Under the bright afternoon sun, the military airport in Eugenia, located on the outskirts of Santander in northern Spain, was very lively, and the long runway was lined up with fifty or sixty warhawks, including the IR-44T, which is known as the strongest piston carrier-based fighter, and the IK-43T, which seemed to be mediocre but performed extremely eye-catching in the Philippine campaign and the Battle of the Strait of Otranto. These two combat aircraft are not only in service with the Navy of the new United Kingdom, but also in the United States, Austria-Hungary, Sweden, Latvia and other countries. As early as several years ago, the Spanish Navy tried to purchase IR-44T and IK-43T to replace the locally produced L-33 carrier-based fighter and M-5 carrier-based bomber, but it fell short due to insufficient military spending. The aircraft were not the new equipment that the Spanish Navy had been waiting for, and although the logos on their fuselages and wings were covered up with white paint, the blue-gray overall tactical livery and the tactical numbers scribbled in the Ogan letters clearly revealed their identity.

When the last refueled IK-43T turned onto the runway, the winged eagles moved one by one, and the airfield was soon filled with the roar of engines. Under the guidance of the signalman, they taxied and took off in groups of twos, closely spaced from each other, and the slightest carelessness could cause an accident, but this worrying situation did not occur, and all the fighters smoothly and smoothly glided off the runway and into the air, and then flew south in squadron formation.

Within half an hour, the Eugenia military airfield was calm again, and apart from a few cigarette butts, there was hardly any trace of the Irish's visit.

Meanwhile, at the Katanach Naval Base, more than 7oo kilometres away, Vice Admiral William Vorster, Chief of Operations of the New United Kingdom Naval Staff and Commander of the Mediterranean Theater of Operations, is closely monitoring the movements of these fighters at his temporary command. Prior to the outbreak of the war, the Navy of the New United Kingdom had deployed additional carrier-based aircraft to the Mediterranean Sea in the same manner via Germany and Austria-Hungary, as permitted by the alliance agreement. As a member of the Allied bloc, Spain did not have any legal obstacles to opening military airfields to the new United Kingdom for the mobilization of aviation units in peacetime, but in times of war, Spain, as a signatory to the Hague International Convention, should abide by its neutrality and refrain from providing military support to the belligerents until it entered the war. If there is an accident that causes the matter to attract the attention of all parties, not only will the Italians ask the Spanish government for their guilt, but the opposition parties in Spain may also take advantage of the situation, thus affecting the future deployment and actions of the new United Kingdom in Spain.

"The squadrons are in normal condition, the routes are normal, everything is normal on the Spanish side." The staff officer reported to Lieutenant General Vorster in a calm tone.

William Vorster nodded, looking out over the harbor with his hands behind his back. Since the arrival of the new United Kingdom naval vessels in this port, the Spanish side has strengthened the port as promised, with anti-submarine fences in the shipping lanes entering and leaving the port, and gunboats and torpedo boats patrolling the port with a much higher frequency. In terms of the traditional mode of warfare, such military readiness is sufficient to deal with the potential threat of the Italian navy, but once the Italians break the routine and launch a powerful air attack on the naval base at Katanach with air and naval aviation, the Spanish army's fence will be useless - they have neither established shore-based radar stations, nor have they deployed enough combat aircraft, let alone prepared for war, and their combat training and ammunition reserves are far from meeting the standards of war.

"Sure enough...... It's all on your own! Lieutenant General Vorster muttered to himself. His temporary headquarters is located on the standby tower of the airport in Area C of the Katanach naval base, which has a wide view and complete facilities, which is a good choice, but unfortunately due to the geographical location and space conditions, the scale of this military airport is very small, and its role is mainly for carrier-based aircraft transfer, maintenance and emergency purposes, and cannot accommodate enough fighters to station.

"Sir, General Bynier has asked for instructions that the wind is weak at present, the line of sight is good, the take-off and landing of carrier-based aircraft is less affected, and all preparations are ready, should the early warning plan be activated?" Staff officer reports.

Lieutenant General Vorster looked at his watch and pondered for a moment: "Execute it immediately!" ”

As soon as the order was given, the roar of aircraft engines quickly sounded on the three aircraft carriers anchored in the harbor. After a while, 3 IA-4O, 7 IR-44T, and 2 IR-39T took off one after another, only to see them skimming the harbor and flying separately in the southeast, due east, and northeast directions.

Shortly after the take-off of these carrier-based planes, which were used for large-scale vigilance patrols, the heavy cruiser "Farr", the light cruiser "Melton", the destroyer "Galway", and the submarine hunter "Yate" pulled anchor one after another and set sail. These four ships did not suffer any damage or minor losses in previous combat operations, and it took only eight hours after docking at the port to complete the replenishment of fuel, ammunition and other materials as a priority. In the early warning scheme agreed upon by Vorster and Binier, they are mainly responsible for night guard patrols. In addition, the "Farr" and "Melton" will carry out a new important combat mission the next day......

