"Ludwig, do you think Japan will lose the battle for the Hawaiian Islands?"

On the afternoon of January 28, in the garden of the Berlin Chancellery, which was covered with snow, two of Germany's most powerful men, Chancellor Hitler and Chief of the General Staff Hersmann, were walking side by side and exchanging views on the course of the world war. Pen | fun | pavilion www. ｂｉｑｕｇｅ。 ｉｎｆｏ

"No, I'm not sure." "But I think most of them are going to lose, it's just a matter of how much to lose and how many Americans to kill." But it's certainly a good thing for us. ”

"Oh?" Hitler was stunned, "I thought you were a pro-Japanese faction." ”

"No," Hirschmann shook his head, "I am not pro-Japanese or anti-Japanese, and all my positions are based on the interests of the German Empire." In the past, I was willing to woo and help Japan because Germany needed Japan to contain the United States. ”

"Not anymore?"

"Aren't the Japanese doing it now?" Hersman smiled, "They actually did us a great favor by using bacteriological weapons against the United States." ”

"Busy?"

"Yes," Hersman smiled and nodded, "so that we can get a route to attack America...... This is actually good for Japan as well. ”

"Route? From where? Hitler asked.

Hersman replied: "Attack the United States from the Caribbean!" So we should take advantage of the U.S. recovery of the Hawaiian Islands to change the political landscape of the South American continent and create a strong Argentina that can provide us with logistical support, and control Brazil and Uruguay. ”

The biggest difficulty for Germany in fighting in South America and the Caribbean was not the combat effectiveness of the US military, but the logistical pressure.

If Germany wanted to attack the Caribbean islands from Guyana and thus gain a route to invade the United States, it would have to deploy heavy troops in Guyana. For example, 100-2 million ground troops, 5000-10000 aircraft, 5000 tanks or something.

And the bases needed by so many troops and the consumption in South America are astronomical, and Guyana, with a population of only a few hundred thousand to a million, cannot even solve the problem of feeding a large army, let alone anything else.

If more than 2 million combat troops and at least hundreds of thousands of logistics personnel had to transport bread from Europe mainland every day. Then the Guyana-Europe logistics line would have dragged the German troops attacking the Americas to death - not that Germany could not muster so many ships, but that the Guyana-Europe route was too close to the Caribbean Sea and was completely under the serious threat of the American fleet and submarines. Even the P51B/C taking off from Trinidad and Tobago could hang bombs and bomb the fleet approaching Guyana!

Moreover, since the end of 1943, the Americans have put the B-29 into the Atlantic theater as a reconnaissance aircraft, and because the B-29 has a large range and high speed, it can cover a very vast sea area, and it is difficult to shoot down. Therefore, the B-29 could be spotted at a distance of 2,000-3,000 kilometers from Guyana by German transport groups, which was very favorable for the creation of American submarines, sabotage fleets and shore-based aviation forces.

So in the past few months, the Europe-Guyana route has become a route that has broken the heart of the commander-in-chief of the European Combined Transport Command, Senior General Dönitz, but no matter how hard Dönitz tries, the loss rate of the ships cannot be reduced.

In the end, Field Marshal Kesselring, commander-in-chief of the Atlantic Front, had to order the European coalition forces in Guyana to shrink, abandon a large number of outlying strongholds, and retreat to three strongholds: Georgetown, Balamalipo and Cayenne. At the same time, the number of army and aviation forces in Guyana was reduced in order to reduce the pressure on sea transport.

Of course, the shrinkage of the European coalition does not mean that the Americans can easily seize Guyana -- because the terrain and development of Guyana make it impossible for the American forces to capture Georgetown, Baramalipo and Cayenne by land, and can only fight landing battles. In fact, this is a landing battle for islands on the mainland, and it cannot be fought at all without overwhelming naval and air superiority.

However, the US Atlantic Fleet did not overwhelm the strength of the European Combined Fleet at all, so the US military could only destroy the airfields in Georgetown, Baramalipo and Cayenne through continuous air strikes to ensure the safety of the Caribbean Sea and the Panama Canal.

"As long as we can get the support of Argentina," Hersmann continued to Hitler, "we can take advantage of the westward movement of the main forces of the American Atlantic Fleet to force Brazil and Uruguay into submission." In this way, Argentina, Uruguay, Brazil and Guyana on the eastern coast of South America are on our side. We can find airfields near the coastlines of Argentina, Uruguay, and Brazil to deploy shore-based aviation to cover the convoy lines. ”

"Cover the convoy?" Hitler asked, "No more direct routes from Europe to Guyana?" ”

"Take the Mediterranean-Suez-South Africa-Argentina-Uruguay-Brazil-Guyana route."

