The German surface fleet would face political pressure to demonstrate its usefulness through operations. That pressure supports the expectation that Operation Berlin would still be attempted against a stronger Allied fleet. At least one of Scharnhorst and Gneisenau is expected to be lost in this assessment, with both losses possible. A subsequent larger sortie might wait for Graf Zeppelin and Tirpitz to become available in late 1941 or early 1942. Reducing the surface force instead remains an alternative.
Notable Point · 1:29:51-1:30:58
Why German surface ships would still face pressure to raid
The German surface fleet's need to justify its existence could encourage raiding despite a stronger Allied response force.