 At 05 : 00 on 23 April 1918 , the German fleet , with Hindenburg in the lead , departed from the Schillig roadstead . Hipper ordered wireless transmissions be kept to a minimum , to prevent British intelligence from receiving radio intercepts . At 06 : 10 the German battlecruisers had reached a position approximately 60 kilometers southwest of Bergen , when Moltke lost her inner starboard propeller . Without resistance from the water , the propeller @-@ less shaft began spinning faster and faster , until one of the engine gears flew apart . Shrapnel from the broken machinery damaged several boilers and tore a hole in the hull ; the ship was dead in the water . The ship 's crew effected temporary repairs , which allowed the ship to steam at 4 knots ( 7 @.@ 4 km / h ; 4 @.@ 6 mph ) . However , it was decided to take the ship under tow by the battleship Oldenburg . Despite this setback , Hipper continued northward . By 14 : 00 , Hipper 's force had crossed the convoy route several times but had found nothing . At 14 : 10 , Hipper turned his ships southward . By 18 : 37 , the German fleet had made it back to the defensive minefields surrounding their bases . It was later discovered that the convoy had left port a day later than expected by the German planning staff . 