Vorster breathed a sigh of relief as he watched the four warships sail out of view one by one, but immediately afterward, the staff officer hurriedly reported: "Sir, I have a secret message of intelligence from the Naval Staff. ”

As soon as he heard the "intelligence secret message", Vorster's expression also became serious. He opened the telegram folder, carefully examined the contents of the code translated by the communication cipher machine, and could not help frowning, so he ordered the deputy of staff to use the telephone line between the temporary headquarters and the fleet flagship "Fenia" to find Admiral Bunier.

"I have maybe not so good news for you." "According to the information we have so far, the Italian Air Force not only used jet fighters in the battle against the Austro-Hungarian Air Force, but also urgently deployed their most elite jet fighter unit, the 21st Wing, to Sicily. ”

"So tomorrow it is possible to meet Italian jets on the battlefield?" The voice on the other side of the phone was not only not a little timid, but a little excited. After the end of World War II, Germany, Ireland, the United States, and Soviet Russia entered the jet age, and Italy and Japan were a little slower in this field, until 1947, when they jointly developed their jet aircraft through technical cooperation, which the Japanese called the Type 8 6 - Italy named it the G.58 fighter. Like the first-generation jet fighters of Germany and the United States, the Type 8 6 Battle/G.58 adopts a turbojet motor and swept wing structure, with a maximum level flight time of 955 kilometers, and can break through the sound barrier in the dive state. In terms of weaponry, the Italians and the Japanese military chose differently, the G.58 used a 12.7 mm aviation machine gun and a 127 mm air-to-air rocket, and the effective combat radius of the auxiliary fuel tank was 74o kilometers, while the Japanese army's Type 8 6 combat was equipped with a 2O mm aircraft gun and 81 mm air-to-air rockets, and the effective combat radius of the auxiliary fuel tank reached 8oo kilometers......

"Yes, General!" "It's a new challenge for our pilots, and it's an opportunity to earn the respect of the world." Although our piston fighters lag behind the jets in absolute terms, they still have a good chance of winning victories because of their good maneuverability and stable performance, and as long as we are fully prepared and use our various weapons well, we still have a good chance of winning. ”

"You're absolutely right." Captain Bunier on the other end of the line replied calmly, "The lads have competed with our own jets before, so we don't blindly believe in the invincible superiority of jets over piston machines like the outside world. As a matter of fact, since the Italian Air Force has sent their precious jet force to Sicily, the Italian Navy may well have the courage to send their battlefleet, after all, these big guys will not take advantage of going deep into the Adriatic Sea, which is full of mine-filled submarines. ”

"Quite right!" Vorster raised his voice impressively, "Maybe it was the Italian Navy that formulated the battle plan first, and the Italian Air Force transferred the jet force to support the Navy, if this is the case, a small setback can make the Italian Air Force retreat." ”

Bunier on the other side changed his words: "Since tomorrow's combat operation may turn into a thrilling and vicious battle, we must seize the time to replenish supplies today, and let the pilots have a good night's rest...... Oh, by the way, sir, our replenishment is on its way, isn't it? ”

Vorster replied, "Arrive in about two hours." According to the plan, they were supposed to undergo routine overhaul and maintenance on 6 and then transfer to the ship tomorrow, but now they have to work overnight. ”

Byneil responded as a matter of course: "We are unconditionally at your disposal. ”

In previous combat operations, the three participating aircraft carriers of the new United Kingdom lost a total of 59 carrier-based aircraft and 77 pilots, another 6 carrier-based aircraft were seriously injured and scrapped, and 2o pilots were injured, that is, after two days of fighting, the fleet lost about a quarter of its air power, while the carrier-based aircraft in reserve at the Katanach naval base were only 6 IR-39T, 6 IR-44T and 6 IK-43T, which is still far from replenishing the combat strength of the fleet. Fortunately, the German-led camp of the Western Allies often held joint exercises in order to maintain military vitality, and many of the pilots had made long-distance transfer flights, and they not only had the skills and skills in this area, but were also familiar with the geographical and climatic conditions of Europe, which was an important reason why the new United Kingdom naval aviation was able to carry out a wide range of movements.

In addition to the carrier-based aircraft group that arrived through Santander, the new United Kingdom Navy will also send a fourth aircraft carrier in active service. Although this aircraft carrier, which is even older than the "St. Padraic," is not suitable for being integrated into the first-line fleet and carrying out high-intensity combat missions, it is more than enough to undertake such low-intensity tasks as supporting logistics and transporting equipment.

(End of chapter)

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