Bismarck

"Captain, Zeppelin has returned. She brought a preliminary observation report on the capabilities of the opposing shipgirls: there is a top-notch fighter who is no less skilled than her and the average quality of the opponent is very high. There are also several ace pilots, and at least one shipgirl has the ability to command air combat in a theater. She is quite difficult to deal with... Also, the Zeppelin's flight deck will not be ready until two o'clock at the earliest, and no large-scale takeoffs can be carried out before then..."

"Is it that troublesome? I see... Bismarck, where is Kumets now? Let them join us."

"Captain, they are thirty kilometers due east of us, heading parallel to us."

"I understand... Also, help me take over the tactical radio. I need to find Kumets. (Zizi... rustling...) Kumets? I'm Lütjens. The Americans are 430 kilometers away from us and are attacking us. Use your destroyers and high-speed battleships to launch a wave of anti-aircraft missiles. It will only take 20 minutes... What? The safety of the aircraft carrier? I have the ship girls to provide cover here, and there are no enemies within 150 kilometers, so you don't have to worry about the safety of the aircraft carrier."

"...No, no, no, Lütjens, I'm not worrying for nothing!" Hearing that he had to launch a missile attack himself, the timid Kumets immediately made up a crooked reason: "My aircraft carrier only has 25 knots, so we can't waste time; if the surface fleet needs 20 minutes to return, the distance to the aircraft carrier will be at least more than 30 kilometers, and it will not be easy to get back - even though this place is only 200 kilometers away from Brest, it is also within the British's sailing range. The British can get here in an hour at most. One more minute means more danger... I'm also thinking about the war navy. You know, the empire now has only three aircraft carriers, I have two Europas and you have one Zeppelin. We can't afford the loss!"

Hearing Kumetz's obviously cowardly tone, Lütjens also felt a little contempt in his heart. However, considering the German Navy's current need to preserve its strength, he couldn't continue the topic: "Okay, Kumetz, stop complaining... How about this, I'm 30 kilometers west of you now, and when you launch your plane, you have to sail west. Then I'll come over to join you and help you cover the aircraft carrier - by the way, when will your flight deck be ready?"

"It's almost half past one... I'm almost ready to take off now," Kumets replied.

"So fast?" Lütjens was a little stunned, but he was relieved after thinking about it. The two waves of interceptors from 9:00 to 9:30 pm landed on the Europa Sisters, and the second attack wave of the British aircraft carrier landed on the Zeppelin at 11 o'clock. It has only been two hours since he arrived here, but it has been three hours in Kumets.

Three hours, and it’s just fighters, even in full deck mode, they can be deployed!

"Well, you take off a batch of planes first, and the heading of your takeoff formation is against the wind and westward, just in time to merge with me... I just received six squadrons on the Zeppelin before 11:30, and we have to wait until after 2 o'clock to release the planes. Then you will cover me in taking off the planes... In addition, the time of our reunion is estimated to be 2 o'clock, and it is estimated that the American fleet will be within the missile range by then. At that time, you will fire the missiles first, and I will let 'them' do the guidance work - come to think of it, you don't want the missiles to explode, right?"

Listening to Lütjens' arrangement, Kumets thought about it. After all, he was following Lütjens now. Although he was panicking, he had to obey his orders - to put it bluntly, Lütjens had already contracted the air defense cover of his own aircraft carrier, so it was just a token of his appreciation.

Anyway, if the sky falls, the tall man will hold it up, so it's no big deal. Then... just accept the rider's consent reluctantly, right?

"Okay, I agree. I'll turn around now and meet up with you."

"Okay, that's settled."

After hearing Kumets's reluctant agreement, Lütjens felt a little relieved.

Come to think of it, he was really afraid that Kumets would be so scared that he would turn around and run away!

After all, he still has 116 missiles on his ship. Regardless of how effective the missile counterattack would be, if he really explodes in an air raid... there is no ship girl on his ship to keep him alive again and again!

It really makes me worry.JPG!

Finally able to put aside the worry of arguing with Kumets, Lütjens shook his head, feeling secretly moved in his heart. Then he freed his hands and could continue thinking about the battle situation.

