At a time when the Allies and the Central Powers were competing over Toulouse, and when China was thinking about how to make Britain unable to die and live badly, the contest between the Allies and the Allies in the South Atlantic had already entered a fever pitch, and the American fleet, which had arrived in the South Atlantic, was divided into two groups, one of which was a search-attrition fleet composed of four light aircraft carriers, whose task was to search for the German fleet and launch an attack at the right time to consume the combat strength of the German fleet. If it is found that the other side's air cruisers are not together, the Americans do not mind killing their opponents in a direct wave. The second fleet is the main aircraft carrier formation commanded by Fletcher, which is more combat-effective in terms of strength, with 2 fleet aircraft carriers and 1 light aircraft carrier. Originally, the plan was to have 1 fleet aircraft carrier and 2 light aircraft carriers, but later when the Americans found out that Austria-Hungary was also involved in the war, they decisively increased their forces.

Just when the Americans were sharpening their knives and preparing to wipe out the four aviation cruisers of Germany and Austria, the C fleet commanded by Raeder was also ready to go! Before leaving, the Germans also made a series of strategic feints. First of all, all the main forces of the High Seas Fleet returned to their base in the Eastern Mediterranean for maintenance and repair, and then took advantage of the night to sprint the fleet under Raeder's command to the Atlantic Ocean at top speed. And immediately after a short resupply of the original Gibraltar, it will enter the Atlantic, without any other supply ships other than those carried by the fleet itself, and will not converge with any camouflaged supply ships. And in order to prevent the telegraph from leaking its location, Raeder's fleet also implemented strict radio control. Most of the transmitter buttons have been removed. They are just quiet listeners, feeling the changes in the outside world.

"From the standpoint of view, the Americans should have two detachments fighting at sea. Are you sure that one of the fleets will be the same size as yours? "Before leaving, Count Luknall saw Raeder for the last time at the Gibro Fortress.

"Pretty much. If I am lucky, after defeating the American fleet, I will probably spend some time in the South Atlantic, and I will return to Portugal on the eve of the high seas fleet going west out of the Atlantic, and my detachment will complete the replenishment in Portugal. And take part in a future naval battle with the High Seas Fleet that will be even greater than the Battle of Jutland. I hope to be able to prove with practical actions that we are not inferior to our predecessors. Raeder said calmly.

"Okay, I promise I'll pick you up on time, and the Navy will prepare everything you need for your fleet in Portugal. Whether it's shipyards, materials for repairing battleships, workers, or carrier-based aircraft units. I promise. Count Luknal said seriously.

With the escorted destroyers signaling that they were safe all the way, Fleet C, led by Raeder, finally entered the Atlantic. Heading into the depths of the ocean. Like assassins hiding in the woods, they search for targets worthy of their own efforts. This time he chose Fletcher!

And just as Raeder's fleet entered the Atlantic, Rank's life became more and more difficult. The Austro-Hungarian fleet eventually joined up with the Krankian fleet without incident. When the two sides converged, Cranker felt more powerful than ever, with 4 air cruisers at his disposal, a total of more than 100 aircraft of all kinds, and 1 heavy cruiser and 2 destroyers to provide cover (two destroyers were forced to return due to malfunctions). But upon learning of the possibility that Austria-Hungary might join the effort to break diplomatic relations, the U.S. Navy also increased its presence in the South Atlantic, sending more escort carriers and submarines to the area. At the same time, the Americans also changed the escort system and rearranged the transport routes, and several transport convoys were concentrated. And it has about 3 escort aircraft carriers to provide escort. These escort carriers had given up their attacks, and the fighters they carried on them were designed to stop the German fleet's air attacks on the fleet.

