Iron Cross

The rookies on the US escort aircraft carriers did not have the night attack capabilities of the Japanese and German pilots. They all launched air strikes at dawn. The formation commander, Major General Bode, had a total of 392 combat aircraft in his hands, and he cautiously left 96 behind. Fighters covered our fleet and sent two attack groups with nearly 300 aircraft to attack Cape Verde.

Except for the 12 air defense fighters left behind, all the aircraft at the Cape Verde base took off to meet the enemy. Earlier, the Canary Islands transferred 36 Fw-190A8 fighter jets to the Cape Verde base for refueling and supplies in the early morning. Later, it took off again to undertake air defense tasks.

On the morning of November 21, the first air battle over Cape Verde broke out. A total of 52 German aircraft (20 Bf-21218s, 12 Joint Strike Fighters) attacked the US fleet, and a total of 48 fighter jets defended Cape Verde - —All Fw-190. After the deployment, there were only more than 60 aircraft left in the Canary Islands. This was of course a very risky behavior, but the Germans had no choice.

However, the result of the battle made Turner very anxious at the rear. Five of the 14 escort aircraft carriers were sunk. In addition, the US air defense fleet also lost more than 40 additional aircraft. When the 52 attacking German aircraft finally flew back to Cape Verde There were only 28 left, but they could no longer find a safe place to land - the Cape Verde Airport was a key target for US military aircraft to attack. Although the 48 Fw-190s tried their best to resist them, they tried their best with the assistance of ground anti-aircraft fire. A total of nearly 90 US aircraft were shot down with all their strength, but the number gap was obviously too large in front of nearly 300 US aircraft. In the end, they were all shot down or the pilots took the initiative to parachute and crashed.

In the first round of the battle between the two sides, the US military won. At the cost of more than 130 aircraft and 5 escort aircraft carriers, the US military destroyed Cape Verde's aviation power and airport facilities. But Turner was not satisfied with the result. According to his original idea, 45-50 escort aircraft carriers and about 1,300 aircraft should be enough to suppress the Azores' aviation power. Judging from the actual results, this estimate seems too optimistic - Cape Verde only has 100 aircraft and no jets. The aircraft have caused such losses. The Azores has at least 600 aircraft, which means that the number of 45-50 aircraft is too conservative. It is safer to at least increase it to 60-65 aircraft.

"Führer, the US military is attacking Cape Verde. In the face of the enemy's overwhelming air power, our aviation power has been completely lost." In the afternoon, Yoder reported with some worry, "Our army will be very passive if this continues and must be supported as soon as possible."

"Is the intensity of the air raids high enough for the Battle of Bermuda?"

"That's not the case yet. There are about 200 enemy aircraft performing air suppression. The problem is that we do not have any air counterattack force."

"Hold on, the enemy's landing hasn't started yet, we can't mess up our position." Hoffman thought for a while, "Use my name to send a message of condolences to the highest officer guarding Cape Verde: Germany needs him to fight to the end. A bullet, but I will do my best to save him."

"Let the Machar fleet attack?"

"It's not time yet, let's wait another day." Hoffman thought for a while, "The fleet will move 500 kilometers westward and needs to be in place before 10 o'clock tomorrow morning."

"To the west?" Dönitz was a little surprised, "What are you doing? I thought you would let it rescue Cape Verde."

"It's not time yet." Hoffman shook his head. "Don't you know how Horikichi rescued Tarawa? I want to see if the Americans really want to attack Cape Verde or if they are just trying to lure us. "

When Yoder mentioned the Battle of Tarawa, he immediately thought of the three-week harassment war between Australia and New Zealand. When he contacted the head of state's order just now, he immediately reacted: "Head of State, are you planning to send a fleet to harass the east coast of the United States?"

"The east coast defense is very strong, but we can attack Bermuda again." Hoffman smiled, "This time we will send three more battalions to see if the Americans have the ability to drop another 82nd Airborne Division. Oh, No, they also have the 101st Airborne Division, and Machar is preparing to deploy 4 battalions.”

Although he was surprised that the head of state reported the U.S. airborne troops in such a familiar manner, Yoder believed that this strategy was good, at least better than directly rescuing Cape Verde - if Cape Verde was lost, it would threaten German West Africa at most. If Bermuda was lost, The direct threat is to the East Coast. Can the American people still sleep?

Hoffman didn't know that his strategy had hit Turner's Achilles heel - it was not that his staff suggested giving up the attack on Cape Verde and attacking the Falkland Islands directly, but Turner always replied with a resentful tone: "But, Ma Shar is still here. If we don’t kill him, we won’t be able to live in peace for a day..."

