The Rise of the Empire

Chapter 1181: Threat from the air

Chapter 1181

Major General von Lefetzoff really guessed it. Prince Ruprecht and Hipper’s main fleet did have some troubles, but these troubles did not come from the British surface ships, except for the British in this area. The fragments of the battleship no longer have a complete British battleship, and there is no submarine from underwater. In the face of a relatively large-scale and well-conceived fleet, the role of submarines is very limited. Von Lefetzoff’s fleet was attacked. It was the British who hit the Grand Canal, and their remaining RP is definitely not enough to hit the Grand Canal again... Otherwise, according to the RP conservation law, Thomas and Betty estimate that one will be left!

Although the prince knows that the British Air Force is very NB in ​​the first battle, it is absolutely no problem to say that the world is number one, and that it is a big part of France, but it is all analyzed from the data, sometimes pure data is not Intuitive. This is like the concept of personnel. 1,000 people may not seem to be many, but when the prince was young, he followed his uncle, Prince Leopold, to inspect the first regiment of the Bavarian guards for the first time. He asked his uncle about the total How many people, the latter answered 800 people, and looking at the crowded pieces, of course the prince thought there were at least 3000 people! Later, he had a correct understanding of the so-called ten thousand people, all over the mountains and plains!

And this time, the prince finally intuitively gained a very direct understanding of the power of the Royal Naval Air Force. Hundreds of various aircraft flew over your head, and then began to throw bombs. Can you not understand? !

To be honest, during the First World War, the British aviation industry was quite terrifying both in terms of quantity and quality. It is not excessive to say that it is comparable to the United States during the Second World War! If it is said that during the Second World War, the British aviation industry and the German aviation industry at their peak were still the same.

(Historically, the Luftwaffe’s peak production capacity was in 1944 and produced 39,000 aircraft of various types. The British produced up to 26,000 aircraft. Although the number is small, considering such things as Lancaster and Halifax Level things, so the actual production capacity may not be less than that of Germany. For the same reason, although Maozi can produce up to 40,000 aircraft a year, it can’t be compared with Germany in terms of wartime aviation industry. The number of bombers is high.)

Then in history, the German aviation industry in World War I was not worthy of giving shoes to the British! The gap is so big. Even now, the prince believes that there is still a gap between Germany and the UK in terms of the scale and technology of the aviation industry. The reaction to the battlefield is that although the Luftwaffe has a better organizational system and a better command of the battle. higher. However, the Air Force of the Allied Powers had the advantage. In addition to ensuring that the British would compete with the main force of the Prussian Air Force on the mainland, they still had time and energy to equip the Royal Navy with more than 2,000 aircraft! Today, the prince saw the tip of the iceberg!

In fact, if the duration of the First World War in history is prolonged a little longer, under the circumstances of the blowout-like technological advances in 1917 and 1918, the British aviation force has made considerable development, regardless of the size or The quality has been greatly improved. At that time, air power will make Germany's situation more difficult. A large-scale strategic bombing 20 years in advance is definitely not a talk. (Of course, the amount of bombs dropped is definitely not comparable to that of the second battle.)

When the main fleet led by the prince and Hipper settled the British fleet on the sea, it was about 10 o'clock in the morning. The sea fog finally dissipated, and visibility rose linearly. And at this moment, the seaplane unit that had been on the periphery sent a telegram. They saw the plane, a lot of British planes!

"Within my sphere of influence, I can clearly see the 4 planes flying from the west. The total number of them is about 45. In the distance, at the limit of the visual range, I can see more. The black spots. They rushed over like a swarm of locusts!” The German pilot who discovered the British bomber group wrote in the telegram.

"Well, guys, it seems that we need to face new threats. The fleet is ready to concentrate. All seaplane carrier takeoff planes are ready to intercept the target. Don't care about the single-engine aircraft, whichever is bigger, which one will hit!"

"Other fleets will return directly in units of detachments. We should not stay here. Except for the free hunting of twin-engine seaplanes, the single-engine seaplanes released by warships only need to ensure the safety of their own detachment." Hear this. After the information, the prince was also a little faint, and even said that he was a little depressed. He thought that as a traverser, he hadn’t gotten a plane to bomb the British fleet, so let the British naval aviation directly put the bombs on himself. This is for the traverser. Great provocation! The very cautious traverser wrote a note to the British in his own small book, and he is ready to find it in time...

As for the fleet air defense? Don't tell me, the prince really doesn't know what to do. The air defense methods in the history of World War II cannot be directly applied. Air defense wheel formations? Please, destroyers in this era generally have 3 88 guns, and 2 150 guns at NB point. However, no matter which type of artillery is suitable for air defense due to the problem of firing angle and gun mounts, the 2 pound gun battleship is equipped with some, but None of the destroyer class is installed. And in the absence of mature fire control, how many planes do you expect to hit with a simple 2-pounder gun and a small number of 88 guns?

The so-called best thing for air defense is airplanes. The only thing the prince can rely on now is his own three to four seaplanes on his own battleship~lightnovelpub.net~ and the improved K-4 on the seaplane carrier. The twin-engined seaplane supports an air defense net for the fleet. As for the fleet air defense guidance? Go to sleep. Don't think about it!

Therefore, the task of fleet air defense basically depends on the pilot's own strength. The prince’s arrangement is also the best he can do. The twin-engine aircraft has fierce firepower and has a long time in the air, and has sufficient endurance to provide air defense firepower between the fleets. Now at sea, the main force of the entire German High Seas Fleet has dispersed because of the pursuit of British warships, and the distance between the fleets is more than 10 kilometers. In this case, it is unrealistic to emphasize that all aircraft are concentrated for defense.

The range and firepower of the twin-engine aircraft are good, and they are responsible for active attacks. The single-engine aircraft has limited firepower and range, as long as they drive away from the opponent or force the opponent to drop a bomb. This can be regarded as the best use.

As for the fleet on the sea, go home as soon as possible. Therefore, after the prince gave the order, in addition to looking for the battlecruiser squadron led by Major General von Lefetzoff, the other warships turned directly to the southeast and headed towards Wilhelmshaven.

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(End of this chapter)