Comments by "William Cox" (@WildBillCox13) on "Ship vs Ship - Who Would Win - Episode 001" video.
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The Bismarck's mad career, Open Wildnam Style!.
Kampfgruppe Lütjens:
KMS Bismarck
KMS Eugen
KMS Zeppelin
Two big What-ifs (once you allow the Graf Zeppelin to be worked up)"
1) What Air Wing?
2) A Battlegroup without support ships is an offering to the gods of war . . . who are notoriously fickle.
Wild Bill's T.O. &E:
Without any major changes (like replacing all of Bismarck's 3.7cm SK FlaK with the Bofors 4cm FlaK, as Eugen had), I see the Zeppelin's LuftGruppe/Fliegergruppe as follows:
30x Me109T Fighter/Interceptor (bad choice for a carrier fighter, but oh well)
12x Ju87zs (zur See) (Better than the Dauntless, imo)
3x Fa61 SAR rotorcraft (best damn SAR unit in the war up till that point)
Alarrrum! AKTION!
Zeppelin's CAP makes sure no sneaky swordyfish gets inside torpedo range. Further, if you think Lutjens would continue to his assigned raiding area, turn to page 2. If you think he would've engaged the UK battlegroup and then headed for France, turn to page 41.
Fantasy Football, Kriegsmarine Edition:
Fliegergruppe Zeppelin:
25x Fw109A (2x 13mm, 2x 2cm, plus underwing racks for 250kg Bomb and underfuselage rack for drop tank)
10x Fw109 G fur torpedo . . . a fast, small cross section, torpedo intruder.
5x Fw190 Kononekampfer (6x 2cm MH151/20. I leave off the twin 13mm Fuselage MGs)
5x Fa61 SAR/ASW Rotorcraft.
Alarrrrum! AKTION!
Bismarck recognizes she's got enemies in the area, launches two short range search planes (Fw190A with fuselage tank). Roll dice . . . DISCOVERY! Graf Zeppelin launches a strike and beefs up its CAP, using all of its planes, other than the SAR backups. Five torpedoes are dropped . . . . run . . . one hit scored on Prince of Wales! She drops back, 10 nauts slower, and, while the Hood is getting wise to the change in tactical superiority, she runs afoul of Bismarck and Eugen's accurate main battery fire.
24May1941 at 1000 hours, Hood learns for herself what happened at Jutland to Beatty's Battlecruisers so many years ago. Hood blows in half, Prince of Wales is already out of the action by torpedo hit (plus her forward quadruple turret is historically OOC). Lutjens has a major choice now. Historically, he was conservative of his main battery and impassive to the Hood's sudden demise. I believe he would've headed for his intended operational area. Bismarck's fuel situation was already grave, due to problems in the fueling system BEFORE she left harbor . . . this severely affected her range, so she was forced to seek out her hidden tankers immediately, or go dry. 6000 tons of fuel is a lot for a destroyer, but not much for a battleship. Plus, there was (in my What-if) a carrier, and a heavy cruiser and all moving at speed . . .
From Wikipedia: "To support and provide facilities for the capital ships to refuel and rearm, German Naval Command (OKM) established a network of tankers and supply ships in the Rheinübung operational area. Seven tankers and two supply ships were sent as far afield as Labrador in the west and the Cape Verde islands in the south."
As we know from hindsight, once a German tanker was used, it was soon on the bottom of the sea. Bismarck would leave a string of sunken support ships in her wake, meaning she would arrive at her intended zone pretty much S.O.L. Kampfgruppe Lutjens would tear the belly out of any convoy it encountered. But, and it's a very big butt, her fuel and ammo were not inexhaustible. You, of all folks, know how soon a battleship's big guns run out of ammo. I imagine Eugen would use torpedoes for the big ones . . . better than closing to range against armed enemies, as the IJN cruisers discovered. Torpedoes on the deck of a cruiser are an open invitation to disaster. Use 'em up first, says I!
Kampfgruppe Lutjens would be "run down and brought to bay" by whatever ad hoc forces the UK could amass on site, of course, like the other commerce raiders were. Her (Bismarck's) guns would soon be empty of ammo and then what?
My! That felt good. Okay, back to you.
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