And it is precisely because of this arrangement. It gives Cranke a feeling that a tiger eats a hedgehog and can't bite it! Afterwards, Cranke also described the situation in his recollections. "The Americans' national power is indeed beyond our imagination, can you imagine a transport fleet of 80 to 100 transport ships of all kinds? In these three-digit fleets, there are about 3 light aircraft carriers, and they have about 70 to 90 fighters. In addition to this, there are also merchant ships with catapults installed that can catapult fighters. And the maximum number of aircraft we flew at one time was only about 60! This number is not only fighters but also bombers, although the performance of the BF109 fighter is stronger than that of the F4F, but the other side has a numerical advantage, and in the end the number of attack aircraft that we can successfully launch an attack is only no more than fifteen, and then consider the hit rate, we try our best to attack once The result is to sink 3 to 5 transport ships at most, and if you change it to tonnage, it is not even 40,000 tons! ”

This super-large huddle fleet greatly reduces the combat power of the aviation cruiser, and the ability of the aviation cruiser to break the diplomatic relationship is composed of naval guns and aircraft, although there are a certain number of aircraft, but the main role of these aircraft is reconnaissance, air defense, and dealing with high-threat targets. If you attack the transport fleet with aircraft, the efficiency is actually not high, and a wave of 15 aircraft averages up to 15 rounds of 250KG bombs. How much is this throw? It's nothing more than the amount of ammunition fired in two salvos of a 10-inch naval gun of a heavy cruiser! Therefore, according to the combat training of the German Navy, the air cruiser should use its limited aviation capabilities carefully, and if conditions permit, it should attack the opposing transport fleet with naval guns! But now the situation has changed, and while the Germans are racking their brains to think about how to increase the power of breaking engagements with aviation capabilities, the Americans also let the escort carriers appear in advance! And the cost of production of escort aircraft carriers is simply too low!

In this case, congenitally deficient aviation cruisers are really not daring to be tough with each other. If Crank, regardless of the cost, was ready to throw away half of the planes and pilots directly, then it was also possible to inflict heavy damage on the escort aircraft carrier of an escort fleet. But in reality, Crank really didn't dare to do this, because shortly after the second meeting between the two sides, Cranker could feel more and more eyes staring at him! And the real killer is lurking somewhere! They were waiting for the time when the Krank's fleet was weakened. Then unleash the fatal blow! If the breaking engagement and the anti-breaking engagement are compared to a game of police catching thieves, when the police get serious, the isolated thief can be described as walking on thin ice!

Not to mention the fact that Colonel Cranke had a very important mission to perform. They were a decoy to lure the Americans into the bait, and then let the Raeder fleet, which had already entered the Atlantic, give the opponent a hard blow. Crank didn't know where Admiral Raeder's fleet was, he only knew that he needed to maneuver to the preset battlefield, constantly send out the enemy dynamics he had collected, and then silently wait for Raeder's fleet to attack.

"I think I found them!" Captain Fenris, captain of the American Shark-class submarine Sardine, raised his periscope, and a high-speed fleet was speeding through about 2 nautical miles in front of him. They are maneuvering in a northwesterly direction at a speed of about 18 knots. At the forefront was the German air cruiser Emden, and the battleship in the back was very similar in appearance to the Germans. But it seems that the battle flag of the Austro-Hungarian Navy is hanging on it. A total of 3 huge figures appeared in the entire field of vision. With the turn of the periscope, Captain Fenris saw 2 more large battleships. There are 5 other sides in total, 4 aviation cruisers and 1 heavy cruiser are all here!

Soon, the Sardine submarine sent a telegram of what he saw to Rear Admiral John Leavis, who was commanding 4 Independence-class light aircraft carriers to hunt down his opponent. The Germans were being targeted without knowing it! At this time, Colonel Cranke commanded the fleet and prepared to rush to the next hunting ground. Let's see if we can get some results through a sneak attack before the opposing escort aircraft carrier reacts. What the Germans did not expect was that this time, Krake's fleet of air cruisers became the target of the Americans, and the four light cruisers led by the USS Independence themselves were cruising not too far from Krak, and the Americans gradually narrowed down the search area through surface and air reconnaissance. And the intelligence of the Sardine submarine exposed the Germans directly to Leavis' eyes!