"Speaking of which, Tovey should have started to turn around and head back in the past two hours. Besides, this place is less than 300 kilometers away from the UK. Both our fleet and the Brest airport are within their attack range. And judging from their position, they might even be able to shuttle bombing... Tsk, if we're unlucky, this will be a three-sided attack!"

The more Lütjens thought about this situation, the more worried he became.

The two aircraft carriers of the Kumets fleet only had a speed of 25 knots, and most of their ships were also damaged, with a speed of only about 27 or 28 knots. If they were besieged from three sides by the British, Americans, and the Cornwall base!

Moreover, if they have three aircraft carriers... I'm afraid it won't be safe even at home!

"Bismarck, ask Zeppelin to contact the Brest Fortress and ask them to send more planes to take off and take off. Also, tell everyone to stay alert! The next wave may be a siege from three sides, and it may be a tough battle!"

After giving his judgment on the battle situation and instructions for the next step of the operation, Lütjens was suddenly glad that he had listened to the Persian cat and reported to Raeder repeatedly before bringing in Zeppelin. As a result of this incident, the Air Force and the Navy signed a series of cooperation agreements. Although there were always some frictions due to certain factors, the cooperation had been going on without interruption, and was even closer than before.

Just like now, when the Navy was about to have a major battle and informed the Air Force in advance, Goering generously assigned the ace fighter wing JG-2 stationed in Brest to the Navy command. And he also sent eight squadrons of reinforcements!

The only problem is that the air force has high offense and low defense - the military strength on paper seems to be sufficient, but the enemy is after all surrounded on three sides by seven or eight aircraft carriers and the Cornwall base!

Even the reserve buoyancy of a battleship is limited after all, not to mention that an aircraft carrier is typically thin-skinned and has a lot of fillings! I am still not sure whether these scarred ships can be safely sailed back like the Battle of Jutland!

"God bless Germany, Amen..."

Lütjens supported his forehead, leaned on the table, closed his eyes, and silently made the sign of the cross.

At the same time, 300 kilometers to the north, in Cornwall, the most southwestern county in England...

Under the night sky, at the airport with blackout, with visors or red silk covering the dim lights, one Allied fighter plane after another started their propellers with a loud noise. Guided by the portable night lights covered with red silk, they drove onto the taxiway from the apron preparation area one by one, lined up at the end of the airport runway...

Although it had suffered certain losses in the previous two rounds of air strikes and was intercepted by the JG-2 Wing of the Brest base, even so, the powerful Royal Air Force was still able to piece together a powerful air fleet and continue to launch a new round of attacks on the Lütjens fleet that was being held tightly by the US aircraft carriers!

With the roar of the engines starting at full power, one fighter plane after another leaped up from the runway, trailing long trails of dust. With their wings spread, they circled and gathered in the biting westerly wind, soaring up in groups, and finally accumulated more and more in the quiet moonlight of the waning moon, and gathered closer and closer... Finally, these planes gathered together, forming three large, dark, dense, and murderous aircraft groups!

Thirty-six handsome fighters loaded with cluster bombs and rockets, who were changed to serve as ground suppression attack aircraft, were the first to break away from the formation and fly to the direction of the Brest Fortress, accompanied by three squadrons of "Mosquitoes" that directly covered them, ready to suppress the German airport in order to cover the air battle; and behind them were 47 powerful heavy bombers and Dragon fighter-bombers that landed at the Cornwall base after the previous air raid. They were mighty, and under the cover of a full fighters of various types including P-, Spitfire Lang and Mosquito, they were divided into two ends, following the heavy battle formation heading to the Brest airport to "mop up the ground", and the expected direction of the Lütjens fleet in the Bay of Biscay, and they rushed to the direction of the Lütjens fleet in the Bay of Biscay! Among them, the fighters of five fighter squadrons, as well as the heavy bombers and Dragon fighter-bombers under their cover, were heading towards the Lütjens fleet in the Bay of Biscay!

