Of course, this is only part of the explanation, and the other reason is that the Luftwaffe did not want to expose the killer features they had worked so hard to come up with. Actually, these things are nothing to put it bluntly. What the Germans can come up with, Huaxia and the Entente can figure it out, and the two sides are still several years away from a showdown. If it is exposed now, before the final battle, the Entente will be able to come up with the same configuration at the worst!

But it was not a way to keep going like this, the veins of the Reich were bleeding, and German ships were shipwrecked on the high seas. From both an economic and political point of view, it is not possible to deal with it without doing so. But how to deal with it is obviously a problem, if the Allied fleet that can be mobilized at present is a tiger, then this small fleet is a bad wolf no matter how bad it is, and it will have to hang up if it is not good. Moreover, the two sides are fighting on a vast ocean, and the search for the enemy is a more troublesome and difficult problem to solve than fighting, and it seems that once the large fleet is dispersed, it will not be able to form an advantage over the opponent at all. Compared to sinking a few capital ships, sinking a few merchant ships is a trivial matter!

Therefore, after research, the top brass of the Allied navy came to the conclusion that instead of playing hide and seek with the other side all over the ocean, it is better to set a trap for the other side to come to the door on its own initiative. Moreover, it is better to be in the vicinity of the continental shelf, so that the Allies can also rely on ocean-going reconnaissance aircraft to complete reconnaissance missions. Ground-based attack aircraft groups can play a decisive role at the right time.

In order to make this trap more real and tempting, the German Navy also arranged for a fleet of high-speed transport ships to carry a certain amount of supplies across the Atlantic. Of course, the routes of this transport fleet are very sophisticated. Try to avoid sailing in the open sea. It is almost an operation close to the edge of the territorial waters of Britain and France. After considering the location of the Iranian fleet and the timing of the voyage of both sides, the German Navy decided that the final ambush site that the opposing side could choose should be off the coast of the Ibilisi Peninsula. And this area is within the combat radius of German land-based aircraft. Aircraft carriers of the Navy can also be deployed here very quickly. If the other party can't resist the temptation. Then Luknar is confident that he will be able to take his opponent away.

As for the possible deployment of submarines in the Strait of Gibraltar, Count Luknor also took it into account. Allied minesweepers and submarine hunters deployed in Spain and North Africa swept the channel routes almost daily. In addition, anti-mine nets and anti-submarine nets have been deployed in key areas, and some dilapidated civilian ships have also been sunk to the bottom of the sea to block the entry of opposing submarines into the port. In addition, the Count of Luknall is preparing to sail out of the strait at night, so the probability of exposure can be completely minimized.

And in order to completely eat this fleet, the Germans and Austrians paid for it. This huge fleet includes 3 fleet aircraft carriers, two of which are 30,000-ton armored aircraft carriers, the aircraft carrier Moltke of the German Navy and the Austrian aircraft carrier of Austria-Hungary. An 18,000-ton aircraft carrier USS Blucher. The total number of aircraft carriers carried by these three aircraft carriers is as high as 290 aircraft. There were also three aviation cruisers, the Emden and Königsberg for the German Navy, and the Mediterranean for Austria-Hungary. In addition, there were two battleships and 6 cruisers, as well as up to 12 destroyers! Such a large fleet can have up to almost 350 aircraft. Plus land-based aircraft that can be used. The total strength can reach about 500 aircraft! According to the Germans, as long as the target is within the range of the swarm, a single attack can completely destroy the opponent.

Originally, the Germans also planned to pull in the Spanish fleet, but the Spaniards always refused to participate in the upcoming battle on the grounds that the fleet needed to be maintained, and when Spain did not declare war when Germany, Austria, Turkey and Iran went to war, Germany's attitude towards the Spanish government became more and more dissatisfied. However, these things are not for Luknar and the others to consider. Most of the fleets that can be mobilized by the entire Mediterranean Allied Powers have been concentrated, just waiting for the other side to send them to the door!

While the Germans were sharpening their knives, Summer and others were also in a dilemma, and the Germans chose to sail on the shortest possible route. This convoy of 12 ships clearly could not escape the eyes of the British and French maritime patrol aircraft. And through the communication method agreed in advance, Su Mo and the others, who were wandering on the ocean, also had a certain understanding of the other party's tracks. However, understanding it does not mean that it can successfully catch the opponent, after all, the cruising speed of the Sumer fleet is now only about 18 knots. Then consider the time when you can't scout at night. It is indeed not easy for Su Mo to catch their opponents.

