Warspite began her Second World War service escorting a convoy from Nova Scotia before being diverted north after Scharnhorst and Gneisenau sank the armed merchant cruiser HMS Rawalpindi. She failed to locate the German ships, but her apparently rapid arrival in the search area raises a performance question. The passage seems faster than the commonly stated top speed unless weather, an earlier northward movement, or an inaccurate track chart accounts for the difference. The surviving movement record leaves several plausible explanations and warns against treating an apparently precise speed claim as settled.
Notable Point · 34:17-35:33
Warspite races north after Rawalpindi is sunk
A failed attempt to catch Scharnhorst and Gneisenau after they sank Rawalpindi raises questions about Warspite's actual speed and recorded track.