Bismarck

In this situation, everyone actually knows that the only way out is to strike first and kill one less person.

Anyway, judging from the situation, the brutal naval battle will probably start around 11:00 to 12:00 noon.

but……

The situation on the battlefield, the distance between the forces and the combat relationships are really very subtle!

The carrier-based aircraft of the four light aircraft carriers are no match for the current German jet aircraft, but the nature of air power is that it is strong in attack but weak in defense. If you add the bombers swarming behind, then this is a very dangerous distance!

As for the position of the old man Cunningham in front, if the course does not change, based on the relative movement of the two sides, at the latest at eleven o'clock, the two sides will be close enough that the anti-ship missiles will hit them in the face!

On their side, Zeppelin had just landed a large group of aircraft, and now it had only been an hour, so they could not organize a full-deck attack! Even with the support of the Gneisenau, the fighters that took off hastily from the two aircraft carriers should only be able to deal with one of them - and then the anti-ship missiles and air strikes from the other side would turn the two aircraft carriers that had lost speed into a crematorium!

As for anti-aircraft missiles and the like...

Even though the four battleships in the fleet now each had 64 "Rhine Daughters", and the Prinz Eugen had 140 anti-aircraft missiles, and they were all equipped with radar-illuminated, semi-actively guided "Himmler Organ" anti-aircraft missiles and six-barreled Gatling close-in defense guns, the latter were only point defense weapons after all, and if operated by sailors, the hit rate was quite terrible. As for the former, although this thing was powerful, it was like an anti-ship missile at sea, one less shot!

You know, to the north of them, at the exit of Biscay Bay, the "Vultures" of the KG40 long-range reconnaissance aircraft wing have discovered targets suspected to be Tovey's home fleet more than once - although they failed to accurately determine the location, the reason for the failure to locate was precisely because the reconnaissance aircraft were intercepted and hunted down by the Spitfire Jushiro!

Spitfire Jushiro is famous for his short legs, but in such a vast ocean, there are such a group of planes...

If it weren't for Tovey bringing an aircraft carrier to threaten our retreat in the Bay of Biscay, I, Lütjens, would not believe it!

However, in this case, the pressure on battlefield analysis and assessment is not small at all, and we must be even more cautious!

The one he led was the last remaining strength of the Greater German War Navy!

I can't help but be cautious!

After all, the Tovey Fleet is the main fleet of the United Kingdom, and its military strength is quite strong! Five battleships plus two missile heavy cruisers, two armored carriers and one light carrier, at least nearly 200 aircraft and more than 300 missiles! Moreover, these long-range anti-ship missiles can also get the guidance bonus of the two British warships!

How did Lindemann die? Wasn't it because the missile guided by the American ship broke through the defense of the country?

"In this way, we won't have to use up too many anti-aircraft missiles. But let's not talk about the danger of being attacked from both sides. There's also Tovey waiting for us in the north..."

I was unsure! And I couldn't say it in public - the fleet commander said he was unsure, so what was the point of playing?

The outward manifestation of the increasingly serious mood in his heart was his increasingly deep eyes.

Lütjens has always believed that his caution is not a shortcoming, but now...

"Captain, don't be too nervous. We can defeat Cunningham, our defeated opponent!"

Hearing the voice, Lütjens turned his head and looked at Bismarck. Was she comforting and encouraging him in a coquettish way?

But, this is the headquarters! It's fine if you want to act like a spoiled brat, but I still have to have some dignity!

But before he could open his mouth, the secretary beside him, who had lived and died with him, although acting coquettishly and cutely, the words he said were actually encouraging himself.

"You girl..." Lütjens, who didn't know whether to laugh or cry, glared at his secretary helplessly. But what he saw was the secretary's playful giggle and his other hand handed him a stack of telegram draft paper.

"Captain, we have to fight anyway, so why don't we strike first? --By the way, Captain, when we sent the combat order just now, Bonte, Top, Voss, Hindenburg, Ludendorff, and Gneisenau...they all sent us a reply, asking for permission to fight!"

I don't know why, but the softest place deep in my heart, which should have been cold and hard, seemed to be touched.

Lütjens took the telegram and glanced at it: "These guys..." He silently complained in his heart, or should I say it was self-deprecating?

However, the admiral who was very proud of himself still had to put on a stern face, at least he couldn't let himself be laughed at in the headquarters? Although, looking at the staff officers around him turning their heads and talking about other things with a look of indifference, Lu knew in his heart that he was afraid that he would not be able to get rid of the image of a cat slave.

However... the secretary's suggestion of "call first and talk later" was not whispered to me secretly. But looking at this and those telegrams, it seems that this view is actually the consensus of everyone?

But think about it, it has already come to this, the decisive battle is about to begin, there is actually no need to worry about anything anymore!