Since it is impossible to detect the opponent in the open sea direction. Then the only way is to wait on the other side's path. But unfortunately, the Strait of Gibraltar is undoubtedly a very dangerous place for Su Mo and others, and the slightest negligence may be a catastrophe. Cheese on the face of traps and traps. Su Mo and the others hesitated. The situation was too dangerous, and even some of it was beyond the bottom line that Su Mo and the others could accept.

"I think this operation is a bit dangerous. The Strait of Gibraltar is absolutely not to be visited. But we can try to make a try near the Bay of Biscay. According to the information and speed of the other party's route, it is very likely that the other party will enter the Bay of Biscay at night. Avoid the last stretch of treacherous water. If we were to sail north at full speed at this point, we could try it in the Bay of Biscay. Su Mo said, looking at the chart.

"The window is very short because we have to maneuver outside the radius of movement of the opposing long-range patrol aircraft. Even if we sail at a top speed of 30 knots, by the time we reach the target area, we will only have one and a half hours at most to reconnoiter and attack. And this time is simply not enough for the fleet to complete the attack and recovery work. If we're lucky, we'll be able to sink two ships and throw the planes away, and if we're unlucky, we'll probably have to pick up the pilots and evacuate. After all, landing at night is a very difficult thing, and the slightest carelessness will lead to a strict accident. Cunningham was also caught in a dilemma.

"We can try night warfare, our ships are equipped with new radars, which can detect targets even at night, and there are no large fleets in this area except for the German fleet, we can only attack all the large fleets except us. And before sunset, our Seagull can perform a longer period of tracking with drop fuel tanks. Enough to guide the fleet for night battles. Even if the Germans send their fleet, we have nothing to fear. OUR DESTROYERS ARE ARMED WITH NEW 610MM LARGE-CALIBER OXYGEN TORPEDOES, WHICH FAR EXCEED ORDINARY TORPEDOES IN TERMS OF RANGE, SPEED AND CHARGE. In this case. On the contrary, the night battle gave us a chance to make a big difference. Su Mo said. Although he was born in aviation, he himself also has certain attainments in artillery battles and lightning strikes.

In addition, another reason why Su Mo supported the night battle was to attack him unprepared. In this plane. Night battles appeared very infrequently, except for the outbreak of a large-scale night battle between the German High Seas Fleet and the British Grand Fleet in Scandinavia during the 1st World War of that year. Other times there was never a night fight. Nights are the hardest to grasp and the most prone to accidents. Especially as a large fleet with aircraft carriers, the two sides prefer to engage with carrier-based aircraft during the day, rather than getting close to bayonet distance at night. At least for the Germans, there is no benefit in doing so. Although they had battleships, night engagements were more predominant. Since the Germans had an overwhelming superiority in gunboats, they tried to avoid it. Then if they live with themselves, they will think that Su Mo and the others will also avoid night battles. And what Su Mo wants to seize is such an opportunity!

And after calculating the wealth in his hands, Su Mo could only use 2 heavy cruisers and 1 aviation cruiser in his hands. Plus 7 destroyers. Excluding aviation cruisers and necessary submarines that were not suitable for artillery warfare, the maximum force that Summer could mobilize was 2 heavy cruisers and 5 destroyers. Although it is not very clear about the strength of the opposing side, it is certain that the number of gunboats in the Allied fleet is much greater than its own. The current situation made Su Mo very entangled.

"It's raining outside. We're about to drive into the rain zone. If our meteorologists are right. This cloud and rain area will cover the entire Bay of Biscay. And the bad weather will last for about 3 days. "Just then, an officer reported." It's terrible. It looks like God is going to let us give up this ambush. In this case, our carrier-based aircraft and seaplanes will not be able to perform their tasks, and it will be difficult to find targets with radar alone. What to do? Fletcher said with a frown.

