Iron Cross

The Canadians feel even more aggrieved: The U.S. Army has completely overwhelming aircraft and naval guns. How come it is so difficult to defeat the 5,000 or 6,000 German soldiers in Cape Verde and even lose many soldiers and generals? We don’t have any planes, and our artillery is suppressed by German naval guns. Sherman tanks are no match for Tigers at all. It’s normal that we can’t defeat the enemy...

The war in the direction of Newfoundland was also a focus of debate among the High Command in Berlin. Admiral Otto Schneewind, who returned as Chief of Naval Staff, suggested that the fleet retreat as soon as possible to preserve the existing maneuverability. Of course, his starting point was not to preserve The ship comes first, but it is believed that strategically, the goal has been initially achieved, and there is no need to spend time on Newfoundland, an outpost of the North American continent, and the United Kingdom and the United States - this is not economical.

Dönitz tried his best to say good things for the fleet. Of course, he was not an unprincipled good man. His reason was: one Independence-class light aircraft carrier carried 30 aircraft, and the four ships totaled 120 aircraft. The Germans lost the Elbe and Skyhawk. The number of carrier-based aircraft is almost the same. The overall losses of both sides seem to be the same, but the difficulty of destroying 4 warships is different from destroying 2 warships. What's more, the carrier-based aircraft also killed 5-6 10,000-ton light cruisers. ——This is equivalent to the total number of light cruisers currently owned by Germany.

"Führer, our army lost more than 100 aircraft. The enemy's losses were more than four times that of our army. In addition, we successfully covered the retreat of hundreds of cargo ships and nearly 1.4 million tons of supplies. If this is not considered a victory, what is? victory?"

Keitel and Yoder seconded this.

Hoffman felt anxious. He originally expected to mobilize the British and American aircraft carrier formations after the attack on Newfoundland and then use Tai Chi to eliminate the opponent. Unexpectedly, he fought a lose-lose battle. However, he also had the expectation of a head-on confrontation with Britain and the United States. After all, The German Navy has never had strong confidence in a decisive battle with the British and American fleets. Unless it is forced to a dead end, it will always have a vague fear. It is not scary to have fewer ships. If this mentality is not reversed, it will never become a great naval power. tolerance.

He nodded. Dönitz's words were quite reasonable, similar to the conclusion he had drawn for the Bermuda Battle.

"Okay, try to strengthen your strength as much as possible to help them win this battle. As for aircraft carriers, they can always cope with it once they overcome it."

Speer originally wanted to express his dissatisfaction with Hoffman: Hainan Airlines could only test 12 Do-412s. How could the Air Force, instigated by Focke-Wulf and Dr. Tank, use all the newly produced Do-412s? Are all the 8 Ta-152s that have not completed the test subjects sent to Newfoundland? This is a serious irresponsibility for the arms production process! But when the words came to his lips, he had no chance to continue, because the head of state had just said "strengthen as much strength as possible to help them win this battle." The Air Force Chief of Staff, General Jeshunek, winked at him, suggesting that he should stop complaining. , even if you complain, it will be in vain...

When Hoffman asked about the aircraft carrier, Speer replied: "The Ise will basically be ready for service later this month, and the Hyuga will be put into service next month. From February to March, two aircraft carriers converted from Italian cruise ships will be available ( King and Count of Savoy), and then the Jean-Bart will be basically completed in April... In short, if the head of state can convince the Italian leaders, basically one aircraft carrier can be provided every month in the next six months. "

"Isn't Mussolini covetous of the Bf-219 and Ju-98 production lines? I think we can provide them to them. As for the No. 4 tanks and Raiders, if the Italians can take them, we can also provide them to them. By the way, Italy The leader also asked me for jets, G43s and STG43s. You can all give them to me..." Hoffman said with a smile, "The Italians used our technology and production lines to build a batch of No. 3 assault guns and traded them with the Japanese for rubber and The prices for other supplies are better than ours, but he thinks I don’t know, ha... How funny! When will Italy be able to keep it a secret? I’m just too lazy to say it.”

Everyone laughed. Since they started equipping Raiders, the troops' demand for the No. 3 assault gun began to decline, so the head of state didn't bother to care. Hearing that Hoffman released these technologies and equipment, Speer smiled even more: "In addition to this batch of rebuilt aircraft carriers, our newly built Yunlong Kai and Dafeng Kai will also be gradually completed in the future, and other auxiliary warships will also be completed. With simultaneous supply, the Navy will definitely have many more aircraft carriers and aircraft in the future than it does now. However, I have a request. In addition to meeting the needs of the Azores and ready-made military equipment, the supplies shipped back from Newfoundland this time will not exceed the current supply. Ships, raw materials, fuel and other supplies need to be coordinated by the Ministry of Armaments.”

