After returning to the "Reverse Cross" on Monday, Ron prepared a little, and then on Wednesday morning, flew to Washington on a C-47 transport plane.

Ron's trip to Washington this time was mainly for these two things. First of all, he was leaving the "Reverse Cross", and he had to talk to General Arnold about some proposals and plans that had not yet been realized. Secondly, he also has to decide his future choices.

After a few days of reflection, Ron decided to go with Europe. Although psychologically speaking, it is more refreshing to fight small Japan, but it is a pity to miss a historic event like Operation Overlord. In contrast, although the campaign to return to the Philippines cannot be said to be unexciting, it is not at all a level compared to Operation Overlord. What's more, in this much smaller operation, the army aviation does not have much share, and most of the fat, such as the Japanese fleet, will fall into the mouth of the navy. When Lu Hang arrived there, although it can't be said that he played soy sauce, it was definitely just a small supporting role.

In Europe, however, it was different. Aside from inshore shelling and transporting people ashore, the navy has a limited role to play. Especially in the air aspect, the navy cannot intervene. The army is not worried about being useless. Besides, according to the history that Ron knew, after fighting Europe, he would come back just in time for the strategic bombing of Japan, and that was when the Army Aviation could really take the lead. With this in mind, Ron felt that it would be better for him to go to the European battlefield for his [one_book_read] novel xstxt.

……

"So, Ron, you're going to Europe." General Arnold said, "Then tell me what you think of the European theater and what you think about the construction of this new wing." ”

"Okay, General." Ron said. He gathered his thoughts a little, and then spoke:

"We have already boarded a unit in Italy, however, the terrain in Italy is not suitable for large-scale operations. General, the northern part of Italy is the towering Alps, and the Germans are holding on to it, so it will be very difficult for us to attack. I heard that attacking from this direction, it was the idea of the British. The British wanted to get through the 'soft underbelly' of Europe. Ahead of the Soviets, liberate more regions. Considering the post-war political implications, this idea is certainly very tempting. However, the Alps made it difficult to realize. Even if we were to break through the Alps, how much supplies would we have to provide and how large would an army be supported after our logistics had crossed the mountains of the Alps? Not to mention, in the Mediterranean, we don't have as close a distribution point as we do in the UK. So, if we want to make a difference in Europe, if we don't want the Soviets to take control of all of Europe after Germany falls, we have to land from France. Only in this way can this situation be avoided. ”

"That's a good point!" General Arnold nodded appreciatively, "Well, Ron, where do you think we would be better off landing?" "He seems to want to continue to test Ron.

"This has to be considered in terms of hydrology, General, although I have been in England for a while, I am not a navy, and I know nothing about these things. I know, however, that the Germans have built some kind of Atlantic barrier along the French coastline, and in this barrier the Germans are particularly attentive to Calais. I know that they built huge forts around Calais. For example, the Lindemann battery, on which there was a huge 406 mm cannon installed. These cannons were well protected, they were covered with very thick reinforced concrete roofs, and our British allies believed that it would certainly not be any worse defensive than their batteries in Dover. In their words, it's 'even if you throw a Grand Slam right on it, you won't do anything about it'. ”

"General, I think that the Germans are so well fortified in this area, apparently aware that this place is the most dangerous and suitable for landing. But with the presence of these batteries, the price we have to pay for landing here is too great. And we still lack the means to deal with these batteries. So, I think, we might be able to give the Germans the illusion that we are going to land at Calais, but choose another place - as far as I know, the French coast is not as steep as the English coast, and there are many suitable places for landing. ”

"Hehe, Ron, it looks like you've been thinking about this for a long time." General Arnold laughed, "You've been eyeing this opportunity for a long time, haven't you?" ”

Ron smiled, not denying General Arnold's opinion. As a low-level officer, it is enough to know a little about tactics, and as a general, you can show your strategic vision in a timely manner to get the favor of your superiors.