"Going around in such a big circle?" Hitler thought for a moment, "Is there enough fuel?" ”

"Enough," said Hersman, "from the second half of 1942 we began to mass-produce standardized coal-fired steam carriers, the Solidarity." ”

The idea of the Unity Ship came from the Liberty Wheel of the United States, and the power used is also a coal-fired steam engine, with a dead weight of 8,000 tons, a speed of up to 13.5 knots, a cruising range of 13,500 nautical miles, a load of up to 11,500 tons, and a cargo of about 6,500 tons. In addition to bulk carriers, Tuanjie also has tanker models, which can carry about 6,000 tons of fuel at a time.

However, this kind of slow-moving steam freighter is not suitable for the dangerous direct Guyana-Europe route, let alone the US fleet, and even if it encounters the American wolf pack (because the B-29 can detect European transport groups long in advance, the US submarine can easily ambush the wolf pack) will suffer heavy losses.

So Kesselring hopes that these Solidarity ships will have a "safe route", even if it is a long detour.

The Mediterranean-Suez-South Africa-Argentina-Uruguay-Brazil-Guyana route, although 13,000 nautical miles long, is 10,000 nautical miles longer than going directly from Europe to Guyana, but it is much safer.

The section without the cover of shore-based aviation, that is, the section from South Africa across the Atlantic Ocean to Argentina, is nearly 5,000 nautical miles away from the Caribbean Sea, which is firmly controlled by the United States, and is long beyond the range that the B-29 can cover. Without reconnaissance by the B-29, it would have been difficult for American submarines to strike a perfect wolf pack offensive.

Moreover, it is impossible for the US Grand Fleet to go 5,000 nautical miles to break diplomatic relations with Brazil, Uruguay, and Argentina all falling to Germany.

"In addition, if Argentina, Brazil, Uruguay and other countries fall to us," Hersman said, "more than 3 million tons of oil a year in Argentina, grain from Brazil, Argentina and Uruguay, as well as labor and coal from Brazil (both Brazil and Argentina have some coal mines, which are not enough to support industrialization, but there is no problem to meet the consumption of hundreds of solidarity wheels) can be used by us." In this way, South America will be able to provide most of the logistical supplies that we have consumed on the Guyana-Caribbean battlefield, and there will be much less to be transported from mainland Europe and the Middle East. ”

Hitler nodded, he somewhat understood Hersmann's big plan. The misdeeds of the Japanese, which seemed to be crooked, gave Germany an opportunity to establish hegemony in South America.

The United States, having lost South America, is no longer a world power that can compete with Europe, but at best a regional power that has been contained.

"So the Japanese are still using bacteriological weapons in the right place?" Hitler asked.

"Yes, they used it right!" Hersman smiled, "If they didn't use it, the Americans wouldn't have concentrated the main naval forces to fight the Hawaiian Islands at all...... If the main forces of the US Navy do not attack, we will not be able to force Brazil and Uruguay to surrender to us by force, and we will not be able to build a united front against the United States in South America.

And without the support of the South American countries, we in Europe simply do not have the strength to maintain a military force in Guyana that can threaten the US homeland. ”

"But if Japan is defeated in the Hawaiian Islands, it is still possible that the United States will concentrate all its efforts on a decisive battle with us in the Caribbean, right?" Hitler seems to have little confidence in defeating the United States.

"Yes," Hirschman said, "but we have a good degree of certainty that we can approach the continental United States along the islands of the Caribbean." It may cost a lot of casualties, but in order for the German Empire to dominate the world in the future, it is well worth the effort now. ”

"But it's approaching...... Not the same as landing! Hitler reminded, "Ludwig, you don't really think we can land in the United States, do you?" ”

"No, I don't think so." Hersman shook his head, "But we can force the United States into its knees through strategic bombing...... Islands in the Caribbean Sea, which can become starting points for strategic bombing. ”

"Strategic bombing forces the United States to its knees?" Hitler shook his head again and again, "My Reich Marshal, the Americans' P47 will wipe out all your Me264s!" ”

"There will be a way," Hirschman replied, "and we've got the Me262 jet fighter and the Ar234 jet bomber, and the Rolls-Royce Silver Reaper missile." Junkers, Heinkel and Adora are all developing new long-range jet bombers, while Henschel and Volkswagen are ramping up the development of heavy airborne missiles based on Silver Reaper technology...... I believe that by 1945, we will have many means to break through the US air defense system. ”

"But how many tons of bombs can be dropped?" Hitler was still very skeptical. "Jets are so fuel-guzzling, how much can we equip them?"

"It's not a question of how many tons of bombs to drop," Hersman paused, looking at the distant sky with his hands behind his back, "the question is what kind of bombs to drop." ”