Meanwhile, in the Celtic Sea west of the Bay of Biscay, the two remaining aircraft carriers and a light carrier from the Lütjenstowe fleet had already turned their heads and switched to a pursuit posture, and the preparation work on the flight deck had also entered the final stage. The last attack force in Towe's hands - an attack group consisting of 42 fighters and 52 attack planes - was also gearing up and ready on the flight decks of the three aircraft carriers. At the same time, on the five US aircraft carriers 420 kilometers southwest, an attack group consisting of 80 fighters and 120 attack planes with a full-deck attack configuration was slowly forming under the command of the flight deck dispatcher...

A true three-sided attack!

Chapter 845

"Captain, enemy aircraft groups have been spotted! 160 kilometers to the north, there are about 450 enemy aircraft in two groups at 360 and kilometers, with a speed of kilometers. They should be fighters and high-speed attack aircraft... Wait! There are two more dense groups of aircraft reflected behind them! The speed is kilometers, and they are suspected to be two squadrons of heavy bombers!"

"…What? Air raid! Sound the air raid alarm immediately?!"

Even though his secretary cat brought him coffee from time to time, in the late night, which was already a time to sleep, in addition to coordinating the merger of his own fleet and Kumetz's fleet, he also had to rack his brains over the battle situation, which led to overwork and even veins popping out of his brain. Lütjens, who was originally leaning on the table in a daze, suddenly jumped up from his seat as a conditioned reflex, and jumped three feet high.

Looking back at the clock, it was two o'clock in the morning - less than five minutes had passed since he had just joined forces with the Kumets fleet, and after the fleets joined forces, he took over the command of the Kumets fleet according to the handover procedure that had been agreed upon in advance!

"These damn British guys don't even give me time to take a nap!" Although his face, which had long been accustomed to expressionless expression, showed no expression, his inner feelings were filled with a strong sense of waking up.

"Bismarck, reconfirm our current formation and course! And the situation of the fleet's aircraft carriers launching aircraft!"

After gritting his teeth, Lütjens turned around and asked his secretary cat.

"Well... our current heading is northwest by west (sailing against the wind to release carrier-based aircraft), and the fleet speed is 25 knots. The formation is that Eugen, with the Gneisenau, two pocket battleships and destroyers, surrounds the aircraft carrier to form a wheel formation, and the outer perimeter is the four battleships in our and Kumets' hands. In addition, the carrier-based aircraft group is taking off. Europa and Bremen have launched a total of five squadrons, and Zeppelin has also launched a squadron. Now on the decks of our three aircraft carriers, there are a total of ten squadrons of aircraft waiting to take off, and there are 40 aircraft in the hangar, which can be immediately lifted from the side elevators to the deck standby area. In addition, Zeppelin has called for Brest's fighters to come for reinforcement... Speaking of which, are we going to deploy into a fan-shaped area air defense formation now? Captain."

After listening to Bismarck's report on the formation data and tactical suggestions, Lütjens had a better idea in his mind: "Well, according to the previous tactical plan, Bonte will lead the command of the aircraft carrier and the inner circle formation, Top will command the inner guard ships including Gneisenau, and all the remaining battleships will go forward with me to deploy regional air defense in depth."

"OK, all right!"

Bismarck nodded, and the soft cat tail behind him swayed gently. The searchlight facing the direction of the Allied aircraft group lit up, sending light signals to other ships. As the light command was issued, the last battleships of the German war navy in the hazy night under the moonlight slowly began to turn, gradually separating from the aircraft carrier task force that was still sailing northwest while releasing aircraft.

"Speed ​​27 knots, unfold the fan with due north facing the enemy aircraft as the base course, and expect to engage in battle in fifteen minutes. Over!"

Bismarck reported loudly on the execution of the operational order.

Although she was usually a spoiled child, after a long military career, the cruel war had already transformed the ignorant girl into an excellent soldier who could see through life and death. Listening to the orders from her secretary, feeling the acceleration and tilt of the ship, Lütjens's mouth curled up slightly, picked up the cup and took a sip of the already cooled coffee, and continued to think about the direction of the war.

Now it's an air strike, and carrier-based aircraft are the top priority. But according to the report, there are ten squadrons on the three aircraft carrier decks, and five or six squadrons have taken off now... right?

