WI: Hood sinks Bismarck

[SealTheRealDeal]

So lets just go with the British decisively winning the battle of Denmark Strait and sending Bismarck to the bottom of the sea.

What is the effect on British moral, now that they've crushed Germany's super boat without losing their flagship? Is there any effect on the development of air-naval doctrine without the Bismarck being crippled by a biplane? What effect does this have on German moral, their most advanced ship being bested by a WWI design (and company)?

 

[Icedaemon]

That would be extremely improbable. Perhaps with HMS Prince of Wales coming to grips with the Bismarck first and damaging if not destroying at least two of the rangefinders and thus giving the Hood the advantage this could be possible. There is probably no 'magic bullet' shot that the Hood might take that would destroy or disable the entire Bismarck, but with no fire control beyond guesswork, the Hood might be able to pound it into submission while chasing it.

 

[SealTheRealDeal]

That would be extremely improbable. Perhaps with HMS Prince of Wales coming to grips with the Bismarck first and damaging if not destroying at least two of the rangefinders and thus giving the Hood the advantage this could be possible. There is probably no 'magic bullet' shot that the Hood might take that would destroy or disable the entire Bismarck, but with no fire control beyond guesswork, the Hood might be able to pound it into submission while chasing it.

more or less what I was thinking, which is why noted "(and company)" in the last question.

so would there be any notable effects of such a scenario?

 

[Resurgam]

more or less what I was thinking, which is why noted "(and company)" in the last question.

so would there be any notable effects of such a scenario?

It's still hard to see, though. Hood was from WWI and PoW was incomplete upon sortieing.

 

[marathag]

a 15" to the right spot on the Stern, and Bismarck is done for, hitting the Shaft support strut, and that shaft whipping loose tears out enough that you get a repeat of what happened to PoW in 1942.
Water intake faster than the pumps could deal with, and the heavy list exposes the other side to attack where the defense scheme is ineffective

 

[SealTheRealDeal]

a 15" to the right spot on the Stern, and Bismarck is done for, hitting the Shaft support strut, and that shaft whipping loose tears out enough that you get a repeat of what happened to PoW in 1942.
Water intake faster than the pumps could deal with, and the heavy list exposes the other side to attack where the defense scheme is ineffective

oh my that sounds quite deadly indeed.

 

[Hood]

So lets just go with the British decisively winning the battle of Denmark Strait and sending Bismarck to the bottom of the sea.

What is the effect on British moral, now that they've crushed Germany's super boat without losing their flagship? Is there any effect on the development of air-naval doctrine without the Bismarck being crippled by a biplane? What effect does this have on German moral, their most advanced ship being bested by a WWI design (and company)?

Okay, well let's say Tovey told Holland to put POW in front, Hood and POW find the range, start pounding Bismarck.
Norfolk and Suffolk come in and pound PE to bits too.
Firstly, it means Hood survives. It raises thd question if she gets an Emergency Refit, where they do as much work to her in the shortest time possible.
Maybe send her to America, better AA, Admiralty FC, take as much weight off her as possible. An 8 month refit is likely.
Now, you say what souls be thd effects of having Bismarck sick by a WW1 design ship.
But Bismarck was a modified WW1 design herself. The Germans had believed Hood was a very powerful ship, so they will probably paint it as the fact that she was outnumbered, and outgunned. Deep doen it has an effect on German Naval Moral, but Hitler might not go as batshit crazy over it as he did, due to her going down in a gun brawl Sith the Pride of The Royal Navy, and the Navies newest battleship, rather than bring crippled by an obsolescent biplane. Will he send Tirpitz out? Maybe, but likely with a heavier Escort, like the twins.
It means that Tirpitz will be facing Hood, KGV, DOY, and later Anson and Howe if she tries to break out. And Hood now had the reputation of killing Bismarck.
As for the whole air thing, I'm not sure. I don't think it will have a massive effect on Pearl Harbour, as Taranto had already shown what could be done.
It might slow the end of the Battleship, maybe Lion and Temaraire get finished, but it's unlikely.
British Moral is High. Their Flagship had beaten the Bismarck, and her overexaggerated power will be pushed even higher. It probably gives Britain more faith in their navy, bug not a massive deal more.
Churchills determination to Sink Bismarck post Hood and her ultimate Destruction gave Britain faith in its navy anyway. Hood might be used as a Symbol, The Old Battlecruiser Beating Germany's Newest Super ship...

 

[SsgtC]

Put PoW in the lead position instead of Hood for starters. Let her take the pounding, she can handle it better. Then maybe it gives a chance to knock Bismark out

 

[Ming777]

I wonder if, provided Hood remains in decent condition, that she may be chosen for preservation as a museum ship

 

[Hood]

I wonder if, provided Hood remains in decent condition, that she may be chosen for preservation as a museum ship

Maybe, maybe not.
I mean, they did consider Warspite, but she was in shit condition.
If Hood manages to get through late war without taking a one thing like a Fritz X, she has a chance.