Anyway, everything that can be done has been done now!

Moreover, the reconnaissance planes sent out before can now maintain contact with the other side for at least two hours - come to think of it, this means that everything is ready with the right time, place and people, right? The only thing missing is an east wind, right?

Since it has come to this, let’s fight! Even if there are consequences, let’s beat up that old guy Cunningham first!

Putting his hand down from the ship's cat's head, Lütjens walked to the fleet radio microphone, stretched out his white-gloved hand, and with a click, flipped on the switch of the broadcast system...

"Comrades of the Navy of the Greater German Reich, I am Lütjens!..."

"Keep heading, change formation - the four battleships go to the port side and set up a battle line, ready to engage in combat and missile attacks at any time! The aircraft carrier is on the right side of the battle line, prepare the flight deck, and be ready to turn north and release the aircraft at any time! As for Prince Eugen, follow behind the aircraft carrier and be ready to intercept the enemy aircraft at any time - no matter which side the aircraft comes from..."

Under the command of Lütjens, the German fleet began to change its formation.

Although the speeds of Hindenburg, Ludendorff and Gneisenau were only 30 to 32 knots, they only needed to maintain a triangular formation without deformation based on the original formation - the Zeppelin with the fastest speed of 40 knots, the cat and mouse sisters and Eugengen with 36 knots, could all move around the fleet on their own!

On the flight decks of the two aircraft carriers, a new round of aircraft has been slowly being prepared.

Speaking of which, it is worth my life to be able to go through this journey with everyone at this critical juncture of the country's destiny!

Chapter 878

It was the same 11 o'clock in the morning, the same waters off the coast of Africa, the same reconnaissance planes were dispatched to operate around the enemy, and Cunningham was standing in front of the chart table, with the same secretary standing beside him, also making a final check on the situation on the battlefield.

Both sides were driving away the other's reconnaissance aircraft and trying to make their final moves as secretive as possible.

"After Zeppelin's fighters returned, their reconnaissance planes were driven away by us. But we can't completely track the German ships and crews now..." The vanguard explained the situation while pointing to the symbols on the nautical chart that marked the coordinates of the four light carriers of the Mediterranean Fleet. He measured with a ruler in his other hand: "There is still a problem: the wind direction from Gibraltar to Cape St. Vincent is counterclockwise, so our light carriers have to turn around and keep a distance from Lütjens if they want to take off - so now they can only let the fighters cover the bombers taking off from Gibraltar. The attack will be launched at about twelve o'clock."

"So Lütjens is heading straight for us now, because we are the only threat in the first place." Cunningham, with his arms folded, glanced at the nautical chart and made his own judgment: "Pay attention, the wind direction in this area is from the north. If the aircraft carrier needs to take off against the wind, Lütjens may have already turned the Zeppelin and Gneisenau to the north."

"In that case, the distance between us and them has increased again, right? And they are heading north, and if we chase them, what if they launch an anti-aircraft missile attack or something, it will be very disadvantageous to us..."

Qianwei is a little worried about this.

After all, they were the pursuers, and it was not easy to close the distance with the enemy. But if the Germans turned around and launched missiles, they would be fighting at a disadvantage in anti-air warfare. You know, if the missiles took about half an hour to fly, the range threatened by the enemy's missiles would increase by a full 30 kilometers!

As for the pursued party, since the pursuit is in the form of air combat, it takes half an hour for the missile to reach the opponent's airspace - this time difference is enough for the opponent to run 30 kilometers!

In other words, between the chase and the escape, the missile's range was a difference of sixty kilometers!

Cunningham's face didn't look good either - this was unbearable!

"Then wait, after we release the planes, we turn to increase the distance? And by the way, let the light carriers of the Mediterranean Fleet turn to withdraw to the Strait of Gibraltar?" War-weary suggested: "However, if we do this, our current round of attack will be cancelled, and we will have to break contact with Lütjens..."

"But you know what, this is indeed a solution. Anyway, if they want to take off now, they can only turn around and head southwest, so we can just turn back." Cunningham thought about it and expressed his opinion: "It's better to cancel this round of attack. Now our attacks on both sides cannot start at the same time, even the attacks of aircraft and missiles cannot be synchronized - their combat effectiveness is too strong, and not being able to synchronize is a waste of opportunity and ammunition!"

"If that's the case...that's right, I should save myself first before I can destroy them." After thinking for a while with his fingertips on his lips, War-weary nodded, agreeing with the opinion of his admiral.

Soon, the main force of the Allied Atlantic Fleet, which was originally speeding north, turned left and headed west in unison. On the other side, the four light carriers in the Mediterranean that had originally planned to launch aircraft also turned directly to keep a distance from the Germans.