The anti-aircraft formation was actually quite easy to arrange - the main guns of Hindenburg and Ludendorff were the same as those of the modified ShipCat and Hamster on their side. Bismarck and Tirpitz could easily lead them one by one, and then predict the parameters to guide the shooting - even if Hindenburg and Ludendorff did not have guided shells, but with the dispersion range of a salvo of 406 high-explosive shells, they at least had the ability to interfere with the enemy's fleet formation.

Ten squadrons consist of 120 fighters, and even if only a portion of them take off, it should be more than enough to intercept this wave. However, considering that there are still eight aircraft carriers from the British and American armies chasing them, Lütjens did not dare to put too many planes in the squadron.

After all, the entire fleet now only has 161 aircraft! If the deck is completely emptied, not to mention the "traffic jam" when landing, the remaining 40 aircraft will definitely not be enough to deal with the second wave!

As for Brest Airport, Lütjens basically didn't expect more! As a naval admiral, he had experienced many battles and was knowledgeable. Whether it was his long-term independent combat experience or his rationality of "don't rely on reinforcements for everything", he knew that at this moment, it would be best to keep a certain reserve for the aircraft carrier flight deck.

Not to mention anything else, if the British Cornwall base and the two Allied aircraft carrier battle groups join forces to encircle and suppress us, will they ignore the Brest base and the nearby naval facilities and air force airports?

If things go wrong, there would have been a life-and-death battle over the airport and the dock in Brest by now, right?

It only took the battle-hardened admiral a moment to think about these common sense questions, but after understanding the combat environment, it was natural for him to analyze what he should do next. After thinking about the flight deck layout of his three aircraft carriers - especially the carrying capacity of the standby area and the recovery capacity of carrier-based aircraft, Lütjens quickly came up with a plan: "Go, immediately notify Zeppelin, Kumets and the two Europa-class aircraft carriers to stop taking off the planes! ... Tell them that they may have to fight continuously later, and be prepared to deal with the second round of air strikes. Seven or eight squadrons have already taken off, which is basically enough. Drag all the forty planes in the hangar out and get on the runway with the remaining planes - remember to tell Bonte to fire the V1 missiles southwestward towards the US fleet, and then turn around to Brest!"

"Yes!" Persian Cat saluted crisply, then grabbed the microphone of the tactical radio. Soon, the three aircraft carriers commanded by Bonte stopped launching together. In a short while, six destroyers, two pocket battleships, and the battlecruiser Gneisenau that were tightly surrounding the aircraft carriers had six or seventy rocket booster lights flashing one after another, dragging thick smoke and sending the V1 anti-ship missiles with faint flames into the sky. As soon as the sixty missiles were launched, the three aircraft carriers that had already set the rudders in advance slowly turned their tall but bulky bodies. Under the heavy cover of the wheel formation of the escort fleet that turned immediately under Top's command, the entire formation turned degrees and returned to the northeast-east direction.

This is the correct course back to the port of Brest!

Although, at this moment, on the sea-sky line in the northeast-east direction, one can vaguely see something, among the dim red rays radiating towards the sky against the dark background, densely packed like a cluster of stars, flashing dim yellow light one after another.

Moreover, from the direction of the French mainland, which was flashing red, there were still dozens of German fighter planes painted with the Iron Cross emblem. On one hand, they looked back with tears in their eyes and anxiously looked at the burning continent behind them, which reflected the red sky. On the other hand, they tightly grasped the joystick and throttle, and kept the course of rushing forward to the battlefield more stable. The airport was bombed, and the situation of the comrades was unknown, but they still followed the battle order and headed westward to support the naval fleet, and further increased the speed of the war eagle under them...

........................

"Report to the captain, an enemy heavy bomber formation has been spotted!"

"Got it... Everyone, pay attention. I am Captain Egon Mayer (1917-1944, Knight of Oak Leaves with Double Swords, with 102 victories, all on the Western Front)! Follow me, everyone, charge with all your forces!"

"...Hmm? Captain, the 5th Squadron has spotted enemy fighters - let's hold them back, Captain, you guys continue the attack!"

"...Damn it, where did these flamethrowers come from?! Fifth Squadron, what's going on with you guys?"

"Captain, there are too many fighter planes, we can't stop them... (grievance)"

"…This is Colonel Zeppelin, commander of the GR-186 wing. I will now take over the air combat command!"

