Could Bismarck have surrendered without being scuttled?

If Bismarck had struck her colors, would the crew still have scuttled her before the Royal Navy could take possession?

Possibly, but a nighttime surrender could have allowed destroyers to board and secure the engineering spaces before the crew organized a scuttling attempt.

Whether Bismarck's crew could scuttle after striking the colors would depend on when and how surrender occurred. A nighttime decision might leave much of the crew unaware until British destroyers had already come alongside. Boarding parties, including Polish sailors, could then move rapidly toward the engineering spaces while other destroyers covered the ship with guns and torpedoes. Daylight surrender would make the change visible to more of the German crew and give potential resistance or demolition efforts more opportunity to develop.