Faced with two-to-one numerical inferiority, the German force should be planning to escape rather than accept an equal tactical contest. The British squadron assigns one division to each opponent instead of allowing all four ships to waste fire on the same target. Individual British ships may carry fewer rounds, but four magazines still provide more total ammunition than two. Tactical concentration therefore becomes a force-preservation problem: the weaker side needs room to disengage before superior numbers turn into sustained firepower.
Notable Point · 14:43-16:32
An outnumbered squadron should break contact
The two-ship force's sensible choice is withdrawal, while the four-ship squadron uses divided targeting and its larger total ammunition supply to maintain pressure.