Ramillies denied the raiders their first convoy

HX 106 carried ordinary anti-submarine escorts plus HMS Ramillies during the danger period. Her slow speed was an advantage in the escort role because she could not be lured into an unproductive chase; her mission was to stay with the merchants. Captain Kurt Caesar Hoffmann brought Scharnhorst close in an effort to draw her away, but Lütjens recognized that the attempt would fail and declined a battle that could sacrifice Germany's only operational battleships. Even crippling Ramillies would have been a poor exchange if the German pair then failed to destroy much of the convoy and could not escape British reinforcements. Ramillies nevertheless reported the approaching ship as an Admiral Hipper-class cruiser, while Tovey also entertained Admiral Scheer, showing that successful convoy defence did not depend on accurate visual identification at every stage.