In the end, Speer finally made his request clear, and everyone seemed to suddenly realize: 100 freighters alone are enough to feed the Ministry of Armament.

Hoffman waved his hand boldly: "Yes, if the Japanese want to negotiate terms with us next, they can even consider putting some of the unwanted American equipment on the list - these are all picked up..."

"Now that the head of state has spoken, the next thing will be much easier to handle. The Italians don't need to give all the new equipment and new technologies they require. I will slowly control the output gradually. Anyway, they can't digest so much at once. I hope The navy can destroy 1-2 more American fleet aircraft carriers, even at a 1:1 ratio, because in this way, both the Falklands and the Azores will be impregnable, waiting for the Azores air defense tower project in March. After the bunker fortifications are fully completed, haha, the Americans' 10 aircraft carriers and 10 divisions may not work... As for the Falklands, if shipping exports from South America can continue to be maintained, the domestic supply of food and raw materials will be more secure. More equipment is also available.”

Speer's words are not bragging. The general mobilization has been implemented for more than a year, and the output of all important equipment has been on the rise. There is no sign of turning around. No one dares to say where the ceiling is in the future. Pell believed that if the supply of raw materials increased, the peak production period would occur in the second half of 1945 and last for 2-3 years. What's even more rare is that due to the power of Speer's organization and the strong implementation of the Eastern Policy, Germany is currently prosperous, with no shortage of food and various necessities, and Western European countries have also benefited. In addition, due to the strategic air strikes of the United Kingdom and the United States, Stopped, the entire European continent quickly returned to the ideal social state: factories were operating at full capacity, unemployment was almost eliminated, and although material supplies were not all available, there was no problem in meeting basic needs. Except for the still short supply of civilian fuel, most of the People, especially the middle and lower classes, are living better and more fulfilling lives than before.

In this context, supporters of the Belgian Rex Party continued to grow. An ordinary citizen said in an interview: ...I don’t understand which one is better, National Socialism or Liberalism, and I don’t understand which one is greater, the Führer or the President of the United States. , but if the life we ​​are living now counts as National Socialism, I will vote for them - it is okay to be serious and nervous in politics, at least everyone does not have to freely starve and fear unemployment... As for the Jews, they are not going to Africa. Has the country been founded? The head of state also gave them a large copper mine, what else could they be dissatisfied with?

After receiving the next battle plan from the fleet, everyone nodded. No matter which of Ozawa's three ideas was more favorable and feasible, everyone's worries disappeared.

At night, Berlin's reply message of agreement was sent to the Zeppelin. Machar breathed a sigh of relief, and then talked to Frank, the commander of the attack group: "Tomorrow you will lead the attack again... remember my words. , Don’t worry about the losses at the rear, don’t change your mentality, and try to get as many people back alive as possible!”

"Yes, sir! But I think Commander Ozawa seems a little..." Because Ozawa commanded the fleet well, his authoritative image was established early on. Although he is a foreigner, his prestige among mid-level officers is very high. So Frank was a little nervous.

"Don't care about his attitude. He has no ill will towards you personally, he just wants to succeed more. The Japanese don't take human life seriously, but you must protect your subordinates. This is what I suffered from the Bermuda Continental Team. The most important lesson learned after that was that airplanes, warships, and tanks can all be built. The head of state now has the industrial power and resources of all Europe. What equipment will he need in the future? Maybe one less German man will die in the war, no matter who he is. Can’t change.”

Machar said earnestly: "Tonight, the Marines have gradually arranged to retreat. General Weiss sent a telegram specifically. He doesn't care about the equipment. The key is to save the people. These five battalions are all after the test of war. With the elites you get, you can recruit some new soldiers and integrate them to form a complete marine brigade. You have seen the combat capabilities of Canadians, Americans, and Russians. They are several times more powerful than us and they can't defeat us. They are special. Are they stupid? Of course not, it's because they have no experience and have to pay a bloody price to learn war. If all these veterans are eliminated, we will be in such a miserable situation in the future. You have seen the situation of the Japanese pilot team. , except for the top batch, the rest are simply training soldiers and cannot be used... Therefore, for public and private purposes, pilots should not choose to fight to the death!"

Frank nodded to show that he understood. He was very grateful to Machar for telling him this before the war: after seeing the losses of the fleet today, the pilots were generally not very interested and believed that they had not completed the mission. He urgently needed to relieve their pressure.

Time passed by, and before dawn on December 3, both sides had dispatched countless fighter jets, reconnaissance planes, bombers and transport aircraft. The two fleets, the Axis and the Alliance, were following their respective battle plans based on the battlefield conditions. maneuver while Matthew Ridgway and his 101st Airborne Division were en route to Newfoundland.