"Are the British reaching their limit?" Goering asked.
"Yes, according to the report of General Stenff's Fifth Air Force, when they were bombing the east coast of England, they were unexpectedly intercepted by the British Air Force. The intercepted fighter formation was definitely not one of the four British flying groups. One!" Kesselring replied, "The British only have so many troops on the surface, and they have all been devoted to the battle with the Second Air Force and the Third Air Force, so I think it is best to intercept the Fifth Air Force. It must be the reserve force of the British!"
Goering walked back and forth beside the huge desk, seeming to be thinking about the next countermeasures. Finally, Goering, who was staying by the window, looked out the window and said to General Kesselring, "No, I can't." Risk it! Before two o'clock in the afternoon, only the three aviation groups that set off first can continue to fight. Not only this, but also General Katharine!" Goering paused when he said this, "The bombing target will also be expanded to British radar station, so that the British can completely focus on fighting our air raids. Nearly three thousand fighters will confront the British Air Force head-on, and the Sixth and Seventh Air Force will fight in the afternoon. It will be dark soon. At that time, all the British radar stations were wiped out by surprise!"
"I know what to do, it's up to me!" General Kathleen nodded solemnly, indicating that she approved Goering's plan.
After General Katharine walked out, Goering immediately clapped his hands, and the adjutant immediately came in from outside the door and asked, "Your Excellency, Marshal, please give me your orders!"
Bang bang... Goering's fingers tapped the window sill rhythmically, and he said word by word: "Inform the Chief of General Staff, Major General Jedinek, that a battle plan for the afternoon must be prepared, and if necessary, he will Preparations are going on until night to prepare for possible night operations!"
"Yes, Marshal!" The adjutant saluted, turned and walked out of the office. While Marshal Göring and General Hugh Dowding were fighting each other, the ground crews of the two countries were also engaged in an invisible contest. Indeed, large-scale air battles such as those between the Luftwaffe and the Royal Air Force were very difficult for them. For ground staff, it is nothing short of a nightmare energy. They need to remount and refuel the fighter jets that have landed at the airport within half an hour, and use the little time they have to perform emergency repairs so that the fighter jets can fly into the blue sky in optimal condition. It can be said that the competition between the ground staff of the two countries is no less than the competition between the air forces of the two countries, and even the competition between the ground staff may change the situation of the war.
General Hugh Dowding thought that the Luftwaffe was just replicating the spectacular scene of the German Army sweeping across France, and would retreat once it encountered strong resistance from the Royal Air Force. However, as time went by, General Hugh Dowding knew that he had made a mistake. What a big mistake. Göring was really preparing for a decisive battle with Admiral Hugh Dowding in the skies over Britain.
The balance of power between Britain and Germany is obviously very unfavorable to Britain. The strength of the German Air Force is about three times that of the Royal Air Force. Once this situation continues, the consequences will be unimaginable. But now General Hugh Dowding has no good solution. He can only order the radar troops and ground crews to maintain the current situation as much as possible. The hope was that Göring would not be able to bear the huge losses and give up.
Will Göring give up? This is obviously impossible. Goering has imagined various possibilities for today. Unless General Hugh Dowding has a way to shoot down a thousand Luftwaffe aircraft, Goering is ready to fight a decisive battle at all costs.
The German 2nd Air Force, 3rd Air Force and 5th Air Force, as well as the 10th Group commanded by Major General Brand of the Royal Air Force, the 11th Group commanded by Major General Pike, the 12th Group commanded by Major General Mallory, etc. The battle between the four air force groups of the 13th Group commanded by Major General Er did not calm down as time went by. On the contrary, the fire of the battle between the two sides became more and more intense as aircraft from both sides continued to be shot down.
At 11 o'clock in the morning, the Luftwaffe's aviation fleet had been fighting for five consecutive hours, and there were countless rotations between the aviation fleets. At this time, Major General Jedinek, the former commander-in-chief of the enemy, sent an order: "Everyone has to fight." The pilots of the air force have lunch during the rotation time, and the combat cannot be stopped because of the lunch break!" The pilots who have been fighting did not express any objection to this. Perhaps they also knew that today would determine the success of Plan Blue. .
While the Second Air Force that replaced them was still fighting the Royal Air Force over the UK, the pilots of the Third Air Force hurriedly finished their lunch and waited beside the ground crew while bragging to the ground crew about their heroic performance over the UK. , while constantly looking at the time, no matter at any time, the Germans attach great importance to the concept of time.
Five minutes before takeoff, all the planes were already waiting on the runway. Many ground staff immediately used this time to go to the canteen to eat, because they knew that soon, the Second Air Force would fly from the United Kingdom. Flying back from the sky, they will also be engaged in a new round of busyness. If they don't take advantage of this time to eat, they will be prepared to fight until night.
