Bismarck

Chapter 221: The Birth and Fall of the Ace

In the sky thirty kilometers away from the Zeppelin, the British aircraft group that had just arrived to provide support was once again engaged in a melee with the German Goshawks. The fierce air battle paused for a while and then began again.

“Hold on! Hold on!!”

Major Douglas Bader was going crazy with depression.

The day before, his 19th Fighter Squadron was transferred from Dukeford Base in the south to the north-central part to strengthen the defense in accordance with the order from the superiors, and then it was ready for battle today - eight Spitfires escorted fifteen bombers to bomb the German fleet. As a result, they encountered a rather tough opponent as soon as they went into battle.

Didn't we just cover the bombers?!

Didn't they say that the other side had just been severely damaged by a naval aircraft carrier? ! !

What happened to the fact that the enemy only had less than a squadron of aircraft and had just experienced a fierce battle? ! ! !

Major Douglas just wanted to ask those people how they observed the battlefield last time!

According to the intelligence reported, what was the reason for such a brutal attack? ---- Especially the leading plane on the opposite side, the one with a flower painted on it, and it seemed to be driven by a woman. The pilots who fled back in a panic in front of them emphasized this special plane. At first they didn't care, but they didn't expect that it would shoot down a fighter and a bomber on their side in a row? !

The major felt like he had been severely slapped in the face. The squadron he led was defeated by a woman...

Moreover, it was not just this woman. Among her fighter planes, there were at least two tough guys! One was painted yellow and numbered 14. His shooting was extremely accurate and his attacks were erratic. This plane and the woman formed a two-plane formation. In the initial head-on attack, they threw their own team into chaos and also took the life of one of their subordinates! The other number 9 was experienced and steady. He never took the initiative to attack, but was dedicated to covering others.

At least two Spitfires under Douglas' command that were planning to "pick up the missing pieces" or trying to drag the BF109 into the melee were killed inexplicably by the gunfire of this experienced and steady covert actor who appeared from behind.

Although the performance of the Spitfires fighting alone was slightly inferior to that of the BF109Ts on the other side, they were still capable of fighting in a one-on-one battle. However...with the support of the coverer, there was no way to stop the BF109Ts from attacking the bombers!

Any Spitfire that tried to attack those BF109Ts would be shot down from behind by that Type ! !

In just three minutes, the eight fighters in his hands were reduced to four! The remaining four, including himself and his wingman, were now at a disadvantage. Without the containment and threat of the Spitfire, the clumsy Wellington bomber could only defend itself against the siege of the German fighters, and could only rely on the extraordinary defense brought by its iron frame to hold on. But in front of the MG18/151mm cannon with as much as 20 grams of explosives, it was basically just a bunch of sitting ducks!

Although the bombers relied on their defense to barely get close to the Zeppelin formation at a distance of only 15 kilometers, the number of bombers had been reduced from 15 to 12. What was even more terrifying was that although the bombers' defenses were barely able to defend against the fighters' attacks, and their rear machine guns even managed to injure two BF109Ts, all of a sudden, all the German fighters seemed to have given up the pursuit as if someone had shouted a slogan! They turned and disengaged instantly! Just when Bud was confused, only thirty seconds later, the th Regiment's huge fireball, far beyond his imagination, suddenly exploded in the middle of the bomber group, and the fierce flames instantly enveloped the already scarred Wellington group...

The sudden explosion seemed to make him feel the strong palpitations even more than a thousand yards away. When the flames of the explosion died down, Bud saw with even more palpitations that there were only six or seven Wellingtons that could still barely fly in the sky...

Even more densely distributed, even like a rainstorm, fireworks from the 105mm anti-aircraft guns and 127mm naval guns also exploded around the bomber group. The dense steel rain salvos made the fuselage structure of an already seriously damaged bomber overwhelmed and it disintegrated directly in the air into a pile of flying parts, which scattered among the rolling waves of the North Sea like flowers scattered by fairies!

Douglas gnashed his teeth unwillingly as he looked at the bombers that had already suffered heavy casualties. But even if he was unwilling, even if he gritted his teeth, he could only swallow the blood with such a huge loss.

“…Everyone, the attack has failed, retreat immediately!!” Douglas was unwilling to give in and had to give orders into the radio.

The four or five remaining bombers dropped their bombs one after another and turned around and fled, dragging their wounded bodies as if they had been pardoned.

Seeing these bombers fleeing like frightened birds, Bud was so angry that his nose was crooked. However, he was very clear that he was completely helpless when he saw the anti-aircraft firepower and fighter interception with his own eyes...

"Captain, this is Johnson! My wingman Nepper was killed! I've been bitten too! Requesting support!!..." Just as Bud was preparing to evacuate in frustration, the radio came with the voice of his subordinates who were gritting their teeth and holding on.

"What's going on?" asked Bud's wingman, Lieutenant Hugh Dundas.

Bud looked at the situation in the air, turned around and replied, "Lieutenant Johnson's Spitfire has been attacked by that woman and her Yellow 14 wingman. His wingman, Nepper, was shot down by Yellow 14. We have to go help him!"