"It seems that the Germans did not yet know that we had come. They also seem to want to get some benefit from the TS18 transport fleet! Levis said with some smugness after seeing the information sent by the Sardine submarine. The Germans are like greedy rats, a piece of cheese can make them forget everything, and we have an absolute advantage in this sea! ”

Although it took the lead. But the Americans are clearly still very calm, and 4 light aircraft carriers should be supposedly stronger than 4 light cruisers. But the strong one is limited, and it belongs to the kind of two people who cut each other with a kitchen knife bare-chested. Leavis carefully arranged the battle plan, the four light cruisers were to rush to the target area at once, and at the same time he also sent a message to General Fletcher, telling him to take the main fleet and be ready to intercept at any time. After some hesitation, Leavis also sent a telegram to the TS18 transport fleet, giving them a wake-up call and suggesting that they could consume as much German air power as possible to lay the groundwork for the encirclement and annihilation.

The Americans, believing that they had taken into account all the factors, were converging two powerful fleets towards the German fleet. When the Sardine discovered the Cranker fleet, one of the largest naval engagements between the Allies and the Allies began. The area where the two sides fought was exactly 500 nautical miles northeast of the Falkland Islands, where the Earl of Spee was once lost. And in this plane, by mistake, the German fleet once again started a big battle with the other side here. Invisibly, Colonel Cranke is already like a turtle in an urn, in a gradually tightening encirclement!

"Compile all the recent information and give it to me." Raeder rubbed his temples and said, just outside the Americans' field of vision, Raeder's fleet is also moving towards the Falkland Islands, not only because before this, Colonel Cranker had informed Raeder of the plan of the operation, but also because after a long time of hide and seek, Raeder had discovered the American fleet commanded by Rear Admiral Leavis. Faced with this goal, he was a little hesitant. The 4 light aircraft carriers belong to a small fleet, and Raeder can eat it if he wants to, but at the same time he is afraid that the Americans will have other fleets around. According to intelligence provided by the Admiralty, there were some changes in the number of American aircraft carrier formations, part of which disappeared from the German field of view. This made Raeder very hesitant, God knows if there is a fleet of regular American aircraft carriers around him.

Coincidentally, when the American submarine discovered the Cranke fleet, the German submarine U420 also discovered Levi's hunting fleet, and just ten minutes earlier, Raeder had received the exact location of Levi's fleet. They seem to have spotted the Krankk fleet and are heading to the battlefield. At the same time, according to the intelligence of the submarine, Raeder also discovered that the radio communications of the American fleet were unusually busy. Now Redder is in a dilemma, he can tell Cranke about the current situation, and tell the latter that if he continues to attack the TS18 transport fleet, then what awaits him will be the result of a two-sided attack. With just one telegram, he could free the entire fleet. It can even easily smash Levi's fleet to pieces. But at the same time, another voice kept reminding Raeder that there were other forces in the sea. In the eyes of ordinary people, this choice is a good decision, after all, the benefits of choosing to help Clark are obvious, save a fleet, kill a fleet, and maybe kill the TS18 transport fleet. How do you look at this and how to make money! You know, the total number of available aircraft for two armored aircraft carriers and one aviation cruiser is up to about 240 units! A wave of attacks can go out about 100 planes! And the FW190T fighter can throw BF109TF a few streets whether it is air combat or ground attack! The combat effectiveness has directly increased several times, and the TS18 simply can't withstand it!

But Raeder doesn't think so, as a military man, he will set the worst-case scenario before the start, and then seek a solution based on it, and he will imagine what would happen if there was an American fleet around! It was still five hours before dark, and the two sides were far apart and had not yet reached the range of the carrier-based aircraft. Ideally, around 9 a.m. tomorrow, Raeder's C fleet will once again determine the position of Levi's fleet, and then the reconnaissance opportunity will guide the attack aircraft to attack, and the fleet will inevitably break the radio silence during the attack, so that the other side can determine its position by radio sideways.

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