"Since the British have flagged their merchant ships with the American flag in an attempt to loosen the ropes of breaking diplomatic relations at sea, we will also take advantage of the situation to reduce the intensity of breaking diplomatic relations in the Atlantic and devote all our forces to the upcoming Weser exercise. www.biquge.infoHitler's eyes re-lit up with a sharp brilliance, and he proposed. He raised his thin right hand and swiped it from top to bottom on the map in front of him: "After the submarine force is transferred to the North Sea and Norwegian waters, the density of naval patrols in this area can be greatly increased. In everyday weather with little visibility from the sea, they were the first line of deflection against a British Home Fleet attack. ”

Hearing these words, Raeder, who was still in a heavy mood just now, couldn't help but have a sudden change in his face. Hitler's proposal seemed to be a humiliating compromise with Britain's hooliganism, but in fact it was a different way to achieve the ultimate goal. As long as Germany can ensure the smooth occupation of Norway, is it afraid that it will not be able to strangle British maritime shipping in the future?

At present, the reason why British merchant ships can barely survive by changing the American flag is that the power of German surface ships in the North Atlantic is not bullied. Although the two German pocket war cruisers had been on the hunt since the beginning of the war, they could not maintain long-term influence in a particular sea area under the siege of the British search fleet, and second, they were still too thin compared to the vast ocean. Under these circumstances, not only did the bold American ships dare to sail into the war zone, but the British merchant ships that changed banners also had the confidence that they would not be attacked.

However, once the German surface fleet used Norway as an advance base and had easy access to the North Atlantic, the situation in the entire sea area would be completely rewritten. With the support of strong force, Germany was able to truly implement its declaration on the sea area of war: that is, Germany had the right to sink any ship that entered 1,000 nautical miles west of the British island and mainland France. Doesn't it sound arrogant and arrogant, completely contrary to the purpose of freedom of navigation? But let's not forget that this is still an age when truth exists only within the range of a cannon. Whoever has a machete in his hand grows sharp and sharp, and who is the master of order who speaks to Tianxian and follows the law!

Raeder bowed slightly, and said convincingly, "Honorable Führer, your wisdom will always be a bright light on our path. I will then instruct General Dönitz to reduce the number of submarines operating in the Atlantic and to increase the intensity of patrols in the North Sea and the western part of the Norwegian Sea. As this is an offshore operation, the attendance rate of the front-line submarines can be increased from 25% to more than 40% of the ocean-going crossings, which will also provide a more reliable security guarantee for the success of the operation during the Weser exercise that we launch on January 19 next year. ”

"Is the Navy's plan ready?" Hearing Raeder mention the date of the operation, Hitler raised his eyebrows in some surprise. Raeder smiled at the corner of his mouth and said, "All the battle plans have been completed this morning, and then we will wait for the specific preparations of the various combat units and the corresponding logistics departments." The Norwegian domestic intelligence provided by Ghisling really helped us a lot. With his help, we were able to get a thorough understanding of all important hubs in Norway, such as roads, bridges, warehouses, barracks, and communication stations, which directly enabled us to eliminate the distractions of many misinformation and complete the plan in the shortest possible time. ”

"Can you elaborate on that to me?" Hitler's eyes were full of anticipation. Raeder nodded, then walked over to the map in front of Hitler and told him the whole plan.

"The Weser exercise was conducted in two phases. First of all, the Marine Corps, under the cover of the Navy and Aviation, raided various key cities in Norway and Denmark, occupied the surrounding port airfields; After that, the large army ascended to these bridgeheads one by one, and finally realized the cleaning of the depth. Since the elites of these two countries are relatively scattered and cannot be destroyed in a centralized manner, our army's attack targets will be mainly placed in eight locations. ”

Raeder's eyes were shining, and his calm words were filled with confidence: "The first formation, commanded by Brigadier General Bonth, is responsible for capturing the port of Narvik in northern Norway. The formation has 10 Z-type super destroyers, which carry a total of 139 soldiers of the 2000th Mountain Infantry Regiment. Although the port was the farthest from the Germans, Sundlo, the commander of the garrison of Narvik, had been bribed by Guisling, and there was a more than 90% chance that he would not resist. Therefore, as long as our ships can get there without a hitch and get rid of 2 seriously outdated coastal defense ships, this transit hub for Swedish iron ore will inevitably fall into German hands. ”

"The garrison officers of Trondheim, a port in central Norway, are all Ghisling's henchmen. Although there is as much as one garrison division stationed in this area, the second formation of our army only needs to use the Lützov (Germany) pocket battle patrol formation, plus 4 Z-type superdrive and 700 soldiers, it is enough to ensure the occupation of the city. ”