 

[SsgtC]

Maybe, maybe not.
I mean, they did consider Warspite, but she was in shit condition.
If Hood manages to get through late war without taking a one thing like a Fritz X, she has a chance.

That's actually a real shame that Warspite wasn't preserved. She had such an amazing history. That ship basically WAS the Royal Navy for the entirety of two world wars, fought in numerous distinguished actions, had a list of battle honors a mile long. Damn shame, really

 

[Iron Sun]

I wonder if, provided Hood remains in decent condition, that she may be chosen for preservation as a museum ship

There's a better chance of Hitler becoming an Israeli citizen.

 

[Hood]

That's actually a real shame that Warspite wasn't preserved. She had such an amazing history. That ship basically WAS the Royal Navy for the entirety of two world wars, fought in numerous distinguished actions, had a list of battle honors a mile long. Damn shame, really

Indeed. What a complete beast of a ship. Her and Seydlitz are just awesome.

 

[SsgtC]

It's really kind of interesting when you look at it. The Royal Navy was defined by their Battleships for hundreds of years. First with the Ship of the Line, then the Pre-dreadnaughts, then Dreadnaught and her descendants. But yet, the only ship that was persevered was Victory.

The USN on the other hand, was a relative latecomer as a world power in terms of our fleet. And if anything, we've been defined more by the aircraft carrier than anything else. Yet we've preserved 7 Battleships. I'd be really curious to research why that is. What made the RN send all it's famous ships to the scrapyard the minute the war was over, while the US kept theirs around?

 

[sparky42]

That's actually a real shame that Warspite wasn't preserved. She had such an amazing history. That ship basically WAS the Royal Navy for the entirety of two world wars, fought in numerous distinguished actions, had a list of battle honors a mile long. Damn shame, really

She had an amazing history, but really by the end of the war she was a ruined hulk of a ship given the scale of the damage she had endured, though she didn't go quietly to the scrap yard.

I'd be really curious to research why that is. What made the RN send all it's famous ships to the scrapyard the minute the war was over, while the US kept theirs around?

Off the top of my head, money and material's, the UK post war didn't have the money to invest in keeping them as museum ships and had a much more pressing need for the metals of the ships. Vanguard could have been kept fairly easily if they wanted to but again budgets...

 

[naraic]

The USN on the other hand, was a relative latecomer as a world power in terms of our fleet. And if anything, we've been defined more by the aircraft carrier than anything else. Yet we've preserved 7 Battleships. I'd be really curious to research why that is. What made the RN send all it's famous ships to the scrapyard the minute the war was over, while the US kept theirs around?

Money. Britain kept rationing well into 1954 because they were broke. All us rationing end in 1946. Britain needed razor blades more than rememberance.

 

[marathag]

Japan was in far worse shape in 1946, and didn't turn Mikasa into razorblades.

 

[Hood]

Japan was in far worse shape in 1946, and didn't turn Mikasa into razorblades.

Britain was tired of war, and anything that reminded it if it.

 

[Peg Leg Pom]

Japan was in far worse shape in 1946, and didn't turn Mikasa into razorblades.

Mikasa is Japan's Victory, was militarily useless and MacArthur was bending over backwards to win Japanese hearts and minds.

Warspite was in terrible condition and would have cost a fortune Britain didn't have to preserve. If she survived and was refitted Hood would probably have stayed in service into the 50's probably being used in the 1947 Royal tour instead of Vanguard but would most likely have met the same fate. Britain doesn't have the space to preserve the ships that deserve it, only if they serve some useful non operational purpose do they survive to be museum ships. For example HMS Unicorn never saw a day's actual service as a frigate, she never even had her masts fitted but survives as a drill ship for reserves.

 

[Hood]

Mikasa is Japan's Victory, was militarily useless and MacArthur was bending over backwards to win Japanese hearts and minds.

Warspite was in terrible condition and would have cost a fortune Britain didn't have to preserve. If she survived and was refitted Hood would probably have stayed in service into the 50's probably being used in the 1947 Royal tour instead of Vanguard but would most likely have met the same fate. Britain doesn't have the space to preserve the ships that deserve it, only if they serve some useful non operational purpose do they survive to be museum ships. For example HMS Unicorn never saw a day's actual service as a frigate, she never even had her masts fitted but survives as a drill ship for reserves.

It's really hard to say.
Britain was rather sporadic with preserving ships.
Well, apart from Victory.
But even Warriors future was uncertain. And many of Warriors sister ships, luke Agincourt, survived as hulks into the 1960s, but were scrapped.
It's anyone's guess.