Although I really want to rush in and fight to the death, but now that I am sure of my chance, of course I have to play it safe!

Anyway, what we are fighting for now is a time difference. Even if the Germans on the opposite side find that something is wrong and their main fleet and the light carriers of the Mediterranean Fleet break away simultaneously, they will have no better way.

After all, the mission on his side was to delay the German ships until they ran out of fuel and evacuated the battlefield. Not to mention, Lütjens couldn't have not received the intelligence that the Tovey fleet was swaggering around the Bay of Biscay, right?

Thinking of this, Warspite and Avant-garde did not even consider the idea of ​​"if Lütjens was stubborn enough to attack Gibraltar".

No matter how capable Lütjens was, could he capture the Gibraltar fortress, which was well prepared and on high alert, within a day?

Don't even mention whether you can defeat them. Even if you can defeat them, what will happen? Your retreat is cut off and you can't go back home. This is a desperate situation!

But at this time, a communications officer ran over, holding a telegram in his hand, and reported:

"Sir, Mountbatten sent a message... Yesterday, Kesselring (Commander-in-Chief of the Southern Theater of Germany and Commander of the Southern Front Air Force) deployed all his aircraft, and the losses of our American ally, the 51th Air Force Group, on the Italian battlefield were quite heavy. Now we can only withdraw two heavy bomber squadrons with 38 aircraft, two P- squadrons with aircraft, and two long-range heavy combat squadrons with Mosquitoes and P-s to reinforce here... These aircraft have arrived at the Moroccan airport and have been assigned to Mountbatten's command, but most of them now need maintenance and will not be able to attack until the next time..."

"Forget it, at least our air force in North Africa has been initially replenished. Besides, it's always better to be prepared." Cunningham, who was obsessed with combat prediction, waved his hand and was not too interested in the reinforcements that "would have to wait until the next round to join the battle."

After all, the U.S. Army Air Force originally fought in Italy. Not only did it not have anti-ship missiles, it had not even received anti-ship training.

But... let the reinforcements come, after all, there are more than 200 planes, which is a lot of combat power.

The only trouble is that the group of bombers that had been assembled can only wait over the strait to return.

However, the Allies have 17 or 18 airports in the area from Gibraltar to Morocco, and all of them are beyond the attack range of the current German fleet, so there are no security issues.

After all, the bombing radius of a jet fighter with bombs attached is only equivalent to the range of an anti-ship missile.

------------------

"Zeppelin, Zeppelin, have you found them?"

"Not yet, I'm on my way there!"

"It's a quarter past eleven now! We can't launch missiles if we can't find them!"

"Don't rush me! I've already pushed it to the maximum speed! Aren't you afraid that the British will hear it?"

Although Lütjens could not hear the sound of the encrypted communication mode on the WIFI channel, he knew that his secretary was now contacting Zeppelin, who had just returned at 10:30 and was about to change planes again for emergency additional reconnaissance.

Except for the returning Zeppelin, the remaining group of reconnaissance planes monitoring the movements of the British main fleet completely lost contact, completely disrupting their own tactical arrangements!

He had made all the arrangements: he would personally lead Bismarck and Tirpitz to accelerate to 48 knots, and preemptively launch a missile attack on the Cunningham fleet. Based on the Cunningham fleet's speed of knots and its turning around before the battle, it was estimated that the missiles () could be launched at :, and the missiles would fly over the Cunningham fleet at around :. And Prince Eugen, along with Hindenburg and Ludendorff, would cover the Zeppelin and Gneisenau, which were heading north against the wind, to launch their carrier-based aircraft.

However, just when the missile attack plan was about to be implemented, the reconnaissance planes being chased by the British carrier-based fighters completely lost contact with them! Without the target indication of the reconnaissance plane and two more ship girls on the opposite side, it is obvious that this wave of missile salvos cannot be launched so easily!

Just in case, something changes...

Cold sweat slid down Lütjens' temples unconsciously.

Sure enough, before Lütjens could think it through, Secretary Cat, who was in contact with Zeppelin via WIFI, had already reported: "Captain! Zeppelin reports that the British fleet has turned! They are now sailing due west! They are 210 nautical miles away from us! Moreover, the British have not released any attack aircraft!"

"What?! They turned west?!"

Lütjens, startled by Bismarck's report, jumped up like a frightened lion. However, as a veteran of many battles, he quickly controlled his anxious emotions, and like a dormant night owl that even looked a little gloomy, he forced himself to stop, returned to the chart table, and thought about the changes in the war situation.

"It looks like Cunningham is going to continue wasting time with me..."