"Colonel Zeppelin? Captain Egon Meyer, commander of the 2rd Gruppe of JG- 'Richthofen', reports to you. We are... screwed now. How come 'Bottle' is rushing over here too?"

"Captain Meyer, they have too many planes. I will come to reinforce you right away. You just need to attack their heavy bombers... Novotny, Rudolf, you two take the FW-190 to climb higher. Remember to bite their 'bottles' for me. I will deal with the rest of the Spitfires - Hartmann, Grislavsky, you two, lead the team and follow me!"

"Report! Their 'Fast Bomber (Flying Dragon)' has been spotted rushing in from the other side of the heavy bomber group!"

"Globe, Barr, take your men, each responsible for attacking one side - Globe will attack the fast bombers, Barr will attack the heavy bombers, and be careful not to accidentally hurt the friendly forces of JG-2. As for the fighters, I will deal with them!"

With Zeppelin's orderly distribution and command, 110 fighters from three aircraft carriers and four fighter units of the Brest Fortress in the sky were divided into several groups in an orderly manner. According to their respective command affiliations and aircraft characteristics, they met their most suitable opponents. Zeppelin personally led the team to seize the height and resisted the Spitfire XIV with the strongest air combat capability of the Allied Air Force. The two super aces, Novotny and Rudolf, took the FW-190 with strong diving performance and powerful firepower to bite the P-47 with the same strong diving and huge threat. The remaining four squadrons of warhawks, led by Bar, Globe and Meyer, launched a series of attacks on the Allied aircraft groups in three directions.

These FW-190 fighters, relying on their powerful firepower and sturdy fuselages, led by three super aces, brought their lightning speed and indestructible attacks to full play! With fierce firepower, the black shrikes "harvested" the shivering and huddled bombers one after another, like the blade of the Grim Reaper's scythe.

"Assault, Assault!!"

"Those sons of bitches Hans are coming... Machine gunner, open fire!"

"Captain, they're going too fast. I, uh..."

"Asshole! Asshole! ... Brothers, fly closer together! Bombers, cover each other! Cover each other!"

"Captain, the British formation is more dense..."

"Have these heavy bombers gathered together again? ... Their fighters are being held up, so let's gather together too! Pig charge tactics, everyone, charge together!!"

"Oh no, I'm injured. Can't go back? ... Long live the Great German Cross! (Boom!)"

"Comrades! Continue the attack! Avenge our fallen comrades!!"

"Haa ...

One hundred kilometers, ninety kilometers, seventy kilometers, fifty kilometers... Although the distance was getting closer and closer, although the British pilots gritted their teeth and the machine gunners held the heavy machine guns in their arms and fought hard, under the fierce harvest of the German warhawks who became more and more courageous, the number of planes dragging smoke, carrying fire, shaky, and even falling into the abyss was increasing!

However, during this moment, the radar of the German fleet on the sea had already discovered that behind the fleet, that is, due west of where the Tovey fleet was previously located, a group of nearly a hundred aircraft had been following the German fleet that was evacuating at full speed, like a pack of wolves that smelled blood and bit their prey to death, and they were chasing after it with all their remaining courage!

Lure the tiger away from the mountain and attack from both sides!

"...Humph, it's just as the commander expected!"

Looking at the distance on the radar screen and listening to the report from the flight deck dispatcher, Bangtai was as steady as an old dog. After a brief estimate, he grabbed the microphone and ordered the aircraft carrier formation to turn around and take off fighter jets.

"Order: The aircraft carrier formation turns around, and fighter jets are dispatched... What? There are still some planes left on the deck? Don't worry about it! First release the planes lined up on the runway on the deck!"

Originally, there were ten squadrons on the flight decks of the three aircraft carriers. Seven squadrons had taken off before, and the remaining three squadrons were all arranged on the decks. Even now, the aircraft towed onto the flight decks in the past ten or twenty minutes were still gathering in the take-off and landing scheduling operation area, but as long as the turn was completed, the three squadrons here could take off and fight!

The only problem is that if the other side has nearly a hundred planes, the three squadrons here are still a little short of planes...

