"Commodore General, if it's just a submarine attack, how many British merchant ships can be sunk?" The corners of Schwinigger's mouth hooked a cold arc, and Sen Ran said, "What we have to do is to completely suffocate Britain's breath at sea, so that the British will tremble when they hear the name of Germany!" Especially this flotilla from Canada, it is necessary for us to sink them all in the Atlantic. In this way, Britain would not receive any blood transfusion from abroad, and would eventually have to bow its disgusting haughty head and sue for peace with the great Germany. ”

Dönitz was stunned when he heard this, he never thought that Schwinnigg would have such a big appetite, and he actually wanted to wipe out the other party's ships! According to their own deductions, even if the submarine uses swarm tactics, it can defeat 2~3 times its own number of merchant ships at most in a night attack. Schwinniger paused, then elaborated: "The Admiral Schell is currently in the North Atlantic. The Deutsche cruised near the Azores and could also go north to take part in the battle. With the power of the Pocket Cruiser, it was enough to sweep this fleet without the escort of a capital ship in a daytime with good visibility. So you can succeed in this fight! ”

"In this battle, submarines and surface warships need to work closely together and make corresponding changes according to different situations. If the submarine spotted the British convoy before the battleship, it used cluster tactics to deliver a fierce strike, depleting the enemy's fleet. If the ship finds the target first, it is best to wait until a sufficient number of submarines are in support before attacking. Otherwise, it will be very difficult to destroy them all once the fleet is disbanded prematurely under the pressure of the pocket patrol. Schwinnigg made a few key points.

At this time, Schwinnigg also had a slight regret in his heart: since the ocean-going fleet had always maintained radio silence, he did not know whether Bermay chose to enter the Atlantic from the north of the Faroe Islands or through the Danish Channel, so he was not sure whether they could intercept the fleet. Otherwise, with the addition of 13 high-speed gunboats. None of the merchant ships of the two British fleets mentioned in the intelligence want to leave the Atlantic alive!

In the northern part of the Norwegian Sea, where the German fleet led by the Zeppelin was tossed up and down in the roaring sea. Sail slowly towards the Danish Strait to the west.

"Heydrich's efficiency is really beyond the reach of ordinary people." Seeing this news from Wilhelmshaven received from the telegraph room, Fang Yan, who was quick-witted, instantly guessed who had provided this information to the Navy Headquarters. Except for Heydrich, who was able to draw the whole terrain of Scapa Bay with his memory, and in a short period of eight years, he was promoted from a poor man to a special lieutenant colonel, and commanded all German spies in Britain, I am afraid that no one else has been able to obtain this detailed information in such a short time.

For his behavior of sending this former military friend to the UK to lurk, Fang Yan only felt extremely lucky. From the point of view of the nation, or the rise or fall of the state, Heydrich found a stage where he could perfectly display his personal abilities.

Colonel Hoffmann, the captain of the Zeppelin, frowned. "With our current position, unless we increase our speed to more than 20 knots, we will not be able to participate in the suppression of these two convoys. After all, the latitude of the Danish Strait is simply too high. And this kind of ubiquitous bad wind and wave weather will also greatly slow down our actual speed. He couldn't help but look at the hustle and bustle outside the window with mixed meanings.

"In that case, Colonel, let's create a safe north for our friendly forces." Fang Yan smiled. The handsome face under the bright lights is almost no different from the weak-crowned youth ten years ago. Seeing the slightly fatter Hoffman staring. Fang Yan's tone was relaxed and open-minded: "A few days ago, Colonel Lindemann used his own exit from the battle to achieve our complete victory; Now it's our turn to make a sacrifice to protect our allies from a possible attack from the north by the British Battlecruisers. ”

Bommy's eyes flashed with surprise, he had expected the young man to be dazzled by the sudden success of Scarpa's great victory. But he didn't expect him to be so calm, and he was not angry at all because of the loss of results. Bo Mei glanced at Fang Yan approvingly, and then said to everyone: "The fleet maintains the original speed, and the victory of the friendly forces is the victory of all our naval officers and men. ”

On 9 September, the German fleet finally sailed into the Danish Strait. It was early autumn. The cold waters adjacent to Greenland are already freezing to the bone; The sky was covered with thick clouds and a thick fog, and the carrier-based aircraft could only honestly stay on the mothership that floated and sank with the waves. Thinking of the famous naval battle that broke out here in another plane, Fang Yan couldn't help but feel a lot of emotion in his heart: it was from here that the great ups and downs of the German Navy in the Rhine exercises began. But this time, it wasn't just the "cricket" that entered the Atlantic. As long as there were enough sunny days, Britain's maritime lifeline would be devastating by German aircraft carriers!