"Looks like we have to give it a try. The Bay of Biscay is not large, and our aircraft carriers can sail out of the cloud and rain zone to monitor the situation in the far seas, while cruisers and destroyers remain in the cloud and rain zone to search for the German transport fleet. Now the weather conditions are very bad, the cloud height is very low, and the visibility is poor. We, like our opponents, have lost our aerial reconnaissance capabilities, and in this case, I think the opponents are at a loss. And the air fleet is in the open sea. Out of the reconnaissance range of German long-range aviation. It's safe, at least for a short time. We can give it a go. Cunningham said. If in 2 days we can't spot the opponent, then we will evacuate. Our radar has a long range, and if nothing else, it's still okay to run. Plus radio sideways. As long as the other side has a naval high-power radio station working, we can always find some clues. ”

"I agree, two heavy cruisers plus five destroyers can fight." Summer expressed support for Cunningham's proposal. Su Mo still has more trust in the radar technology of the British. At this time, they were equipped with a radar that was somewhat inferior to the historical British Navy Type 273Q anti-sea radar, but even so. The distance of detection of targets the size of battleships can also reach more than 20 nautical miles, and the detection distance of 10,000-ton cruisers can be more than 17 nautical miles. The destroyer was found at a distance of more than 15 nautical miles. If the opponent is a fleet, then the distance will be higher. Moreover, the work is relatively stable, and there are few strikes.

"If everyone doesn't object, what do you think about Colonel Coutch commanding this fleet?" Now that Su Mo has agreed on behalf of Huaxia, it is useless for Fletcher to oppose it, and the rest is just a process. The battle plan was smoothed and the entire fleet began to prepare, and the aircraft carrier fleet sailed to the northwest and would eventually be on standby in the northwest offshore of the Bay of Biscay. The cruiser fleet sailed northeast into the Bay of Biscay in search of the German convoy.

The sudden change in weather also caught the Allies off guard, didn't it say that the weather was good? Why is it suddenly cloudy over Biscay Bay? In this case, even if the Iranian fleet is right in the Bay of Biscay, the German sea-based and land-based air fleet is helpless against the adversary. The commander of the camel transport flotilla did not have the right to change the course of the fleet, eighty percent of them would continue to sail. And if the other side's cruiser stays in the Bay of Biscay, then the consequences will be unimaginable in case of encounters. Heavy cruisers against civilian ships, fast fleets of speeds of up to 30 knots or more attack merchant fleets of 15 knots. The Count of Luknall shuddered at the thought of such a situation.

"I didn't expect that we would be able to encounter an artillery duel similar to that in World War 1." Count Luknar said with a wry smile, but looking at the fleet in his hand, it seems that it is difficult for him to put together a fleet with strong combat effectiveness, the new Bismarck-class battleship and two Bavaria-class battleships have been incorporated into the Indian Ocean Fleet and are carrying out combat missions in the Middle East. Two other Bavaria-class battleships, one is being rehabilitated in the Italian shipyard, and the other is being commissioned in Crete with newly installed electronics. As a result, the two battleships under the command of Count Luknal were high-speed improved King-class battleships, and after removing a turret, this class of battleships could barely reach a speed of 30 knots, but the fire control equipment and radar were still relatively backward. In terms of fire control and electronic performance, it seems that it is inferior to the two newly commissioned heavy cruisers Wiesbaden and Frankfurt. Among the two King-class battleships that followed Count Luckner, the King's table was normal, and the other ship of the same class was compared with the coffee table, and soon after sailing, it suddenly found that there were some problems with the steam pipes, and the maximum speed was only about 25 knots. Such a low speed obviously could not accompany the cruiser in battle, so it had to be abandoned.

However, although the ship is a little older, the 14-inch guns on it are still very deterrent. It's no problem to hit a 10-inch cannon with a 14-inch cannon on the coffee table. So, after some research, the Count of Luknall decided to send the battleship King, the heavy cruiser Wiesbaden, and the Frankfurt into the Bay of Biscay with four destroyers to escort the approaching camel convoy. Rear Admiral Paro was in charge of the fleet. So, under the influence of the weather that could not be resisted, the two sides had to abandon their original plans and try to engage in a fundamentalist artillery battle. Of course, at this time, Count Luknal still intends to overwhelm Yiqiē, regardless of whether the Iranian fleet can be found or not, as long as the transport ship can be brought back. And he estimates that in such an unfavorable situation, it is also unlikely that the other side will continue to search for convoys in the Bay of Biscay.

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