Time continued to pass. With the last rotation between the Third Air Force and the Second Air Force, Major General Jedinek ordered that the Third Air Force's mission for today has been temporarily completed. Although it is temporary, it is enough for the Third Air Force. The pilots of the Third Air Force breathed a sigh of relief, because in the continuous combat for up to seven hours, some pilots have shown a strong feeling of discomfort. This state is the same as fatigue driving, fighting in the sky for a long time It has caused many pilots to hallucinate. If the fighting continues, the consequences will be disastrous.
Major General Jedinek was a little overwhelmed by this situation. He had no idea what went wrong. After all, in the history of air combat, there was no record of a pilot flying continuously for eight hours. The German Air Force and his opponent the Royal Air Force were still the first An aerial weapon that challenges this limit.
Although Major General Jedinek can't help the current pilots' pain, he has almost guessed why this situation occurred. Since the Luftwaffe pilots have already appeared in this state, then the United Kingdom, which has been fighting with the Luftwaffe until now, The Royal Air Force, their pilots must have been stretched to their limits. Thinking of this, Major General Jedinek felt that this matter must be reported to Marshal Göring, so he immediately sent a telegram to Berlin, which read: "Eight hours of continuous combat has allowed our pilots to arrive At the limit, many pilots experienced dizziness, nausea, and hallucinations! If we continue to fight, our combat effectiveness will definitely be greatly reduced, but the most important thing is that the British Royal Air Force, which has been fighting fiercely with us, has simpler conditions than us, so this It may not be an opportunity for us!”
Goering quickly received a telegram from Major General Jedinek. After careful consideration, Goering replied: "Thank you to the Chief of General Staff for discovering this situation. This will play a significant role in our future training of pilots." Now the air battle has reached a critical moment. I believe that the Royal Air Force, like our pilots, has reached its limit. All the afternoon operations will determine whether the Empire can land in the UK. I hope the Chief of General Staff can give instructions in the evening. Exciting news for all of Germany!"
After receiving Goering's telegram, Major General Jedinek already knew Goering's thoughts. Now there is no way to change Goering's mind to kill the Royal Air Force. In one morning, the air forces of both sides suffered heavy losses. Germany Dispatching in large numbers can indeed minimize losses and prevent the Royal Air Force from using the navigation of the radar station to conduct raids on the German Air Force. But even so, the casualties on both sides remained high. In one morning, 297 aircraft of the Second, Third, and Fifth Air Forces remained in the UK and did not return. Although Major General Jedinek did not know the losses of the Royal Air Force, he guessed that at least two hundred aircraft had disappeared from the Royal Air Force's combat order.
Even in a head-to-head fight, the Luftwaffe can win the final victory in this battle, but since there is a better way, why not? Now the Royal Air Force has obviously reached its limit, and the Sixth Air Force and the Seventh Air Force, newly formed by the Luftwaffe Goering and now under the command of Chief of General Staff Major General Jedinek, have still not participated in the war. It can be said that the victory of the air battle The negative has been decided. Even if the British pilots were fighting bravely, they could not change the overall situation.
Finally at two o'clock in the afternoon, the last batch of the Third Air Force's sorties returned to many airports in northern France. Many aircraft were scarred and covered with bullet holes. One can imagine what kind of experiences these aircraft have experienced. During the battle, some pilots who had just stepped off the fighter jets were frivolous and in danger of falling to the ground at any time. The ground crew immediately stepped forward to support these pale pilots.
At the same time, the British did not give up their preparations. Admiral Hugh Dowding ordered British fighter jets to patrol the British mainland. At the same time, he ordered radar stations to closely monitor the movements of France across the strait. After half an hour, there was still no invasion by the German air force. General Hugh Dowding finally breathed a sigh of relief, knowing that this fierce Luftwaffe attack was finally targeted by the Royal Air Force. However, the price paid by the Royal Air Force was huge. The Royal Air Force was not as strong as the German Air Force. This time the German large formation attacked, so the Royal Air Force could not find a gap to attack, so it could only fight head-on. Although With the aid of radar, they had some advantages, but in the face of Germany's sheer numbers, it still evolved into a war of attrition that made General Hugh Dowding very painful.
Now General Hugh Dowding must immediately go to No. 10 Downing Street, Churchill's official residence to report, because in this case, General Hugh Dowding must discuss with Churchill, because if Germany continues this large-scale attack, In a few days, the British Air Force may have exhausted all its fighter jets, and by then it will have to be passively bombed.
When General Hugh Dowding arrived at No. 10 Downing Street, Churchill, who had returned to the Prime Minister's Office, was already waiting there. It could be seen that Churchill was also very eager to know the results and losses of today's air battle.
Admiral Hugh Dowding did not say any more nonsense. In fact, now is not the time to talk nonsense. He went straight to the point, "Today the Royal Air Force lost two hundred and thirty-three aircraft. With all due respect to the Prime Minister, if this A battle of this scale has occurred in just two days, and the Royal Air Force has ceased to exist. We cannot continue like this!" General Hugh Dowding said solemnly.