Admiral Ingersoll understood what Turner meant. As long as the main German fleet stayed near the Azores for one day, the main force of the British and American Atlantic fleets could not confidently and boldly go to the South Atlantic to cause trouble for the Argentines. It didn't matter if the British-Canada route could not be opened. Bermuda It must not be lost. Now the island is undergoing restorative construction in full swing. In terms of defense capabilities, it is worse than it was at the beginning.

Hoffman's strategy was worked out after spending a night in the war room meditating on it. He was already an expert in battle tactics, and Horikichi's Australian and New Zealand harassment tactics inspired him a lot. In front of two of his confidants, , he made a rather vulgar joke: "The United States has two bombs in the Atlantic. One is the Anglo-Canadian route, and the other is Bermuda. As long as they are pinched, they can stop the United States from misbehaving. I heard that Roosevelt passed public opinion Fangfeng is preparing for re-election. I wonder if he can withstand the public anger after the bombing on the east coast..."

The two immediately laughed knowingly.

At the same time, the bosses of the Joint Chiefs of Staff in Washington were also frowning. Exact information from Argentina came in. The news was very discouraging: more than half a month ago, the German army completed reinforcements to the Falkland Islands via the Madagascar route. , now the island's defense force is not the more than 10,000 people and more than 100 aircraft originally expected, but at least four times the strength. The third wave of U.S. troops preparing to seize the Falklands consists of 4 divisions and more than 600 aircraft. It was originally expected to be five times the enemy's strength. In this way, the direct strength is almost equal, so why fight?

"Why didn't we receive the message? Such a large fleet cannot be hidden quietly."

"The main force of this group of troops did not go through Suez. It was most likely that they mobilized the German army's original forces in Africa. After the African campaign, the German army deployed more than 100,000 troops in East Africa and Madagascar, and transferred 2 divisions. Support is not difficult. As for the route, the latitude difference between the southernmost tip of South Africa and the Falkland Islands is more than 2,000 kilometers. It is relatively easy to avoid detection in the direction of South Africa. The Navy also proposed a plan to bypass 2,500 kilometers south of Madagascar. "Transporting supplies and ships to Australia over a distance of more than 100 kilometers?" Eisenhower frowned and analyzed, "If I guess correctly, the main force of the German transport force should be the Willowship, a European standard cargo ship similar to the Victory Ship. The so-called 'three-one-five' standard - a load capacity of 15,000 tons, a maximum range of 15,000 nautical miles, and a maximum speed of 15 knots.”

General King nodded noncommittally. The biggest difference between Eisenhower and ordinary army generals was that he was very sensitive to logistics and was very proficient in air, sea and rail transportation. General King always thought that Marshall had put it in the wrong place - this guy didn't know how to do it at all. If you know how to fight, it would be quite suitable to be the deputy chief of staff in charge of logistics.

"Gentlemen," Marshall tapped the table, "What now? The President is very concerned about Operation Joint Elements."

"There is no other way but to increase the number of troops again. I think the Army must be prepared to use at least 6 divisions and at least 50 escort aircraft carriers."

"What if the enemy adds more troops?" Arnold asked, and everyone was speechless. If they add more troops, they will be unable to fight.

"That would take a long time. We must first use the fleet to cut off the German supply line, and then push it forward step by step. The problem is..." Admiral Jin said with a bitter smile, "There are Argentina supporting the Germans behind, and they are on Falkland Island. I will never die of hunger..."

Everyone looked at each other: Falkland covers an area of ​​more than 12,000 square kilometers, and has a permanent population of less than 10,000. Most of them are British residents, so it is easy to evict them. The area of ​​Great Britain is 12 times the size of the Falkland Islands, but it has a population of more than 40 million. , if a blockade can be achieved by starvation, then Great Britain, not Falkland Island, will fall first.

"There is another way..." General Jin said slowly, "The army pushes over from the ground and solves the Argentine mainland first."

Marshall could only respond with a wry smile: It is entirely possible to deter Argentina, but to attack Argentina, Congress must authorize it. It is not easy to attack a neutral country without any reason. Although Argentina is not that big, it is still considered one of the great powers in South America. It has almost 10 divisions, about 150,000 defense troops, and a not too weak navy. In addition, the Germans take great pains to support them and try their best to arm the army with German weapons and instructors. How many troops will be gained by conquering Argentina? 200,000? 300,000? Even if the Army is willing to devote so many troops, where is the time?

"This is impossible! The Army is willing to add four more divisions to attack the Falklands and kill the German army before the next reinforcements arrive. The key is how much force the Navy can provide?"

"Two Essex-class ships will be put into service next month and can join the South Atlantic direction. In addition, 5-6 escort aircraft carriers are expected to be completed. This is probably the strength."

"Aren't there still 14 escort aircraft carriers available in the direction of Cape Verde?"

"There are not that many. We fought the Germans today and there are still 9 ships left. We will fight another day tomorrow. If the Germans still refuse to take the bait, the main fleet will cover the landing troops the day after tomorrow."