However, Zeppelin was also very nervous now. Although he could intercept the next batch in time after intercepting this batch, Zeppelin was very worried about what happened. He had to at least say hello to her.

"Zeppelin! I'm Bangtai! We spotted their carrier-based aircraft group in the west... Don't worry, I've already ordered the remaining carrier-based aircraft to take off and fight. I'll be in charge here... Hehe, after all, I'm your captain!"

"Alright, alright, Bangtai, your wife will get jealous if you tell me that (da da da da)... Anyway, we are almost in the main gun range of Bismarck and the others, so let's send our interceptors to support you. I won't tell you anymore, we will take care of all the fighter planes here!"

With a slight curl of her lips, even though her bloodshot eyes revealed a madness that made her more and more courageous, she still maintained the unity of man and machine. In her eyes, a line of sight belonging to an ace fighter pilot appeared, locking onto the unlucky Spitfire Jushiro who was panicking but helpless in front of her. Her slender fingers gently hooked the fire button...

"Everyone, pay attention. The front is about to enter our regional air defense range! The interceptor group will leave the battle now! ... Bar, Globe, Meyer, the three of you brothers with the interceptors will turn to the west of the fleet to intercept the next batch of enemy planes. Radio channel XXX.XX accepts the command of General Bonte! I will lead the others to continue to entangle the enemy and cover you!"

Following Zeppelin's order, the four squadrons that had been relying on their high speed to circle the Allied bomber formation almost simultaneously turned their noses and broke contact. At the same time, in the distant sea, which was shrouded in the night, several brilliant lights suddenly flashed - not just one, but one after another, like neon tubes with interval events set up!

"Captain, their fighter planes suddenly broke away from behind us!"

"This is... Wait! Could it be...! Oh no! Everyone, scatter immediately and turn the rudder (boom!) Ugh!"

Before the Allied pilots could figure out what was going on, dozens of sudden and violent explosions sounded around them almost simultaneously! Countless rod-shaped fragments specially designed to attack bombers burst out, with a deafening whistle, and covered the confused "Flying Dragon" fleet!

Under the night sky full of fireworks, there were shattered airplane wreckages in groups of three or five, swirling neatly, dragging thick smoke, and finally lighting up the reflection of the moonlight under the shining starry sky, and plummeting into the dark sea of ​​Biscay Bay!

However, while watching the screen displaying good news and listening to the excited cheers, Lütjens still felt a little worried.

"There has been no movement from the American fleet yet. This is not good news..."

Chapter 846

While the British aircraft carriers and shore-based aviation forces were fighting a life-and-death battle with the main fleet of the German Kriegsmarine outside the port of Brest, the American aircraft carrier formations 400 kilometers southwest, under the command of Lieutenant General Fletcher, turned their heads in unison, looked northwest, and faced the westerly wind.

From the flight deck of an aircraft carrier under the moonlight, a swarm of carrier-based aircraft was released, as dense as locusts!

Watching the bald eagles of the United States taking off in groups, Vice Admiral Fletcher leaned against the window on the flagship aircraft carrier USS Yorktown, with a smile on his gentle and kind old face.

"...So, this time you're going to let my pilots just hang the bombs and do a 'precision strike'?"

Among the three ship girls behind Fletcher, a singer named Intel Price stood with her hands on her hips, half leaning forward, her cheeks puffed up, and chattering to her admiral.

He didn't care that his other slim sister-in-law Sarah was gently pulling his sleeve.

"There's nothing we can do. If we rely on missiles for everything, then the jammers won't have any effect at all."

Fletcher laughed when he heard Enterprise's complaint. The good-tempered old man turned around and explained to his shipgirl.

"I counted these air raids, including the records of the air raids in the first half of the night, and found that our missiles are not very effective against the electronic interference of the ship-girl level. Of course, this may also be because the German electronic interference is stronger than ours and the British, but if that is the case, then we can't just rely on missiles."

"But it's too dangerous to just charge into their defense circle and drop bombs!" Enterprise was still a little worried about his pilots: "You know their strength. If they really charge like this, 'THE BOYS' will suffer heavy losses under the anti-aircraft guns!"

After all, they are all loyal fans who attend his concerts in his spare time, and the other party is the "Evil Spirit Fleet" with great achievements.