I was a tycoon in World War I: Starting to save France

Chapter 1033 Unless the French can't supply bombs
The English Channel.

The "Warspite," a rather conspicuous behemoth, was immediately besieged by bombers, with more than a dozen bombers launching repeated bombing runs amidst sharp whistling sounds.

Following the Mediterranean campaign, the French military adjusted its strategy for carrying aerial bombs.

This was analyzed by the guys at the aircraft manufacturing plant who originally produced racing cars.

Looking at the data, Dorn raised a question: "British battleships have a serious flaw: their armor is all on the sides, while the deck is only 25 millimeters thick."

“Yes.” His assistant Robert compared the data: “Some locations are reinforced to 50mm, and some key locations, such as ammunition depots and fuel depots, are thickened to 76mm.”

(Note: During World War I, warships did not attack from the top. Naval battles were mostly ship-to-ship gunfire. Therefore, the armor was concentrated on the sides, which is why the side armor was 330 mm thick, while the deck armor was only 25-76 mm thick. The deck armor was not for protection against shells, but for protection against shrapnel from shell explosions. During World War II, it was thickened to 76-127 mm.)
Dorn looked at the battlefield report and found it strange: "Most of the bombs were only 25 millimeters thick. A 50-kilogram bomb from a bomber, combined with the acceleration of a dive, should have been able to penetrate them. Why did most of the bombs explode outside the ship's hull?"

Robert considered for a moment, then explained, holding up bomber attack data: “Most of our bombers dive at 70 degrees, Dorn, which makes the bombs hit the target at an angle.”

Dorn suddenly realized.

It is also related to the streamlined shape of the bomb's front.

But this cannot be changed.

A 90-degree dive is generally used against stationary targets such as bunkers and fortresses. It is almost impossible to drop bombs at a 90-degree angle on moving targets such as warships that are trying to evade them.

Unless the target warship happens to be directly below the drop point at the exact moment the bomb is dropped.

After considering for a moment, Dorn offered a suggestion: "If the 50 kg bombs on the wings don't work, and we have to use 250 kg bombs on the belly to penetrate them effectively, why not replace them with 500 kg bombs?"

Wars often work like this: after a battle, the battlefield situation and data are fed back to the military industry personnel, who then make adjustments based on what they feel needs improvement.

Therefore, the bomber's bomb-laying options became two:
One of its types was designed to attack cruisers and destroyers, and it still carried four 50-kilogram bombs on its wings and two 250-kilogram bombs on its belly, just like before.

Another type of ship tasked with attacking battleships carried only a single 500-kilogram bomb under its fuselage and assembled its best pilots into an elite squadron.

At this time, the elite group attacked the British HMS Warspite, using the same tactics: four or six planes in a row, diving towards the target.

However, instead of a "wheel" style of successive attacks, they only carry one bomb and have one chance to attack.

Perhaps it was due to the difference in the weight of the missiles, or perhaps it was because the Warspite's maneuvers were completely unpredictable, changing its speed while maintaining its course, making it difficult for fighter planes to anticipate its movements.

This caused the first four bombers to miss their targets.

Air Regiment Commander Carter entered the fray, cursing and swearing. As six friendly fighters dove towards the Warspite, he lowered his nose and hurtled toward the target.

“Come on, my darling,” Carter muttered to himself as he steered the bomber toward the target. “You can’t see me, can you?”

This is indeed the case.

Rear Admiral Louis, who was commanding the USS Warspite, was so engrossed in a long line of six bombers that he failed to notice a bomber diving to their flank.

He even thought that the bomber wasn't targeting him, as its nose was pointing towards the empty sea ahead.

"Full speed ahead!" Louis changed speed, then waited a moment, estimating the time was about right, and shouted, "Hard to port!"

"Left full rudder!"

"Left full rudder!"

……

The warship perfectly avoided the onslaught of the six bombers.

The first bomber, realizing it had missed its chance, chose not to drop its bombs. It struggled to recover and take off again with its 500-kilogram bombs. The second bomber adjusted its course and released its bombs, creating a column of water about 100 meters to the starboard side of the warship.

Major General Louis was secretly pleased with himself when he suddenly felt a dark figure appear overhead with a startled shriek.

Before he could even understand what was happening, a bomb fell from the sky.

A loud "boom" resounded.

The entire ship shook violently, as if it were jumping up, and the glass in the command cabin shattered instantly, sending fragments flying everywhere.

First officer Jason had his carotid artery severed by a sharp piece of glass, and blood splattered everywhere like a fountain. He hurriedly covered it with his hands, but to no avail; red blood continued to seep from between his fingers.

He looked at Louis in fear, hoping Louis would lend a helping hand.

But Louis didn't even glance at him, and simply grabbed the handrail and got up on his own.

Louis glanced around, his gaze settling on the bow of the ship, which had been hit by a bomb and was now engulfed in flames.

"The auxiliary fuel tank was hit."

"Fire in the auxiliary fuel tank!"

……

Major General Louis breathed a sigh of relief.

The main fuel tanks of the Queen Elizabeth-class battleships are located amidships.

There was only a small amount of fuel at the bow and stern, which was mainly used for ballast and emergency replenishment, so the fire could still be controlled.

But before he could catch his breath, the roar of bombers sounded overhead again.

Rear Admiral Louis immediately realized he was doomed; being hit by the bomb slowed the entire crew to their feet.

That half-beat made him a target for enemy bombers.

Sure enough, a bomb hit the midships deck of the HMS Warspite with pinpoint accuracy.

With a deafening roar, flames erupted almost simultaneously with the explosion.

Soon after, explosions continued, with the oil depot and ammunition detonated one after another. The Warspite was instantly engulfed in a sea of ​​fire, with flames shooting into the sky and black smoke billowing out in the shape of a mushroom cloud.

……

The London War Office Building.

When the communications officer reported that "Warspite" had been sunk by the enemy, everyone was stunned.

The world's most advanced Queen Elizabeth-class battleships, with 330mm thick armor and 381mm main guns, were completely helpless against enemy bomber attacks!
At this point, they seemed to understand what the Mediterranean Fleet was all about.

It wasn't that General Winter was cowardly, nor that Major General Avis was timid; rather, it was that they were powerless to confront the French bombers.

After a moment of silence, Prime Minister George, his face pale, asked, "What can we do? Order the fleet to continue?"

“No, Your Excellency,” the Minister of Munitions replied, “this would annihilate our entire fleet, and the entire Second Fleet, including the HMS Queen Elizabeth, would not be spared!”

The English Channel is over 500 kilometers long, and it would take a fleet more than ten hours to pass through at full speed.

No warship could withstand it unless the French ran out of bombs!
(End of this chapter)