"The Russians have already invaded Poland from the east. This freak of the Treaty of Versailles will soon be defeated, and we should tighten the noose around the necks of the English even further and let them negotiate peace with us under heavy pressure! ”

In the rough North Atlantic, the commander of the German ocean-going fleet, Bomay, excitedly raised the telegram in his hand. Although it was only a hair-thin piece of white paper, it instantly inspired the officers in the Zeppelin's navigation command room. Even the most unfamiliar layman understood the significance of the rapid defeat of Poland: it meant that the German two-front situation would be completely eliminated and that it could be used with all its strength against Britain and France.

In the crowd, Fang Yan's face was also full of joy, but compared to the colleagues around him, he had some different thoughts in his heart. If it weren't for the fact that the progress of the German Army was not inferior to that of the same period in history, Stalin would never have rushed into the water and gobbled up that share of the benefits half a month after the start of the war. With the introduction of new tanks, mortars, and automatic rifles, the German Army's combat effectiveness did not decline at all due to the establishment of naval aviation. And this also means that the next battle of France can be firmly grasped, and the German Navy's inherent geographical disadvantage to Britain can soon disappear because of this!

"Didn't Wilhelmshaven send information about two more British fleets? As long as we can kill them as we did the day before yesterday with the Anglo-French mixed fleet, the British will not be able to hold on. Colonel Hoffman said confidently. In the battle on 17 September, 40 German bombers sank all the merchant ships of the target fleet in less than two hours; Such efficiency has reached a state of adverse nature, which is enough to fundamentally change the pattern of breaking the diplomatic battle. If a few more British convoys could be eliminated, the entire situation in Europe would even be significantly changed: after all, Britain, having lost a stable source of supplies, would never be able to continue the war.

Bomei smiled and nodded. Last night, Wilhelmshaven sent another message about the position of the British fleet: one of them passed through Messina in the middle of the Mediterranean on 16 September. It is expected to arrive in the Iberian Basin on 23 September, while the other is a fleet of British mainland ships departing from Southampton, escorted by the battleship Sovereign, and is expected to enter the Bay of Biscay on 24 September. Judging from the effect of the attack the afternoon before yesterday, as long as the weather is clear, these two fleets have only one way to destroy in front of them; Even the battleship. There will be no escape!

Contrary to what many people think, the aircraft carrier's sustained combat capability is actually extremely good, and it is not inferior to a battleship of similar tonnage. In the case of the Zeppelin-class aircraft carrier, for example, it has a fuel load of 1,000 tons, which is enough to fly all 120 carrier-based aircraft on 15 rounds each. The Hipper-class carriers have a slightly lower fuel standard, but they can fill the tanks of her 60 carrier-based aircraft 12 times. In other words, this aircraft carrier formation theoretically has a whopping 5,760 sorties! This is enough to ensure the fleet's hard needs for reconnaissance, vigilance, and attack.

In addition, in terms of ammunition reserves, carriers without heavy artillery systems can be loaded with an extremely large number of explosives. Its base of 250kg aerial bombs is 4 times larger than that of fighters. The number of 500kg, 800kg, and 450mm aviation torpedoes is 2 times, 1 times, and 1.5 times the number of bombers, respectively. This share is fully coordinated with the base of aviation fuel, taking into account the needs of all parties to attack merchant ships, destroy fleets, and bomb and lick the ground. If this aircraft carrier fleet is really allowed to let go of bombing, Britain's total registered merchant ships of 17 million tons can be wiped out by at least one-third, and if this is the case, there will be no need to fight the war!

"However, we had better make up the fuel first." Fang Yan said calmly. At the moment, 6 days have passed since German aircraft sank the first British merchant ship; No matter how slow the British fleet was, it should have entered the depths of the Atlantic Ocean and launched a large-scale manhunt for German aircraft carriers and a few pocket battle cruisers. And in the face of the threat of the British fleet. It was obviously extremely important for German warships to keep fuel surplus: after all, the sea conditions in the North Atlantic were no better than in other regions, and carrier-based aircraft capable of striking opponents from the air from a long distance were not guaranteed to be able to strike every day. This doomed the German fleet to a constant maneuver. There is a strong demand for fuel.

"That Italian tanker must be nearby, right?" Bo Mei frowned slightly. The Italians were notoriously lazy throughout Europe, and now pinning the key to the success of the fleet's replenishment was a bit of a dilemma for Bermay. If it weren't for the fact that the Italian ship was positioned just enough to meet the German fleet's next battle, Bermay would have taken a long detour to find German tankers to resupply and abandon the attack.