Raeder pointed to the important coastal towns of Norway on the map one after another, and his expression showed a bit of calmness in his control: "The third formation has 2 heavy cruisers and 6 small destroyers, carrying 1,900 army soldiers, and is responsible for capturing Bergen, Norway's second largest port. The fourth formation, with 1 heavy cruiser, 4 small destroyers, and 1,100 soldiers, was used to occupy Kristiansand. The fifth formation, consisting of 1 light patrol and 4 minesweepers, and 800 soldiers, was responsible for the capture of Stavanger. These three formations were under the cover of land-based aviation throughout the whole process, and General Kesselring's 1,300 planes were enough to support them with solid air supremacy. ”

After a slight pause, Raeder continued: "According to the original plan, Oslo, the capital of Norway, would be captured by a similar method, but after careful deduction by General Brom, we found that it was too risky to attack Oslo from the sea, and we could only use airborne troops as the main force to capture the city. To this end, the 1st Paratrooper Regiment will take on this mission, while raiding the city, while disintegrating the enemy's coastal defense forces from the rear. After that, the sixth formation, consisting of 1 heavy cruiser, 2 small destroyers, and 6 minesweepers, entered the harbor and transported the infantry ashore. ”

"What about Denmark, what is the specific plan to attack this country?" Hitler asked again.

"Jutland was a flat and ideal battlefield for the German Army; And the Danish king and government have long been in a state of cowardice, and they will never dare to fight with us like the Finns. Therefore, our army planned to use the former dreadnought Silesia to press the formation, let 2 battalions of land land in Copenhagen, the capital of Denmark, and directly threaten the king and government. At the same time, 2 infantry divisions and 1 motorized rifle brigade of the Jutland front will also go on the offensive to oppress the Danes. Within 24 hours, Denmark will surely announce its surrender. Raeder said.

"The first phase of the offensive is expected to last 4~6 days. During this period, the main fleet, consisting of 2 battleships, 4 aircraft carriers, and 12 Z-type destroyers, will cruise in the central Norwegian Sea to provide full support to the landing formations. Once the army and equipment supplies are ashore, all the new warships will go to the Narvik Sea to assemble and then break through to the North Atlantic. Speaking of this, Raeder's heart couldn't help but surge. According to information from the Soviet Union in Murmansk, the light aircraft carrier Blucher and two other heavy cruisers will soon be repaired, and by the 20th of next month, they will also be able to depart from the North Pole and go south to join the battle squad of Atlantic hunters. At that time, his sharp divine weapon will finally be unsheathed again, and this time, the whole of Britain will tremble before its cold front!

Hitler's face flushed slightly, and he was also infected by Raeder's words. Hitler had already gained strong confidence in the combat strength of the young fleet of the German Navy today through the naval battles of more than three months ago, and when they appeared in the Atlantic, it was a fatal blow to Britain's sea power on which it relied to maintain its hegemony. Hitler suddenly found that he was so close to winning the war: the alliance of Britain and France, two old colonial empires, could be destroyed by defeat at sea!

"Now the Navy is already preparing for this operation. Up to now, a total of 5 merchant ships loaded with heavy oil, fresh water and other supplies have sailed out of the North Sea and entered the depths of the North Atlantic Ocean to stand by; In a month's time, there will be 7 more camouflaged supply ships there. These ships will become a firm support for the long-term cruising of our fleet in the North Atlantic, and will greatly increase the self-sustaining time of the relatively short range of the Z-type superdrive and the K-class heavy cruise. Seeing Hitler's unconcealable look of yearning, Raeder continued to strike while the iron was hot.

In the era of cold weapons, warfare focused on the first step of food and grass, and today, in the oil revolution, the German Navy also needs to establish a fuel supply network covering the entire North Atlantic before the fleet is dispatched. Otherwise, the two light warships with a range of 6,500 nautical miles would have been able to spend only about a week in the hunting area, and the large capital ships would not have been able to fight for more than a month - which obviously would not have allowed Britain to taste the pain of long-term suffocation. And once there is sufficient and timely supply, the German warships entering this sea area will really be like a fish into the sea, turning the British shipping line upside down in this deep blue.

Hitler nodded approvingly and said, "The efforts of the Navy should be celebrated." However, Your Excellency Marshal, I hope that this Weser exercise can be launched as soon as possible, preferably by 3~5 days on the basis of the current one. Now we are racing against the British for time, and we must not let them enter Norway first. Raeder hesitated slightly, but finally nodded in agreement. Hitler's starting point was not wrong, so although the current planning schedule is already full, it is still necessary to try to further accelerate the pace of campaign preparations. (To be continued.) )