Churchill obviously understood the key and frowned and said, "Now after mobilization, our aircraft production can reach 1,600 aircraft per month. With the addition of some old-fashioned aircraft in a short period of time, there should be no shortage of aircraft." "The key is that we don't have enough pilots. This is a big problem!" Churchill immediately got to the point. The shortage of pilots is the biggest problem of the Royal Air Force now.
"The German Air Force must be allowed to change this kind of operation, otherwise the Royal Air Force will not be able to withstand it, and Britain will be in danger!" General Hugh Dowding shouted loudly. No one is more anxious than General Hugh Dowding. The bad situation has made General Hugh Dowding forget to respect the British Prime Minister in front of him. Admiral Hugh Dowding is now more like a farmer than a gentlemanly general. However, it seems that since the war between Germany and Britain, all British people have gradually lost their gentlemanly demeanor and become hysterical.
"The Air Force will bomb Berlin tonight. Only by burning the flames of war to the German mainland can the Germans feel the horror of war!" Churchill said loudly. Now Churchill thought of burning the flames of war to the German mainland again. From the beginning of the war That's what he thought, and he still thinks that way.
However, unexpectedly, General Hugh Dowding did not object this time, but said, "Maybe this situation can really solve our current difficulties. Goering is a very conceited person. He once said I have said that British aircraft cannot break through the German Air Force's defense line. Once our Air Force bombers fly to Berlin, they will undoubtedly slap Goering hard in the mouth. According to Goering's temper, he will definitely retaliate, so that he can succeed. Divert Göring's attention and gain precious breathing space for the Air Force!" But when he said this, General Hugh Dowding sighed, "Just like this, Göring will definitely bomb London in retaliation. , with our current strength, we simply cannot intercept the furious German Air Force!"
"For the British Empire, we can only make sacrifices at this time!" Churchill made up his mind, "Tonight, the Air Force must gather all bombers to launch a bombing of Berlin, the capital of Germany!"
"That's all, hey..." Admiral Hugh Dowding seemed to acquiesce in Churchill's opinion.
But what they didn't know was that the Royal Air Force would never have the chance to bomb Berlin. Just when General Hugh Dowding and Churchill were discussing countermeasures, the airport in northern France and the airports recruited and built by Germany in the Netherlands and Belgium were filled with chaos. Busy, everyone was contributing their final strength to the entire operation. Major General Jedinek also informed the pilots of the 6th and 7th Air Force that this cross-sea bombing must fly at low altitude, which immediately caused an uproar and everyone I think this is simply asking the pilots to die. Although fighting with the Royal Air Force is also very dangerous, it is better than diving into the sea to feed the fish, not to mention that this method of death is really worthless, but when Yedine When Major General Ke summoned more than a hundred pilots who had practiced low-altitude sea crossing for a week, these people finally confirmed that their chief of general staff was not talking in his sleep and that he was serious.
Colonel Werner von Brouster stood in front of some squadron commanders of the Sixth and Seventh Air Forces and said, "I know you have objections to this battle, but believe me, once we succeed, the entire Germany Everyone will thank us, because our sacrifice is worth it, and in fact, this is the only way to break through the British radar station. Even if you don't participate, from now on, you can't leave here unless the imperial army has landed on the British mainland. Only when the time comes can we set you free, because this method cannot be leaked. Okay, now I will give you a minute to consider whether to execute it or give up?" Werner von Broust glanced at these squadron leaders with their cold eyes. , more than a hundred military policemen lined up behind them with live ammunition. Rather than considering them, it is more appropriate to say that it is dangerous.
Under this pressure, even in less than a minute, many squadron commanders knew that they had to agree. On the one hand, they had an extraordinary desire for victory, and on the other hand, the threat of the gendarmerie also had to make them make a decision.
Following the order of Colonel Werner von Brouster, more than a hundred pilots who already had low-altitude flying experience first boarded their own aircraft. Subsequently, these squadron leaders also boarded their own planes. According to this combat operation, it was impossible for them all to take off at the same time. This would make the target too large and very difficult, making it impossible to achieve concealment. Therefore, Major General Jedinek decided to take off in batches. Each time, an air force group of 122 aircraft took off, with four experienced pilots taking the lead. On average, one group took off every three minutes, allowing the Germans to take off. The fighter and bomber formations formed an endless procession. When the formation that took off first reached the British mainland, the German fighter groups behind them would continue continuously.
The goals of the Sixth and Seventh Air Force this time are different from those of other air forces earlier. The primary goals of the Sixth and Seventh Air Force are the more than forty radar stations and seven important sectors established by the British in mainland China. Radar station, it can be said that Major General Jedinek is almost preparing for victory. General Kathleen of the Second Air Force has communicated with Major General Jedinek. Once the British radar station is destroyed, the Second Air Force will The aviation team will take off immediately to continue the operation.