One proposed alternative sends Bismarck and Prinz Eugen through the Faroes-Iceland gap and down the west coast of Ireland under British colours. The deception would depend on observers accepting them as a British battleship and cruiser without close inspection. The Irish Sea is rejected because its heavier shipping traffic would create more opportunities for discovery. A route west of Ireland would still be a major gamble, including the risk of Irish observers reporting the ships to Britain. The proposal assumes that apparent British identity might prevent such reports from attracting attention. It is a retrospective hypothetical made without the personal risks facing Lütjens. His own preference for Denmark Strait repeated a route he knew from Operation Berlin.
Notable Point · 4:19:29-4:24:35
A hypothetical breakout under British colours west of Ireland
An unexpected route west of Ireland under British colours offers a risky counterfactual, dependent on mistaken identification and the chance of escaping reports to Britain.