Chapter 281 The Wind Rises in the Atlantic Ocean VI

October 11, 1939, Iceland time, 5 pm. Atlantic Ocean, about 500 nautical miles northwest of Ireland.

The sky was very dark, no rain, the wind speed at sea dropped to level 5, and the wave height was less than 2.5 meters. As the "Scharnhorst" and "Sedlitz" continued to sail southwest, the weather and wind and waves finally became less terrible.

The two huge ships, like mountains, were circling on the sea in a zigzag route at a very slow speed of less than 5 knots. This is the meeting point with the light cruiser "Leipzig", and it is also an excellent ambush position. Whether it is the route to America or Africa, it will pass nearby (actually there are hundreds of nautical miles away).

"Lieutenant General, it seems that tomorrow's weather will not be too bad." On the Scharnhorst, Major General Leifman held a stack of weather reports in his hand.

These are the weather conditions in Iceland and Greenland. The German General Staff has a special military meteorological bureau, which has "disguised weather observation ships" (disguised as neutral merchant ships or fishing boats), "weather reconnaissance aircraft" and "weather observation submarines". In Iceland and Greenland, there are "disguised weather observation ships" and "weather observation submarines". Every 1-2 hours, the local weather conditions will be reported (the weather changes in Iceland and Greenland are very valuable for predicting climate change in Western Europe in the Atlantic).

"Then tomorrow it will be the turn of the planes on the Seydlitz to show their skills." Marsa looked at the "Seydlitz" parallel to the "Scharnhorst" on the sea outside the command tower.

There are 3 Ar-196 seaplanes on the "Scharnhorst" (there are also 2 Ar-196 on the Leipzig), and 9 Fokker 99 reconnaissance bombers on the "Seydlitz". A total of 12 reconnaissance aircraft can search the surrounding area of ​​hundreds of nautical miles thoroughly.

Moreover, the nine Fokker 99s were professional dive bombers. Once they found the British escort fleet, they could launch an attack with their bombs.

There was no need to sink them. As long as they were damaged, they would basically be doomed. The damaged and burning ships would not only slow down but also expose the position of the entire fleet, and would most likely be abandoned by the fleet. The "Scharnhorst" and "Leipzig" only needed to approach at night and use their cannons to "finish the job". Since both ships had the latest search radars, it was very safe to operate at night.

This was the most ideal tactic for the "First Atlantic Squadron" in the Atlantic commerce-breaking war.

…

"Admiral, AB-1's telegram: Currently the fleet is sailing towards point B at a speed of 10. No German ships have been found and the weather has cleared."

The communications staff of the Home Fleet read aloud the telegram sent by the newly formed AB-1 escort formation.

Admiral Charles Forbes stood by the chart table, staring at the positions of the F Fleet, G Fleet, I Fleet, and the reinforcements H Fleet sent by the Mediterranean Fleet. In order to encircle and suppress the German battleships and aircraft carriers that broke into the Atlantic Ocean, the British Royal Navy really spent a lot of money.

Eight battleships/battlecruisers were used, including "Hood", "Reputation", "Sovereignty", "Revenge", "Resolution", "Barham", and "Malaya". Three aircraft carriers were dispatched, including "Royal Ark", "Eagle", and "Hundred Eyes Giant".

However, the ocean is too vast. Even with 8 battleships/battlecruisers, it is impossible to form a tight encirclement. And among these 8 battleships/battlecruisers, except "Hood", none of them can catch up with the "Scharnhorst".

Unless the "Scharnhorst" is injured and slows down!

"We have to rely on aircraft carriers to fight. How are the ships?" Admiral Charles Forbes said the word "aircraft carrier" and felt distressed. The Home Fleet lost 3 fleet aircraft carriers on September 3!

Rear Admiral Phillips, Chief of Staff of the Home Fleet, said: "Admiral, the 'Ark Royal' has 60 carrier-based aircraft, including 48 Swordfish torpedo planes and 12 Great Europe fighter-bombers; the 'Eagle' has 21 carrier-based aircraft, including 15 Swordfish torpedo planes and 6 Sea Gladiators fighters; the 'Hundred Eyed Giant' also has 21 carrier-based aircraft, 15 Swordfish and 6 Sea Gladiators."

The Royal Navy's aviation force is actually quite bad, even worse than the German naval aviation - they were under the jurisdiction of the Royal Air Force before 1937, and the Royal Air Force was not interested in carrier-based aircraft, so naturally it would not invest too much money to develop truly useful aircraft for the Navy.

As a result, Britain, whose aviation industry is obviously leading (and Germany has its own advantages), gave the Navy a bunch of weird and bad aircraft.

And the "Swordfish", "Sea Gladiator" and "Great Europe" are undoubtedly "bad" aircraft.

