But Bismarck got clobbered by several Brit ships later
Only because she was unable to steer due to being hit by a British Mosquito's torpedo. The little plane was able to get up close to the Bismark in the rear because the Bismark couldn't lower guns low enough to hit the Mosquito. If it hadn't been hit in the rudder, Bismark would have made it to home waters and would have lived to fight another day.
Yep, Norway has zillions of coves, bays, etc, where Bismarck was hanging out for weeks. In the end the poor old gal went round and round in circles, the engineers unable to repair the rudder, while the Brit ships leisurely tore her to shreds. I wish Germany would have won the war, united with the US. What an amazing world we could have today.
Swordfish, not Mosquito. Even then, her captain would not stop transmitting messages to Berlin so the RN was able to easily determine her course and speed. Before long they were able to maintain radar contact and vector in capital ships. Even ignoring the jammed rudder, it is debatable if she could have taken on both Rodney and King George V. Finally, Bismarck was heading for the port of Brest, where she would have been extremely vulnerable to RAF air attack.
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