RN has always gone for more hulls rather than quality. The Washington talks led to more but smaller CA/CLs.

08-17-2009, 03:41 PM	#16
BombTaxi Senior Member Join Date: Nov 2004 Location: Brownhills, W. Mids, UK Posts: 1,189	I believe it is traditional for the stated cost of British warships NOT to include guns and equipment - so the Leanders are probably a bit dearer than suggested so far. Nonetheless, they were cheap compared to US ships because they did not have the sheer level of creature comfort of a US ship (no automatic spud peelers or soda fountains on a Town Class CL!!!), and they generally had somewhat less advanced fire-control equipment (Admiralty tables for the main guns and the truly dire HACS system for AA). As several folks have already suggested, RN ships had to be built cheap, if only because governments of the interwar period were extremely reluctant to spend on defense until it was almost too late. The Didos and the Towns and thier derivatives were then only RN CLs built as part of the re-armament plans and were IMHO, the best, as the only others were the under-gunned Leanders and the antiquated Ds and Es of WW1, many of which had been converted for AA use by 1939-40 anyway. __________________ Good generals think about tactics. Great generals think about logistics. "If freedom is to be saved and enlarged, poverty must be ended. There is no other solution." - Nye Bevan "Any man's death diminishes me, because I am involved in mankind; and therefore never send to ask for whom the bell tolls; it tolls for thee" - John Donne, Meditation XVII

08-29-2009, 02:59 PM	#17
PJay Member Join Date: Aug 2009 Location: London UK Posts: 49	The RN has always gone for more hulls rather than quality. The Washington talks led to more but smaller CA/CLs. __________________ These are my principles, if you don't like them I have others. (Groucho Marx) 'A L'Eau C'est L'Heure!' French Navy Motto

Thread Tools
Show Printable Version Email this Page
Display Modes
Linear Mode Switch to Hybrid Mode Switch to Threaded Mode