At 05:35, lookouts on "Prince of Wales" spotted the German ships away. The Germans, already alerted to the British presence through their hydrophonic equipment, picked up the smoke and masts of the British ships 10 minutes later. At this point, Holland had the options of joining "Suffolk" in shadowing "Bismarck" and waiting for Tovey to arrive with "King George V" and other ships to attack, or ordering his squadron into action. He chose the latter at 05:37. The rough seas in the Strait kept the destroyers' role to a minimum and the cruisers "Norfolk" and "Suffolk" would be too far behind the German force to reach the battle.