Moreover, Bud knew very well that although Johnson was the most talented pilot under his command, Johnson, like him, had injuries from surgery - Bud had broken both legs and flew with the help of prosthetic limbs, while Johnson had a broken clavicle and was still suffering from the pain of a splint.

What's more, neither of these two German planes were easy to deal with, and they were in danger of being besieged.

"Johnson, hold on! I'll be there soon, and you come closer to me!" Bud gritted his teeth, pushed the accelerator to the maximum, and started calling Johnson at the same time.

Soon, Bud saw Johnson being chased by the two damn BF109Ts. He looked back and didn't see any Germans. Bud was ready to fly his fighter into a suitable attack position. But... before he could find the attack position, he heard his wingman's panicked call on the radio.

"Captain! Watch out from behind! German planes!!"

ps: The trump card born is naturally Zeppelin~

Chapter 222: The Birth and Fall of the Ace (Part 2)

"What?! Damn it!!"

The ace pilot's intuition and reaction made Douglas turn sideways subconsciously. As soon as he turned, he saw a string of dazzling tracer bullets sweeping upward from his original position, cutting through the sky - like a sharp scimitar coming towards him!

Behind Douglas, his wingman Dundas began to turn around and attack the German fighter, but the opponent was obviously a master.

A simple barrel roll maneuver not only increased his altitude, but also avoided the attack of his wingman, and occupied a favorable combat position from a high position. It seemed that he would launch a second attack on them soon.

Douglas recognized him quickly - this was No. 9 who had only provided support and not actively attacked, and the other master he had just seen.

His wingman was circling too fast just now and the distance was a bit far, so he couldn't get back in a while. Now he could only rely on his own operating skills to avoid the attack of No. 9.

But on Johnson's side... Douglas subconsciously looked back.

"Johnson, watch out behind you!" He yelled with his eyes wide open.

A German fighter plane suddenly jumped out from below and locked onto Johnson's back as he was about to rush over. A series of flames soon emerged from its ferocious gun muzzle.

It's too late.

Johnson only had time to hear Dodds' voice on the radio, and before he could react, a series of shells had already torn his cockpit apart. The shells passed through his body with unstoppable momentum, smashing the instrument panel into pieces - but for the plane that had lost its pilot, none of that mattered. After the fuel tank was pierced, the exploding shells ignited the aviation fuel, and the out-of-control plane let out a miserable scream, falling down while igniting a raging fire, and finally fell onto the hard water with the dead pilot, smashing into pieces, splashing long water...

J.E. Johnson, with a total of 1940 kills, ranked second in the Commonwealth and first in the British Empire, was also the Allied ace pilot with the highest number of kills against Germany; he was a recipient of the Companion of the Bath, Commander of the Order of the British Empire, three Distinguished Service Orders and two Distinguished Flying Crosses; he was an outstanding air force commander who participated in the Korean War, a major general of the Royal Air Force, and died in the sky over the North Sea on August 8, 16, at the hands of another legendary ace, Marseille, and fulfilled his oath (cha) (qi) with his life…

"Johnson!!" Douglas roared in pain, his hands holding the joystick trembling with grief.

He watched helplessly as Johnson's Spitfire was turned into a fireball by Yellow Thirteen in mid-air, but he was powerless to do anything!

What a shame!

But even though he was sad and angry, he had to first avoid the attack from No. 9 who was swooping down from behind.

Douglas began to turn in the direction where his wingman had just left, and he also saw that his wingman had pulled back and was ready to attack the damn No. 9... Wait! No. 9? Where is No. 9? !

Douglas was horrified when he looked back: the devilish No. 9 didn't bite him at all after it dived down to attack, but directly flew past the plane with flowers painted on it, and then did a big somersault with an Immelman spin, "backflipped and turned 180 degrees" and dived over the head of his wingman - and the wingman who had rushed over and tried hard to pull back had no energy to resist or get rid of this attack! !

"Dundas!!!"

"Do not--"

Along with Douglas' heart-wrenching screams was the ruthless sound of the Edelweiss fighter's machine guns and the scene of shells tearing the fuselage apart.

A series of machine gun fire accurately hit the cockpit of the Spitfire wingman, and in the blink of an eye, the Spitfire lost control.

Ordinary machine guns can make big holes in people, 12.7mm machine guns can tear human bodies apart, and mm machine guns... can directly smash people to pieces.

There was no way anyone could be alive in a cockpit that was hit by several machine gun shells... Douglas knew this sadly. The last thing he saw was the silhouette of the wingman crashing into the North Sea, trailing black smoke.

But at this time, Douglas no longer had time to feel sad for his wingman pilot Dundas... The damn BF109T with flowers painted on it, piloted by the female pilot, had also entered the attack position...

"go to hell!"

In anger, Douglas pulled the nose of the plane upwards and faced the damn woman head-on, and started a duel with the Edelweiss fighter that began to dive like a medieval knight.

One going up, one going down, they drove their respective fighter planes and began a fearless charge.