The Swordfish is a torpedo attack aircraft that first flew on December 31, 1935, but its appearance looks like an old biplane from the 1920s.

The Cape Gladiator is also a biplane fighter that looks very "old", but it is not very old. It was developed in 1934 and equipped by the Royal Air Force in 1935. Like the Swordfish, it has a retro style.

The "Big European" fighter/bomber is a "cutting-edge" aircraft that was put into service in November 1938. It is slightly older than the Fokker Zero and older than the BF-109 and the Royal Air Force's "Hurricane" and "Spitfire". Be new. However, the design concept of this aircraft is very weird, integrating a "dive bomber" and a "fighter", and it is also equipped with a small engine with insignificant horsepower (only 890 horsepower). Therefore, the speed of this aircraft is very slow, with a maximum speed of only 360 kilometers per hour.

"Admiral, our 'Big Gull' and 'Sea Gladiator' are probably no match for the 'Fokker Zero'." Major General Phillips said with some concern. "There should be 12 Fokker Zeros on their Seydlitz."

"It doesn't matter," Charles Forbes shook his head, "We have 102 carrier-based aircraft, 90 of which have very powerful attack power, as long as our 12 'Sea Gladiators' can entangle the 'Fokker Zero' In 15 minutes, we can achieve a complete victory. Even if it doesn't take that long, our 12 'Big Ou' and 78 Swordfish will have a high chance of severely damaging the 'Scharnhorst' and 'Seidlitz'. No. So victory must belong to the Royal Navy!”

…

October 12, Iceland time, 5:30 in the morning. Looking out from the command tower of the aircraft carrier "Seidlitz", the sky was still dark. However, there was already a hint of morning glow in the eastern sky, there was only level 3-4 gentle wind on the sea, and the waves were no more than 1 meter high.

Obviously, the weather is suitable for carrier-based aircraft to attack today!

The captain of the "Seidlitz", Major General Helmut Heyer, half-turned around and said to the aviation staff, Lieutenant Colonel Weiss, and the carrier-based aircraft group leader, Major Garland: "The weather is good, there may be a big battle today. of!"

He paused, "The headquarters in Wilhelmshaven just sent a telegram. Last night, the submarine discovered a huge formation composed of battleships and aircraft carriers in the waters 200 nautical miles south of Iceland."

Lieutenant Colonel Weiss and Major Garland suddenly became nervous. Major Garland asked: "Is it the Hood and the Ark Royal?"

"Not sure." Rear Admiral Haye shrugged. "The entire British Royal Navy must be looking for us now...and we must find the British aircraft carrier first!"

"Major General, I only have 9 Fokker 99s." Major Garland said, "This is too few."

"No, you don't need to attack." Rear Admiral Haye said, "I need to know the location of the British aircraft carriers... there are estimated to be three."

"Okay, my people will go all out!" Garland said.

"Send 8 more direct-cover aircraft," Haye ordered. "It must be ensured that there are 8 Fokker Zeros in the air at all times. In addition, 2 four-plane formations must be deployed on the deck."

There are 8 Fokker Zeros in the air at any time, and another 8 on the deck, ready to take off at any time. There are also 4 Fokker Zeros staying in the hangar. Once detected by radar or reconnaissance aircraft, they will immediately rise to the deck. If enemy planes really attack in large numbers, all 20 Fokker Zeros will take off to fight within 20 minutes.

"Rear Admiral, please rest assured. There are 20 Fokker Zeros here. Even if the British send 100 carriers, don't even think about getting close!"

Garland patted his chest and assured, but Haye still frowned. The break-up fleet attacks in small formations. Its advantage is flexibility and concealment, but its disadvantage is its lack of escort capabilities. Once the defense line composed of 20 Fokker Zeros is breached, the entire formation may be destroyed!

"Also," Major General Haye asked again, "Adolf, can your men recognize the Hood and the Ark Royal?"

Adolf Galland replied: "The Ark Royal is difficult to recognize, but the Hood is easy to identify. All the Fokker 99 crew members have seen it with their own eyes."

"HMS Hood" is the face of the Royal Navy. Over the past many years, this ship has been "exhibited" around the world to show the power of the Royal Navy. So it's very easy to get a glimpse of it.

"That's good, Hood and Ark Royal must be acting together." Haye smiled slightly, "If one of them is discovered, then we have to escape quickly!"

The "Hood" cannot be defeated, and the "Royal Ark" has 60-70 carriers. They are the most threatening weapons of the British Royal Navy. It is also the most valuable goal! As long as one of them is killed, the German break-up fleet will be able to roam the Atlantic until mid-1940.

Therefore, just 20 days before the "Scharnhorst" and "Seidlitz" launched, 10 Type IX boats quietly left Wilhelmshaven, took advantage of the night and thick fog to cross the English Channel, and rushed to The waters off the Azores are lurking...