Since Britain was unable to learn the exact location and movements of the German fleet in the days following September 3, the battle of the Danish Strait, which was like a historical plane, did not occur in Fang Yan. Under the cover of bad weather, the German fleet successfully passed through the waterway, which was more than 300 kilometers wide. In the bridge of the Zeppelin, Fang Yan looked calm and confident, the fleet had already begun to move south, and the real hunt could begin in another week.

Somewhere in the North Atlantic, more than 2,000 nautical miles from the German fleet, there was also a fleet trudging eastward across the vast expanse of the sea. Unlike the former, only three of the 40 ships were combat vessels, and the rest were all merchant ships with stubby and wide bridges at the rear of the deck. And on their mast flagpoles, without exception, a wide rice-shaped flag flutters. Just 20 years ago, this flag was an absolute symbol of the hegemon of the ocean; Even the dream empire that has risen strongly in the Americas, when facing the British Navy, which has not yet wielded a sword, has to be as restrained and humble as an apprentice meeting a spiritual master!

On one of the exceptionally large merchant ships, several seafarers were lying on the railing of the bridge to enjoy the glorious sunset in the west. Although they have all sailed in the sea for an unknown number of days, and have long lost the novelty and interest of ordinary people in the endless sea and sky, today's sunset is particularly pleasing to the eye, so that these British sailors who have been with the sea all year round can't help but stop to admire it. I saw that the western sea and sky were crimson, gold and purple, reflecting the surging and floating clouds with dazzling brilliance, blooming and undulating like a sea of flowers. Overhead and in the eastern dome, however, the sky was a deep blue, with two contrasting hues complementing each other, and the end was extraordinary.

"Being able to see this beautiful sky today can be regarded as the biggest gain of our trip." The bearded middle-aged captain smiled, and his voice couldn't help but feel a little more relaxed and comfortable. After all, being able to find something interesting on a long and boring voyage across the ocean is in itself a pleasure that sailors hardly get.

A stone's throw away, the blonde-haired young sailor was not as happy as the middle-aged first mate. His light blue eyes stared at the spectacular sunset over the stern of the boat, but he couldn't help but think of his newlywed girl in a small Welsh town, and at the same time a little resentful in his longing. A few days ago, it was precisely because the employer asked the "White Sands" freighter to join the HX-07 convoy that he had to wait in the Canadian port of Quebec, resulting in a significant delay in the return date. If it weren't for that, the powerful White Sands had already passed through the middle of the Atlantic, where would it still be like this, crawling slowly with the snails in the fleet at a turtle speed of 8 knots?

"The ship is full of iron ore and timber, and it is no wonder that Mr. Smeagol is not worried about their delayed arrival in Britain......," the young sailor muttered, his expression full of indignation. Feeling the reluctance and complaint in the young sailor's words, the middle-aged captain turned his head and glared at him rather sternly, and said, "Jack, even if Mr. Smeagol does not have this request, I will send a telegram to London, asking him to allow the White Sands to join the convoy." Now that Great Britain is at war with Germany, we must be well prepared. Otherwise, not only could the ships be sunk by German submarines, but you would not want to return to England alive! ”

Seeing Jack's childish face, the middle-aged captain's tone became softened, but his expression was still solemn and dignified, and he said slowly: "You are a little guy who was born after the end of the world war, and you have no way of knowing the horror of those German submarines. I tell you, any merchant ship that sails alone will never escape the hands of a submarine unless she can reach a speed of 20 knots. When we did not have an escort system, German submarines could sink more than 800,000 tons of British merchant ships in a month, and on average, one out of every three ships departing would sleep forever in the deep sea! If it weren't for the formation of the convoy, we would probably not have survived Christmas 1917. This is a valuable experience that countless sailors have exchanged their lives for. ”

"Mr. Jack, Mr. Pippin is right, safety is the most important thing in war." Another slightly strange tone sounded next to the young sailor. It originated from a sturdy black man with a carbon-like complexion, whose swarthy face was accentuated by a white boat-shaped cap. If it weren't for the fact that he still had two whites of his eyes, teeth and red tongue that could be distinguished between his words, his face would not be any different from the bottom of the pot. (To be continued.) )