"Now Italy's oil tankers are basically controlled by the Ziano family. And for this high-stakes operation, I believe that the old Duke Ciano will send reliable personnel to carry it out. Fang Yan said slowly. After 16 years of intermittent contact, Fang Yan still understands his father-in-law's temperament relatively clearly: although he loves his family more than his motherland. But he's not the kind of person who is ridiculous and makes jokes about key things. What's more, old Ziano should also know about Fang Yan's situation as a member of the German Navy on the ship, as long as he doesn't want his daughter to become a widow with 3 children, he will not slack off in this matter!

Bo Mei raised his eyebrows, as if he remembered that there was a handsome officer with an extraordinary status and a huge family brother-in-law beside him. If these Italian transports were all provided by his wife's family. It is indeed more trustworthy than the average Italian. Although this feeling that the fate of a country's main fleet depends on his own family makes Bo Mei quite strange and uncomfortable, as long as he can successfully replenish the fuel, it is better than anything else.

As the hours passed, the previously bright sky darkened, but the loss of traditional vision was not a problem for the German fleet, which had radar, and sailed in an orderly formation. Near 9 o'clock, a point of light appeared on the radar screen of the USS Zeppelin, and Bomé immediately ordered a destroyer to inspect it. Although Berme was more than 70 percent sure that it was the Italian oil carrier he was looking for, he still ordered the destroyer to be ready for battle: if the situation changed, it would immediately cover it with artillery fire and torpedoes.

The bright lights suddenly brightened up in the dark night, and their flickering patterns were like stars suddenly appearing on the surface of the sea. The German destroyers began to make code words of joints, confirming their identities to targets that could not be seen in the darkness. Perhaps caught off guard by the sudden flash, there has been no response from the distant sea. It was not until more than ten minutes after the German destroyer was ready to fire a warning signal that the corresponding light signal was finally transmitted from the target.

"Confirm the code, lift the battle alert." The captain of the German destroyer breathed a sigh of relief, and his face showed a sincere sense of joy. Now that his ship has used more than half of its fuel, the arrival of the supply ship will undoubtedly make the warship alive and ready to sail in the vast expanse of the blue. And in addition to rejoicing, he did not forget to report this situation to the large forces in the rear. After all, he was not the only ship that needed to be refueled, and he had to think about a way out for all the members of the fleet.

The machinery hummed, the waves crashed, and as the distance approached, the size of the target ship appeared in front of the German officers and soldiers. This is a ship with a registered displacement of about 8,000 tons, which can carry up to tens of thousands of tons of cargo. Although it is only a small player in the tanker family, it is more than enough to supply the current German fleet: only 13 escort ships are really needed, and the oil depots of 5 aircraft carriers are still in full condition. After a brief exchange of greetings, a thick oil hose was immediately connected between the Italian tanker and the German destroyer; With the operation of the oil pump, tons of thick crude oil gushed out of the mouth of the pipe and poured straight into the oil tanks of the German destroyer.

According to Fang Yan's design, the maximum fuel load of the Z-type armored overdrive is 780 tons. With the power of the pump on an Italian tanker, it only took about two hours to refill the German destroyer with its tanks half empty to saturation. So by midnight, the first well-fed destroyer turned away and replaced it with another destroyer to continue receiving supplies. At this time, the Italians found that they had been surrounded by a fleet of warships; In addition to the lean and fierce destroyers, there seem to be majestic ships like castles and mountains hidden in the darkness!

"Captain, did you say that the German Bismarck would be among them? I heard that she is 5,000 tons larger than the Veneto-class battleship we built last year, and is the largest and most powerful terrifying existence in the world! A young boy sailor with a childish face spoke to the captain beside him, his expression full of curiosity and anticipation. Dr. Goebbels' successful publicity made this warship, named after the founding prime minister of the German Empire, famous all over the world when it was built, and even the Italians, who were in the same vein as the German warship design technology, still had a strong desire to see it.

Hearing the words of the young sailor, the Italian captain couldn't help but be a little moved. At this moment, the main German fleet is surrounded by itself, and it is indeed a great opportunity to observe the opposing warships. The Italian captain was also curious about the young navy, which had only been reborn in recent years: what would the German fleet look like today, as a descendant of the world's second-largest high seas fleet?

"Well, then, let's turn on the navigation lights and have a look." The Italian captain rolled his eyes and said expectantly. (To be continued.) )