Nitrogen compounds: compare question

A student wants to prepare pentanoic acid, $\ce{CH3CH2CH2CH2COOH}$, starting from 1-bromobutane, $\ce{CH3CH2CH2CH2Br}$. Two possible routes are suggested.

Route 1: Heat 1-bromobutane with $\ce{KCN}$ in ethanol, then hydrolyse the product with dilute $\ce{H2SO4}$.

Route 2: Convert 1-bromobutane to butanal, then treat the butanal with $\ce{HCN}$ in the presence of $\ce{KCN}$ and heat, then hydrolyse the product with dilute $\ce{H2SO4}$.

Compare these two routes in terms of:

(a) the type of intermediate organic product formed in each route before hydrolysis,

(b) the reagents and conditions needed for each step,

(c) which route is more likely to give a higher yield of pentanoic acid, and why.