I'm playing whack-a-mole in Siberia

Chapter 544 Target: Sultan's Palace

The Russian Empire had many enemies, but the Ottoman Empire was the only one that did not require mobilization.

From 1676 to 1911, the Russian Empire and the Ottoman Empire fought for a full 235 years, from flintlock rifles to heavy machine guns. This is a true feud.

Calculated as 20 years per generation, the hatred between the Russian Empire and the Ottoman Empire has accumulated for 12 generations.

Varna is only 250 kilometers away from Constantinople. When the Russian Empire's declaration of war was delivered to the Ottoman Empire's embassy, ​​the first batch of bombers had already flown over Constantinople.

Constantinople was built in 658 BC. In 330 AD, the Roman Emperor Constantine I moved the capital here and named the city after himself. In 1453, Constantinople became the capital of the Ottoman Empire.

In the tenth Russo-Turkish War, if the British had not sent their fleet to the Dardanelles, the Russian Empire would have had the opportunity to capture Constantinople, but unfortunately it failed in the end.

George used the reinforcement fleet to block the Dardanelles to prevent possible interference from Britain and France.

If it could be prevented, Britain and France would certainly not want to see the Russian Empire seize access to the Black Sea.

However, Britain and France were not so tough as to do anything to gain access to the Black Sea.

In another time and space in 1916, Britain, France and Russia signed the Treaty of Sazonov-Sykes-Picot, in which the Russian Empire exchanged its interests in the Arab region for Britain and France's consent to the Russian Empire's occupation of the Black Sea outlet.

As with the Tenth Russo-Turkish War, this was the best opportunity for the Russian Empire to seize access to the Black Sea.

Unfortunately, the troops attacking Constantinople had not yet set out, and the Russian Empire collapsed.

For the vast majority of Ottomans, airplanes were a strange new thing, and bombers were unheard of.

Although the Ottoman army had been bombed by the Italian Air Force in North Africa, the Ottoman Empire had not yet started research in this regard. Constantinople was a completely undefended city to the bomber groups.

Vladivostok's heavy bomber has a biplane structure, uses four engines, has a maximum bomb load of 800 kg, and a range of 600 kilometers. The aircraft is equipped with four heavy machine guns, which can be used not only for air self-defense, but also for attacking ground targets.

The first wave of bombers sent by George consisted of as many as 50 planes. In addition to aerial bombs, the planes also carried incendiary bombs for indiscriminate bombing of Constantinople.

Since the Ottoman Empire had no air defense weapons, the bombers' flight altitude was maintained at around 500 meters.

The naval aviation had conducted many simulated bombings on Constantinople, and the crew members had already memorized all the key units. To achieve the best results, the bombers were divided into 11 teams, each of which bombed important targets in Constantinople.

The first squadron led by Captain Sikorski was responsible for bombing the palace, consisting of four bombers.

"My heart is so sad when I think about all those rare treasures being burned to ashes in the blazing fire!"

Sikorsky was very excited. His plane was loaded with high-explosive bombs and incendiary bombs. On each bomb, there was a greeting written by the ground crew officers.

8 high-explosive bombs and 8 incendiary bombs, each weighing 50 kilograms, only one bomb is enough to cause devastating damage to a palace-type building.

The Sultan of the Ottoman Empire knew how to enjoy life better than the Tsar. The Sultan's palace was 70 square meters, comparable to a small city, and there was more than one such palace in Constantinople.

"God bless you, and I hope the Sultan stays in his palace."

Ivanovich, the co-pilot who served as the navigator, prayed devoutly. Thinking that the Sultan might die in his hands, Ivanovich trembled with excitement.

"Even if he escapes this time, he won't be able to escape the next time." Sikorsky once served as a test pilot in the Amur Military District. During the Russo-Japanese War, Sikorsky was a member of the airship unit and bombed Japan.

The Ottomans had indeed never seen an airplane, at least not a bomber.

Through the porthole, it can be clearly seen that most of the Ottomans are standing there like fools, looking up at the plane, at a loss as to what to do.

Finally, someone noticed the double-headed eagle logo under the bomber's wing, and some people actually raised their guns and shot at the bomber. Unfortunately, at this distance, they couldn't hit anything.

A few days ago, in a battle in North Africa, an Italian Air Force plane was damaged by Ottoman soldiers using rifles, creating the first shameful record.

Soon, Sikorski led the first squadron to fly over the Ottoman Palace.

After Ivanovich confirmed the target was correct, the plane piloted by Sikorski opened the hatch first and dropped all the bombs.

At this time in Constantinople, the ground was full of fire and smoke rising into the sky. Even inside the bomber, one could feel the heat waves coming from the ground.

Sikorsky did not stay over Constantinople. After clearing all the bombs, he returned immediately. If he used time well, he could try again.

While the naval aviation was bombarding Constantinople, the reinforcement fleet bombarded the artillery batteries on both sides of the Dardanelles and prepared to send troops to land in the Dardanelles to cooperate with the fleet's attack.

The Dardanelles is 61 kilometers long and only 1.2 kilometers at its narrowest point. Without the cooperation of the landing troops, the reinforcement fleet would be seeking death if it rashly entered the Dardanelles.

Rakitsky could only dispatch a small number of troops, only 1500 men, for landing operations.

However, along with the reinforcement fleet, an infantry division of the Kingdom of Greece also arrived at the Dardanelles, and this infantry division will also be used for landing operations.

Greek Crown Prince Constantine expressed strong opposition to Rakitsky's plan, believing that the troops were not prepared for landing operations and that a hasty landing in the Dardanelles would lead to a desperate situation.

After the military coalition coup in 1909, Crown Prince Constantine was relieved of all military duties.

After the outbreak of the Balkan War, Constantine was appointed commander-in-chief of the Greek Army. The occupation of Thessaloniki before the Bulgarian Kingdom was Constantine's glorious moment.

"The main Ottoman forces are in Constantinople. As long as our troops land, we can take the Dardanelles."

Rakitsky didn't feel sorry because the sailors preparing to land were all Japanese, standard cannon fodder.

The Cossacks were too tall and were not suitable for serving on warships.

The Japanese soldiers were not only short in stature, but also hardworking, had great endurance and were extremely obedient. Like the Korean sailors, they were deeply loved by Rakitsky.

"I would never send my soldiers to die!"

Constantine was determined and ran faster than anyone else when he was trying to capture Thessaloniki.

However, Constantine was a bit negative when it came to cooperating with the reinforcement fleet.

(End of this chapter)