Op Wilfred meets Group I

[Kingfish]

An offshoot to my previous WI concerning Op Alphabet and Juno, this one covers the engagement between HMS Renown and the twins off Lofoten in the early morning hours of April 9th, 1940 but with a twist added.

Here we can assume the German Group I (Twins plus the 10 destroyers carrying Gebirgsjager regiment 139) run into HMS Renown and her 9 escorting destroyers at the entrance to the Vestfjord. The latter was originally patrolling further north but upon receipt of HMS Glowworm's contact report had shifted south to intercept the German force.

Both sides bring advantages and disadvantages to the battle.
The Germans have two capital ships to the British one, but they are handicapped by having to shield the 10 destroyers who are packed with troops and thus are in no position to engage in any kind of naval action.

The British are a bit more flexible, but 4 of the 9 destroyers were outfitted to lay mines in the Norwegian leads and thus retained only 2 of their main guns. Both sides also suffer from the atrocious weather, with gale force winds and heavy seas forcing even the capital ships to reduce speed to avoid damage. And to top things off this action occurs in predawn darkness.

So what would be the result?
Does Lutjens risk an engagement so as to allow the Grp I destroyers to slip past the Brits and into Narvik?
Scharnhorst can occupy Renown while Gneisenau tries to blast a hole in the destroyer screen.

Or does he call the whole thing off and order a withdrawal into Trondheim?
What effect does that have on the campaign as a whole?

[Gooner1]

Another good one for the games table.

I'd think the Germans would probably choose to withdraw. S&G versus Renown you'd have to give the odds on S&G. S&G versus Renown plus five destroyers the advantage swings the other way. S or G versus Renown would be in Renown's favour. Could the Germans afford to be aggressive with their destroyers, stuffed as they were with troops?

Retiring wouldn't be easy though, in the bad weather you'd expect the Renown and probably the RN destroyers to outpace the German destroyers, requiring S&G to turn and fight at intervals. Moving south whilst in contact is also quite risky because the Grand Fleet is somewhere there and, no doubt, would endeavour to intercept.

[Carl Schwamberger]

No idea on the outcome here. But, I am imagining the condition of those mountain infantry aboard the destroyers in that weather

[James A Pratt III]

Lutjens would most likely run for it as in real life. He does not know what size of the force he is engaging and what the RN at sea elsewhere. Also with such heavy seas running the destroyers on both sides would have problems maneuvering.