Chapter 919: Encirclement (11)

The loss of more than 400 aircraft accounted for 10% of the total number of aircraft used by the Luftwaffe that day. Most of the aircraft were dispatched twice, and aviation units from Belgium and the Netherlands were dispatched three times. It was obvious that the British side's resistance ability had declined significantly, but These more than 400 aircraft were not all of Germany's losses that day. In the direction of Iceland, the British attack aircraft group and the US Army Newfoundland aircraft group that came to attack across more than 1,400 kilometers and 2,000 kilometers across the sea gave the German attack fleet, escort fleet and The landing fleets all inflicted heavy losses.

In response to the first wave of British attacks, the German main fleet dispatched more than 170 fighter jets, and the escort fleet consisting of 8 Rhine-class escort aircraft carriers dispatched more than 140 fighter jets, intercepting more than 800 Royal Air Force and Royal Navy aircraft in total. The attack fleets (at different speeds, arriving on the battlefield one after another) shot down more than 170 of the opponent's aircraft at the cost of losing 54 aircraft. In addition to the aircraft lost due to the opponent's inability to return, the British lost a total of more than 400 aircraft.

During the defense process, the Rhein-class aircraft carrier R3 (taken from the initials of the Rhein-class) was hit by two 1,000-pound bombs and one 500-pound bomb. It was so damaged that it sank. Three Victory ships carrying army troops and supplies were destroyed. In the sinking, plus the losses on other ships, the Army suffered more than 700 casualties (including direct casualties and drowning). One auxiliary cruiser and destroyer each sank, and the Navy suffered more than 1,000 casualties.

Since the sunrise time in Newfoundland is two hours later than in Iceland, and the expedition was more than 2,000 kilometers away, it was already around 2 p.m. local time when the U.S. Army Air Force arrived at the attack sea area. However, the U.S. Army dispatched more than 600 B-29s in one go. The momentum was still terrifying, and the German anti-aircraft fighter itself had already been lost once, causing even greater losses.

In terms of the main fleet: the heavy cruiser Lützov (Deutschland class) was severely damaged, the aircraft carrier Hyuga was hit, the oblique deck part was blown up, and half of its take-off and landing capabilities were lost; the Veneto and Tirpitz were each hit by 2 1000 missiles. The heavy bombs caused minor damage; the battleship Imperial and the battleship Rome were each hit by a 500-pound bomb, causing minor damage.

In terms of escort and landing fleet: the R7 escort carrier was sunk, 2 Victory ships, 1 Willow ship, 2 auxiliary cruisers, and 2 destroyers were sunk, the R8 escort carrier was severely damaged and lost its ability to take off and land, and 2 cargo ships were damaged. .

The U.S. Army Aviation's own losses were quite staggering: they came across the sea from a long distance and had no fighter escorts. They only relied on bombers to defend themselves against machine guns, and then lowered their altitude to attack, resulting in extremely serious losses. The electric 128mm anti-aircraft guns formed a dense fire interception network, making US military aircraft terrified. The Germans killed at least 280 enemy aircraft at the cost of losing 77 aircraft. In fact, the losses of the US military did not stop there. Some seriously injured aircraft were lost when they made an emergency landing in Iceland, and other damaged aircraft were lost when they crashed into the sea due to reasons such as getting lost and mechanical damage during the return journey. The actual loss of the aircraft that day was as high as 347 aircraft.

What is even more unfavorable for the U.S. military is that after the German plane was shot down, the pilots who parachuted still had a chance to be rescued. More than 40 of the more than 130 German pilots lost that day were rescued, while the American pilots who parachuted were either captured or killed. The losses were unavoidable no matter what. .

The atmosphere in the Berlin High Command was solemn, and everyone felt stunned after counting today's losses.

"Marshal Rommel reported that the Army's losses totaled nearly 2,000 people, and the equipment lost was equivalent to about one brigade, and some of the rescued Army officers and soldiers were soaked in sea water, which will cause a lot of trouble in the future. He expressed concern about this and did not know when the official landing will take place tomorrow. How many enemy planes will be attacked?"

The situation in the Navy is even more difficult. Chief of Staff of the Navy Otto Schneewind, who was just promoted to admiral a few days ago, reported: "The Lützow is still operational after emergency repairs. It is planned to be beached and used as a fixed fort. Each aircraft carrier will be in reserve." All machines have been deployed.”

Hoffman asked: "Are there enough planes?"

"It's barely okay. We lost more than 130 aircraft and three and a half aircraft carriers." Schneewind smiled bitterly. "Basically balanced, we will not be able to produce air defense capabilities similar to today's by tomorrow."

"This loss is much greater than I expected. To be honest, I somewhat underestimated the determination of Britain and the United States to defend Iceland." Hoffman was a little regretful. The loss was so serious on the first day. He felt a lot of pressure on himself. Considering After a long time, he asked, "What do Marshal Machar and General Ozawa mean?"

"They believe that they must continue to persist: even if they lose 2-3 battleships, 200 aircraft, and 5,000 army casualties, they will win over Iceland. As long as the army troops can go ashore, the follow-up battle will be easy."

