The return convoy RA 51 was close enough to create a plausible alternative ending if the engagement had occurred later. Its fighting escort could have raised the British force to roughly ten destroyers and two light cruisers closing on damaged German ships from several directions. Whether disciplined escorts would have abandoned their own merchants for the opportunity remains uncertain. The counterfactual therefore tests the same mission-first culture that shaped the actual battle rather than assuming every available ship would join the chase.
Notable Point · 1:43:32-1:45:05
A nearby return convoy could have trapped the German force
Had RA 51 and its escort been closer, German cruisers withdrawing from JW 51B might have faced ten destroyers and two light cruisers approaching from several directions.