In the same air battle pursuit situation, the "relative range" of missiles will decrease. How could I, who has been in the destroyer unit for many years, not know this? In fact, seeing Cunningham's active avoidance of the battle and not even sending a team of fighter planes, it is easy to imagine that the other side also knows that attacking separately is a waste of manpower, so they simply didn't even send a group of aircraft for air strikes!

If you think about it this way, the garrison fleet and heavy bombers in Gibraltar should not come out this time - although it is said to be prepared, but just before that, several batches of fighters originally scheduled to serve as fleet escorts were just released, which happened to be able to act as air defense aircraft first. Even if the Zeppelin is not here now, with Bontai's experience and the ability of anti-aircraft missiles, it should not be a big problem to deal with ordinary air raids.

However, for many things, knowing what to do is one thing, and how to deal with it is another!

Cunningham, the old Englishman, has already turned westward, and the fleet's speed difference is not big, so it is definitely impossible to catch up with them for a while. But if we can't defeat this guy, we can't break the reality of the Atlantic sea control.

Not to mention, he really couldn't afford to waste time - Tovey was still threatening his retreat in the Bay of Biscay in the north!

What if we evacuate right now? Tens of thousands of tons of fuel will be wasted without any substantial results, which is also a waste of precious resources!

This is probably a dead end! Unless...

Fortunately, I had thought of this possibility when I was formulating the battle plan!

Lütjens' gaze gradually turned towards the direction of the Gibraltar Fortress.

For this place, I have made various reports to all the superiors and done all the coordination work I can! And this place is also the last hope that I can do at present, and I will go all out and burn my boats!

and……

It can be seen that Cunningham is very afraid of the threat range of his anti-aircraft missiles, and common sense says that if he attacks the Gibraltar Fortress, he will definitely continue to keep his distance from him!

After all, after several fortress attacks, it is impossible for the British to be unprepared. Theoretically speaking, under normal circumstances, even if all the ship girls come together, it is not easy to capture the Gibraltar Fortress.

In this way, if they just drag the tide until their fuel runs out, they will surely be defeated without even fighting.

but……

The so-called "normal situation" is ruthlessly broken by more advanced concepts and methods!

Under normal circumstances, if you want to land under the fortress's artillery fire, the air force must do its best, the naval guns must fight hard, and there are also dangerous minefields and sturdy bunkers. It is a thankless task, and casualties are a normal part of a landing battle.

He had also participated in the landing battle on Crete two years ago. If it had not been for his own artillery cover, who knows whether Student's airborne troops would have been unable to recover from the heavy losses?

This is what a landing battle "from bottom to top" looks like.

But what if it is “top-down” or even “targeted poverty alleviation”?

Thinking of this, Lütjens quietly glanced at the cat beside him - a cute German Persian cat was looking at him with expectant eyes. In addition to attachment and cuteness, there was also a look of trust in its big eyes!

The admiral, feeling better, gave his secretary a slight nod and a smile.

Aren't the thirty-two FL-282 'Hummingbird' helicopters in the Gneisenau hangar prepared for this very purpose?

Moreover, he has Zeppelin, the ace regiment commander and goddaughter of Goering, under his command!

Specifically for planning the Gibraltar operation, I asked Zeppelin to build connections with the Air Force Ministry and apply for the deployment of the Air Force's 5th Transport Aircraft Regiment!

The ME-323D "Giant" six-engine super-heavy transport aircraft can fly from southern France to Gibraltar with a load capacity of 10 tons - and this thing is a glider, with good low-speed takeoff and landing performance! In addition, there are more than 52 JU- transport aircraft that can be deployed!

Not to mention, when the head of state asked for his opinion, he also made another suggestion: If Gibraltar could be taken, could he use the condition of "returning it to Spain after the war and only stationing troops here during the war" to get Franco to agree to let logistics transport convoys pass through Spain to ensure his own logistics supplies?

Strictly speaking, this behavior corresponds exactly to the United States' "borrowing" of the Lajes Airport in the Azores! Even if the British and American guys want to accuse something, they can't open their mouths.

Even if the international community actually uses guns to reason, Spain's tungsten mines can increase the production of Germany's already powerful tanks, arsenals and jet fighters! Coupled with the threat of the evil fleet cutting off the Mediterranean route again, it is enough to make the Allied transport fleet transporting resources from South Asia and the Middle East to the UK mainland detour again in the South Pacific westerly circulation area!

Therefore, even Hitler and Goering were really tempted by this plan! And now, the only thing he had to do was to capture the Gibraltar Fortress!

"Since it's difficult to return to Biscay Bay, let's at least take down the Gibraltar Fortress first!"

Having made up his mind, Lütjens straightened his military cap and gave his combat orders to his secretary in a calm but firm tone.

"Bismarck, pass on my order: the entire fleet will turn southeast immediately and execute Plan No. 4 - Target: Gibraltar!"