return to Germany. The three ships stopped in Narvik on 25 January, and in Trondheim from 30 January to 2 February. After resuming the voyage south, the ships searched for Norwegian blockade runners in the Skagerrak on 6 February before putting into port at Kiel on 8 February. On 28 February, the ship was decommissioned in accordance with Hitler's decree. Fate Despite being decommissioned, repair work on the ship continued. The ship was moved in April to Pillau in the Baltic, to put Admiral Hipper out of the reach of Allied bombers. A year later, the ship was moved to Gotenhafen; the Kriegsmarine intended to re-commission the ship so she could be used in the Baltic. Over the next five months, Admiral Hipper ran a series of sea trials in the Baltic, but failed to reach operational status. As the Soviet army pushed the Germans back on the Eastern Front, her crew was drafted into construction work on the defenses of the city, further impairing Admiral Hippers ability to enter active service. The Royal Air Force also laid an extensive minefield around the port, which forced the ship to remain in the harbor. By the end of 1944, the ship was due for another overhaul; work was to have lasted for three months. The Soviet Army had advanced so far, however, that it was necessary to move the ship farther away from the front, despite the fact that she had only one working turbine. On 29 January 1945, the ship left Gotenhafen with 1,377 refugees embarked. On the evening of the 30th, Admiral Hipper received a distress call from the sinking transport Wilhelm Gustloff, which was also carrying refugees. The cruiser did not stop to pick up survivors due to the threat of the submarine that sank Wilhelm Gustloff; it would instead become one of the worst maritime disasters in history. Admiral Hipper arrived in Kiel on 2 February and entered the Germaniawerft shipyard for refitting. On 3 May, RAF bombers attacked the harbor and severely damaged the ship. Her crew scuttled the wrecked ship at her moorings at 04:25 on 3 May. In July 1945, after the end of the war, Admiral Hipper'' was raised and towed to Heikendorfer Bay and subsequently broken up for scrap in 1948–1952. Her bell was on display at the National Maritime Museum in Greenwich. The bell has since been returned to Germany and