Wouldn't the Arctic U-boat fleet make losses too high?
But where is the fuel going to come from? They didn't have enough for more than a few sorties by Tirpitz.
But ... the Bismark's captain should have leaned on the admiral more. He did not. We will never know.
One of WW2 questions? Why didn't the Bismark close the range and sink outright the new British Battleship? The Nazi Admiral had everything going for him. The British battleship was in bad shape. Only the hull and engineering plant were still working. The Bismark could have changed course and crossed the British Battleships Tee and poured in the steel. The British heavy cruisers were too far East. The British destroyers were too far South. Defeat them all in detail?
Even the German heavy cruiser and Bismark secondary armament could have out reached the British destroyers. Why an additional 30 minutes was not given to the Bismark and Prince Eugen to sink everything in sight? Or at the least snatched a total victory from the jaws of historical second guessing? The Nazi admiral had his orders. He followed them as best he could. But ... the Bismark's captain should have leaned on the admiral more. He did not. We will never know.
At the time the Germans did not know how severe the bow hit to Bismarck actually was. They knew of the hit, but not that it had basically mission-killed the cruise due to fuel contamination.Ironically, I suspect that, if Bismarck had been hit more severely, but not catastrophically, it might have finished off Prince of Wales. If it was obvious that the Atlantic cruise was impossible--perhaps a big chunk taken out of the bow, or a turret disabled--the Admiral might have ordered them to finish off the British before returning home. No telling.
Sounds like Admiral Byng.....Because of the fate of Admiral Marschall. He sank Glorious, yet he was sacked for defying orders and taking risks.
If Bismark and Prinz Eugen withdraw, the British can't catch them short of home. Once Bismarck is repaired and Tirpitz is worked up, you have a scary situation for the Allies. One heavy unit is not enough escort for an Arctic convoy. If the Twins do run the channel, that's a formidable battle group. Sure, the Royal Navy has them outnumbered, but some ships will always be unavailable, whereas the Germans chose the time of any action. Britain will probably have at LEAST 8 capital ships tied down. (Battlecruisers need not apply...) At the time, HMS Royal Oak, Hood, and Prince of Wales have been lost. The Italian fleet's been reduced in power by Taranto, but there's still a need for some capital ships in the Med.
If there's a mass breakout--perhaps covering Lutzow slipping into the convoy lanes in the chaos--it can get messier indeed.
If the wreck does't sink, it'll be a constructive total loss. Unlike the USN, the Royal Navy doesn't have the resources to do a West Virginia style repair. The only advantage the RN gets if the wreck doesn't sink is saving more crew (HUGE) and, if they tow the hulk back to port, being able to deny that the ship was sunk.
++Shudders++Or instead of retreating to the UK she retreats to the US where she gets the rebuild.
The Bismarck still has to head to Brest for repairs, that early hit to the fuel bunkers made that unavoidable.
It would be high comedy if the Bismarck got nailed by a British submarine outside the harbor
++Shudders++
British ship with American superstructure.....
++uuurrrrrgggghhhhhh++
You know, while they aren't the prettiest, I still think them better than the Queen Anne's mansions. I've often wondered how those would fare in a close range match where secondaries come in.
For aesthetics, I find it hard to beat the clean look of the ww1 German or British ships, with the battlemasts or tripods. Now, I will admit that it's hard to get worse than the cage masts.
The Queen Anne's mansions were lightweight fully enclosed structures and pretty much unarmoured. The theory being that unless the shells hit something solid, they would pass through without detonating.You know, while they aren't the prettiest, I still think them better than the Queen Anne's mansions. I've often wondered how those would fare in a close range match where secondaries come in.
For aesthetics, I find it hard to beat the clean look of the ww1 German or British ships, with the battlemasts or tripods. Now, I will admit that it's hard to get worse than the cage masts.
This probably significantly increases the odds of an ugly incident between the US and German navies, causing the US to enter the war early.
This was covered before, USA opinion polls clearly show no European war involvement other than increased convoy escorts.