Lots more ships and men have to die before the orthodoxy wakes up.
—
Ask the US Navy’s LCS and DD-1000 crews, plus all those other ships with aluminum superstructures.
“Ask the US Navy’s LCS and DD-1000 crews, plus all those other ships with aluminum superstructures.”
I believe the HMS Sheffield was an aluminum ship, and survivors described the ship as “melting” after getting hit.
Weight above the waterline incurs a cost in terms of shiphandling and stability (righting moment).
That said, aluminum burns white hot once it ignites and even water will not extinguish such a conflagration (at those temperatures the fire sucks the oxygen it needs right out of the water (H2O). So by no means is it a perfect structural material for the purpose.