"200?" Keitel was stunned, "Can the navy sustain so many losses?"

"Have you forgotten that Norway has mobilized more than 100 naval fighter jets in advance? They can provide aircraft through cross-platform combat." Schneewind explained, "As long as the Army establishes a solid territory on the island and obtains an airfield, A steady stream of land-based power can supplement the past!”

The muscles on Hoffman's face twitched: "Do we still have the strength to support the landing troops?"

"General Krank still has two escort carriers available, but the Ise and the Gneisenau are both injured and are undergoing emergency repairs. The repairs will not be completed until June 1 at the earliest and are currently unavailable." Denny Ci smiled bitterly, "I have a lot of submarines prepared, but it's a pity that I can't help."

In order to focus on the Icelandic campaign, the wolves assembled on a large scale: 60 ships were deployed in the waters between Iceland and the United Kingdom, preparing to deal with the Royal Navy that dared to rush over; in the waters near Greenland and on the British-Canada route, the wolf pack ambushed more than 1,000 ships. 120 ships, ready to besiege the U.S. fleet that may appear.

"The navy is still a little weak. If the combined fleet is here, the landing battle will be very sure."

"Führer, it is now 5 pm Iceland time. Lieutenant General Bei has commanded the artillery fleet to launch an attack. The first batch of landing troops is an armored battalion mounted on a Sibel-class landing craft and 1 armored battalion mounted on the Joffre integrated aircraft carrier. A grenadier battalion is about to land!" Jodel suddenly rushed in to report, "The telegram said that the Lützov has successfully seized the beach and is suppressing the US artillery position with 283mm naval gun fire."

"Okay! There is no easy way to fight a world war. Let the soldiers grit their teeth and hold on! I believe they can succeed." Hoffman gritted his teeth and said, "Also, send a telegram to Shaoken. Don't wait for the landing. Launch the attack in advance, I will set fire to Brazil and put some pressure on the Americans!”

Washington was in panic on May 28: Army Aviation's huge losses today were really shocking, but what was even more shocking was Arnold's report.

"Today, a total of 746 B-29s were arranged to perform attack missions. A total of more than 90 aircraft returned one after another after departure. During the flight, more than 40 aircraft reported that they had left the formation and failed to find the target and then returned. The actual offensive force was approximately 607. , only 260 aircraft returned. Except for 27 aircraft that are believed to have made an emergency landing in Iceland, crashed, or parachuted out, the rest were all lost at sea and could not be saved..." General Arnold's voice was trembling when he reported to the Joint Chiefs of Staff, "This is not the worst. The scary thing, the most terrifying thing is that the morale of the military has been shaken. The reasons for the over 90 aircraft to return early today were all due to mechanical failures. However, after investigation after landing, only 13 aircraft actually had serious malfunctions, and the other aircraft had minor or fundamental malfunctions. It doesn’t exist, and traces of man-made sabotage were even found on seven planes—the kind that only members on board would have the chance to do anything about!”

Everyone's expressions changed drastically, and Truman knocked on the table: "So, everyone is not optimistic about the Iceland campaign?"

"The journey is too long, and there are no fighter escorts. If something happens, it will be a dead end. It really scares many people away. Everyone can see the nearly 60% battle damage rate." Arnold said with a sad face, "The pilot dormitories in the base are all empty, crying General Spartz told me that it was the same situation after the air raid on Berlin. It was even worse that time, and morale collapsed immediately. "

Veins popped out on Marshall's face: "This won't work. We can let the cowards go first, but those who do deliberate sabotage must first engage in military law."

"I have arranged it this way. Only a small number of people will be imprisoned. Others will be mainly disciplined by the superiors. But tomorrow's attack mission is not easy to dispatch." Arnold choked, "An attack across more than 2,000 kilometers across the sea is also relatively difficult. The operation will be further away from the German fleet tomorrow, and the distance consumed and the price paid will be greater. We really can't pull out such a large team. If we continue to fight at a high intensity, the entire army and aviation long-range combat force will have its backbone broken. ”

"How many more can be sent tomorrow?"

"The maximum number is 300. Many of the officers and soldiers who returned today are exhausted and can no longer attack."

There was silence.

Truman frowned, but the situation did not allow for hesitation. The Icelandic side reported two hours ago that the German army had launched an artillery attack. As time goes by, more and more German warships will join the artillery attack.

"Tomorrow is the first day of landing. We still need to find a way to conduct another air strike to eliminate the Germans as much as possible on the beachhead." Truman said, "Today's air strike did have some results, and the British also tried their best. If we work harder and hold on until General Nimitz arrives on the battlefield, the situation may get better. We don’t have to completely eliminate these enemy troops. As long as we drive them back and thwart their landing attempt, it will be considered a victory.”

Arnold dejectedly agreed.

"Sir..." Turner suddenly rushed in from outside. Before he could say anything, he couldn't help crying.

"What's going on?" Admiral Jin had been silent just now. Seeing Turner's appearance, he suddenly became anxious. It was obvious that something big had happened.

"TF44 fleet is over!"

Seeing the bad news from the telegram, General Jin was so furious that he fell to the ground...