 At the outbreak of World War II in September 1939 , Admiral Scheer remained at anchor in the Schillig roadstead outside Wilhelmshaven , along with the heavy cruiser Admiral Hipper . On 4 September , two groups of five Bristol Blenheim bombers attacked the ships . The first group surprised the anti @-@ aircraft gunners aboard Admiral Scheer , who nevertheless managed to shoot down one of the five Blenheims . One bomb struck the ship 's deck and failed to explode , and two detonated in the water near the ship . The remaining bombs also failed to explode . The second group of five Blenheims were confronted by the alerted German defenses , which shot down four of the five bombers . Admiral Scheer emerged from the attack undamaged . In November 1939 , KzS Theodor Krancke became the ship 's commanding officer . 
