Chapter 252: Off the Coast of the Netherlands

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More Fw-190 fighters on the aircraft carrier Imperator were also ready. They took off one after another, their mission to protect the Stuka dive bombers that had flown off into the distance.

To be honest, although the weapons and equipment of the German naval air arm were a whole generation more advanced than their British opponents, strictly speaking, they did not have “suitable” weapons. As a dive bomber used by the army, the Stuka, as has already been explained, was not a qualified naval attack aircraft. And for a fighter like the Fw-190, it was not a very qualified torpedo bomber either.

Compared to Japan’s famous multi-role Zero, the Fw-190 was too heavy, so its handling at low speeds was not good, and torpedo delivery required precisely that low-speed performance from an aircraft. But the Zero sacrificed other performance aspects to gain the advantage of being “well-rounded,” while the Fw-190 was a fighter that was just making do as an attack aircraft.

“Arm the remaining Fw-190s with torpedoes! Launch immediately as the second attack wave!” Lütjens said, looking at the Stuka bombers and the torpedo-armed Fw-190s flying into the distance, and then turned to give the order. This was all he had. So he decided to go all in and let the British see his full strength.

And at the same moment, the flagship of the Royal Navy’s southward-bound 1st Task Force was tensely preparing its own attack. This fleet had been hastily dispatched to encircle Lütjens’s fleet after the main British fleet had gone north to intercept the German High Seas Fleet’s 1st Task Force, commanded by Raeder.

However, compared to the German fleet commanded by Lütjens, this British fleet was a bit long in the tooth. The oldest destroyer in the German naval formation commanded by Lütjens had been built in 1927. And in the Royal Navy’s southward-bound 1st Task Force, the youngest was its flagship, the aircraft carrier HMS Eagle, which had been completed in 1923.

But the Germans had clearly underestimated the scale of the British naval operation this time, so the British fleet was not without its own advantages. In a place that the German reconnaissance planes had not seen, there was also a Queen Elizabeth-class battleship in the British fleet. Perhaps if Lütjens had known this information first, he would not have dared to rashly launch an attack.

The reality was that the German Navy did not know the true scale of this Royal Navy fleet, so Lütjens had unhesitatingly sent out his carrier-based aircraft, hoping to swallow this British “small fleet” in front of him in one go.

On the British Royal Navy’s southward-bound 1st Task Force’s flagship, the carrier HMS Eagle, Gladiator fighters were being scrambled, because a British carrier-based reconnaissance plane had also discovered a German reconnaissance plane that had been tailing it not long ago.

The British reconnaissance plane, discovering it was being followed, immediately transmitted this news back to the British fleet, and so the British fleet also began to take action. They possessed more things than the German Navy, and these things could often change the entire course of a battle.

Compared to the Germans, Britain had been the maritime hegemon of this world for a full hundred years. In this century, the world had changed, but the maritime glory of the empire on which the sun never set had never been affected. Countless challengers had fallen before the cannons of the Royal Navy: Spain’s Invincible Armada, France’s Napoleonic navy, Germany’s High Seas Fleet…

This pride and courage and confidence, deep in their bones, fermented by the stubborn arrogance of the British, had given the Royal Navy a precious asset that none of its opponents had ever possessed—the conviction of certain victory.

Of course, supporting this conviction of certain victory were real, tangible assets: the sheer size of the Royal Navy. The Royal Navy at this stage possessed 17 battleships, with a total battleship tonnage of over 400,000 tons, while its opponent, the German Navy, had a battleship tonnage of zero. At the same time, Britain had five aircraft carriers, also one more than the German Navy.

In addition, the British also maintained an advantage in experience and training. The Royal Navy had 100 years of maritime combat experience, and its understanding of naval warfare could be said to be second nature. Moreover, the training level of the Royal Navy’s officers and men was very high. Ninety percent of its naval commanders had participated in the First World War. In comparison, the German Navy seemed too naive. For nearly 20 years after 1919, for most of the time, the German Navy had not conducted any large-scale at-sea training. Their understanding of their own warships and tactics had basically only begun in the last two years.

To be frank, the strength of the two sides at this time could be said to be roughly equal. The German Navy had an advantage in the age of its warships and in its tactical arrangements. In addition, they had more powerful carrier-based aircraft. The British surpassed their opponents in training level and courage, and at the same time, their fleet was larger in scale.

The British Gladiator carrier-based fighter was a biplane. It was clear that compared to the machines in the hands of the German naval air arm, this plane was indeed obsolete. However, the British commander still believed that this fighter was sufficient to carry out the mission of covering the fleet.