"General, once we move to smash this so-called 'Atlantic barrier', it will definitely be a great battle that has never been seen in human history. Being able to participate in such a campaign is attractive to anyone. ”

"Tell me about your vision for the new wing. You know, the new wing hasn't had time to be formed yet. ”

"General, the German air force is basically not capable of fighting until now. So, the number of purely air-supremacy fighters can be reduced, and one squadron is enough. And it is better to be a multi-purpose, low-altitude aircraft with relatively good performance, let's say the P-81 is good. Among the attack aircraft, considering the need to cross the strait, the attack version of the P-38 has an advantage in range. So, I think there should be two squadrons of P-38 attack aircraft in this wing. But once we have a solid foothold in Europe, I have a little bit more of a p-47 attacker. I hope that by that time, we will be able to add one or two more P-47 attack squadrons, and I think one or two B-25 squadrons will also be indispensable for battlefield interdiction missions. ”

Hearing this, General Arnold laughed: "Ron, this wing you want is big enough, a whole 7 squadrons!" It's seriously overwritten. ”

Ron looked at General Arnold and found that although he was saying that this wing was seriously overstaffed, he didn't look like he wanted to refuse, so he also smiled and said, "General, Europe is a key region, and the number of troops deployed here has always been relatively large, isn't it?" The Eighth Air Force, for example, is larger than any other air force. ”

General Arnold just smiled and didn't answer. So Ron simply continued to open his mouth.

"It's not enough to have an airplane, it's the pilot. The Eighth Air Force no longer needs so many fighter pilots, so it would be very good to transfer some of their fighter pilots to us and send them to the 'reverse cross' for a round of intensive training. ”

"It's not a good habit to dig into a wall, Ron." "But it's a must-have skill to be a general." I didn't let the group of trainees who had just come out of the 'Reverse Cross' train back to their original units, I handed them all over to you. Of course, they aren't enough to build a wing, and they're certainly far from the kind of super-sized wing you're looking for. You can go and coordinate with General Doolittle and ask him to give you some more pilots. In order to create a normal wing consisting of a squadron of P-81 fighters and two squadrons of P\A-38 attack aircraft. With your appeal in the fighter unit, there will be many pilots who are willing to follow you. As for your requirements for the size of the wing, we will discuss it carefully. Your troops need to form combat effectiveness as soon as possible, and there is not much time left for you. ”

"Okay," Ron replied, "but General, I still need a team. You know, I'm not going to take Bunge and McGay to Europe, and then the 'reverse cross' will be left alone. But I need a group of mid- and high-ranking commanders. ”

"We have a lot of guys in that joint force with the Soviets that you know well. I'm going to bring Boynton back and make you the captain of the flight, and besides, these pilots are constantly rotating anyway, and you can pick a few more people from there. I've got you covered with ground staff and stuff. Here's their profile that you can take and see. ”

So General Arnold's lieutenant gave this information to Ron.

"If you have any questions, you can come to me anytime during these days." General Arnold said, "If you are satisfied with the candidate, I hope that in a week you will be able to fly to England." We've built a new base near Portsmouth, England, including two airports next to each other - that's your new wing's base. Your new wing will be numbered the 21st Attack Aircraft Wing. As for the crest and nickname, you can figure it out yourself. ”

……

It was already past five o'clock in the afternoon when Ron came out of General Arnold's office with the papers. His lieutenant, Scott, had been waiting for him outside the door. When he saw him come out, he took the document from his hand and put it in his briefcase. A lieutenant took them to the Pentagon's dining room for dinner, and arranged for the next car to take Ron and them to a hotel.

……

In the evening, Ron sat at his desk and carefully studied the document Arnold had prepared for him. In that document, Arnold had prepared for him officers at all levels who could serve as officers in the Maintenance Brigade, Mission Support Group (ground crew), and Medical Brigade. Several such candidates entered Ron's field of vision.

Thomson?? Lieutenant Colonel Baker, born in Claywood, Colorado in 1899, joined active duty after graduating from college in 1923, and served in the 3rd and 5th Air Forces, successively serving as squad leader and squadron leader, and after the start of the war, he was transferred to the 8th Air Force and served as the deputy captain of the Fighter Wing Maintenance Group for nearly two years. The fighters of his wing have maintained a very high attendance rate during the major week of air battles in the previous period.

Clarke?? Colonel Spell, born in 1892, entered the military in 1911, is a veteran of the First World War, since 1918 into the United States Army Aviation Service Corps (the predecessor of the United States Army Aviation), has been engaged in ground work, from 1926, successively served as the mission support group leader, squadron leader and other positions, retired from active duty in 1935, after the outbreak of the war from the new army, has served in two wings as the deputy captain of the mission support group and acting captain. He is an experienced veteran ground crew.

……