Service History
In early July 1940, shortly before her commissioning, Prinz Eugen was attacked by British bombers; the ship was struck by only one bomb. She was not seriously damaged, however, and was commissioned into service the following month. Prinz Eugen spent the remainder of 1940 conducting sea trials in the Baltic Sea. In early 1941, the ship's artillery crews conducted gunnery training. A short period in dry dock for final modifications and improvements followed. In April, the ship joined the newly commissioned battleship Bismarck for maneuvers in the Baltic. The two ships had been selected for Operation Rheinübung, a breakout into the Atlantic to raid Allied commerce.
On 23 April, while passing through the Fehmarn Belt en route to Kiel, Prinz Eugen detonated a magnetic mine dropped by British aircraft. The mine caused serious damage, including a ruptured fuel tank, damaged propeller shaft couplings, and damaged fire control equipment. The planned sortie with Bismarck was delayed while repairs were carried out. Admirals Erich Raeder and Günther Lütjens discussed the possibility of delaying the operation further, in the hopes that repairs to the battleship Scharnhorst would be completed or Bismarck's sistership Tirpitz would complete trials in time for the ships to join Prinz Eugen and Bismarck. Raeder and Lütjens decided that it would be most beneficial to resume surface actions in the Atlantic as soon as possible, however, so the two ships would sortie without reinforcement.
Read more about this topic: German Cruiser Prinz Eugen
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