This was also something that couldn’t be helped. The more advanced Defiant fighter had been given priority to the Air Force, and the Hurricane fighter, which was meant to deal with the German Air Force’s new fighters, was still in the test-flight stage. So the Royal Navy temporarily had no way to deal with the German planes.

One after another, Gladiator fighters took off from the carrier HMS Eagle, flying over the battleship HMS Malaya. And farther away, a British navy cruiser was also preparing for anti-aircraft combat.

“Launch the Swordfish attack planes!” the British fleet commander commanded loudly, lowering the binoculars in his hand. “Head south and follow the returning German reconnaissance planes. Attack the German fleet! Tell the flight commander leading the group to pay attention and to prioritize attacking the German carriers.”

“Prioritize attacking the British carriers!” In the blue sky above, the commander of the German Stuka bomber formation commanded over the intercom as he checked his sea chart. “Number 7, you, 8, and 9 are responsible for attacking the carrier. Number 5 and 6, deal with the escort warships.”

“Number 7 understands!” “Number 9 understands!” “Number 8, roger,” a series of replies came through his headset.

“Number 5, roger!” “Number 6 understands!” Soon, more replies came in.

The commander of the Stuka formation opened his cockpit canopy, letting the cold wind pour into the cabin. He tightened the leather jacket he was wearing, poked his head out of the cockpit, and, through the thin clouds, glanced at the cold seawater below.

Soon, another German plane formation appeared above them. This was the faster Fw-190 torpedo bomber formation that had departed later. The two formations flew in company. An Fw-190 descended, rocked its wings over the Stukas as a greeting.

“We will initiate the attack first! You hide above the clouds and prepare for a sneak attack,” the commander of the Fw-190 torpedo bomber formation said over the radio. “We will use our higher speed to cut in at low altitude first. After we have dropped our torpedoes, we can be used as escort fighters.”

“No problem. I will pull up in about two minutes. As soon as their escort fighters are drawn down to low altitude by you, we will immediately join the battle,” the Stuka formation commander replied with a smile, looking up at his friendly forces.

“Alright! I’ll arrange for four Fw-190s with small bombs to follow you. If enemy planes approach, they will cover you,” the torpedo bomber commander said after a moment’s thought. “The rest of the torpedo planes will accelerate. We’re going ahead.”

Soon, the faster Fw-190 formation had surpassed the Stukas. These planes began to fly into the distance, while above the Stuka formation, four Fw-190 fighters maintained their flight altitude and speed. It was clear they were the escort fighters that had been left behind.

A short while later, all kinds of combat sounds began to come through the headset of the Stuka bomber formation’s commander. There were calls for cover, confirmations of the number of enemy ships, and some were just cries of surprise and shouts.

“Number 1, Number 1! I’ve spotted the British fleet’s destroyers! They should be right in front of us!” This was the cry of surprise from the German planes when they first spotted the British fleet.

This was followed by a pilot’s warning of enemy fighters joining the battle. “Number 6, watch below, enemy fighters! Climb! Climb immediately!”

Then, another piece of tense news was confirmed by a shout in the headset, that there was a battleship in the British fleet. “Hey, look! A British aircraft carrier! Wait, my God! The warship next to the British carrier is a battleship! It’s a battleship! The British fleet has a battleship!”

Another voice, with a unique tone, cried out in surprise, “How is that possible? That’s really a battleship!”

“Number 1, requesting permission to attack! Requesting permission to attack!” This was a shout confirming the attack.

“Maintain formation! Maintain formation! We are climbing! Wait for the Stuka formation behind us to attack together! Climb!” The commander’s order came through the noisy headset.

“Captain! The enemy’s anti-aircraft guns are firing back! The enemy’s anti-aircraft guns are firing back!” another voice was shouting.

The Stuka pilots, while continuing to fly forward, silently listened to the hysterical shouts of their comrades in their headsets. Unconsciously, the Stuka formation commander found that his palms were already covered in sweat.

“All navigators, attention! All navigators, attention! Fasten your seatbelts,” the commander ordered loudly. As he commanded, he closed his cockpit canopy, then violently worked the bolt of his rear defensive machine gun. “Ready ammunition for the rear gun.”

Suddenly, an anti-aircraft shell exploded near the cloud layer in front of them. Tracer rounds were being fired into the sky, one after another. And below the clouds, a British cruiser, firing all its guns, was making evasive maneuvers, trying to dodge the German torpedo attack.

The commander of the Stuka formation raised the corners of his mouth and gave the attack order loudly over the intercom. “All units, attention! Select your respective targets. Begin your dive-bombing runs! Number 2, you and Number 3 go for that battleship!”

“Number 2 understands!” With the roar of their engines, one Stuka after another plunged out of the clouds, breaking into small groups and frantically charging toward their pre-assigned attack targets.