In this state, both sides almost completely exposed their cockpits to each other, and everyone could easily deliver shells into the enemy's body!

Even if I die, I will drag her to hell!

Zeppelin was slightly stunned, as if he had not expected the other party to do this. This was almost an act of suicide - the opponent's fighter was now almost in a large-angle climb stage, and consuming a large amount of reserve speed meant a continuous decrease in maneuverability, while he himself was always in the acceleration stage.

Zeppelin could have easily avoided this wishful suicide attack, but when it came to pulling the joystick, she changed her mind.

"Since you have good skills, I will let you die with dignity."

The words were very respectful, but the raised corners of her lips made her look more like a fallen angel crawling out of hell, taking other people's lives with a smile.

She squeezed the joystick again, and the two fighter planes moved closer together rapidly as if they were being towed.

Three, two, one!

Open fire almost at the same time!

All the machine guns fired fiercely at the enemy's nose.

Then the next moment, the Spitfire's machine gun suddenly stopped, and then billowing black smoke came out of the cockpit, and the two fighters crossed each other in an instant.

After the intersection, Edelweiss regained its altitude with a neat pull, but the Spitfire continued to fall and finally fell into the sea.

"Impossible..." Douglas' body was shattered by the machine gun and fell with the fighter plane, but the last consciousness in his brain was full of disbelief.

It was his machine gun that hit the pilot of the plane.

Why, why, for...

He could no longer know why.

Lieutenant Colonel Douglas Douglas was disabled due to injuries, but he was strong-willed. He relied on two artificial limbs to continue flying planes in the blue sky and achieved 22 kills. He was a famous legless flying general, one of the main proposers and advocates of the "Grand Wing" concept of the British Royal Air Force, a strong soldier and an excellent commander. Although he was defeated and captured in 41, his deeds of flying planes with artificial limbs were even respected by the German Air Force. After the war, he served as a test pilot and general manager of Shell Company. He was killed in action...

It was indeed Douglas's machine gun that hit Zeppelin first. The broken glass in the cockpit proved it. If it was an ordinary pilot, he would have gone to see God directly, but Zeppelin just patted the dust on his forehead speechlessly - the 20mm machine gun hit her right on the forehead, and the smoke after the explosion made her look a little dusty.

"Fortunately, the bullet didn't hit my body. It would have been embarrassing if my clothes were blown off..." Zeppelin thought. He was lucky this time as it didn't hit any other parts of the body and the plane could still fly.

but···

"The fuel and ammunition are not enough, Marseille, Grislawski, let's go back and land." After shooting down the Douglas, Zeppelin looked at the remaining fuel and ammunition and ordered the remaining BF109Ts to begin evacuating.

"But instructor, what should we do with the other group of aircraft?" asked the cautious Grislavsky.

"It's okay. I checked the radar before I got off the plane. The last British fleet is smaller and weaker than this one. Tirpitz and his anti-aircraft guns are enough to deal with them... If you're really worried, the worst that can happen is that we stay in the sky for a while..."

"Ok!"

………………

Not long after Douglas was killed, maybe a quarter of an hour later, two small bomber groups in the other direction, which were smaller in scale and had only a few bombers and not even many fighter escorts due to the bombing of the airport the day before, were also beaten to a bloody pulp by the anti-aircraft fire of Tirpitz who was on high alert.

When the last wave of British bombers retreated in a panic, Zeppelin was piloting her BF109T fighter with a shattered cockpit and holes all over it, performing a textbook landing operation. She accurately hooked the arresting cable on the shaky flight deck and landed steadily on the flight deck.

The ground crew immediately surrounded the plane and pushed it to the side.

Zeppelin jumped off the plane, first patted his somewhat disheveled flight suit, and then looked at the still blue North Sea with some melancholy.

In the sky above the North Sea where the smoke of gunpowder had cleared, it seemed as if the final will of the two great British aces was still murmured...

"There are only three of us left. We are in a difficult situation, but we will not lose heart. We would rather die in battle than retreat, because we will die like heroes! -- Right, Captain?"

"Yes, we would rather die in battle than take a step back, and the British Empire will never take a step back either..."

ps: I don’t know whether there will be shooting scenes like Zeppelin in real wars. I only know that there are a lot of them in War Thunder, although I was the one who was shot down.

I recommend a new book, the title is [The Leisurely Daily Life of Warship Girls], a new book by the author of Fantasy Ship Girls, a very leisurely and humorous story~~~

Chapter 223: Zeppelin's Counterattack (I)

Bismarck was about to go down to greet the returning Zeppelin, but then he saw Zeppelin, who had jumped out of the plane, ran directly to the carrier landing observer (FDO)'s position, personally holding the radio and operating the guidance lights to guide the other planes to land.

Although the Zeppelin is equipped with an optical landing aid system, theoretically it can land safely even without FDO. But now the front of the flight deck is damaged and the arresting net is pulled up. It is really worrying if we don't guide it. With Zeppelin's responsible personality, this is indeed her style.

Responsible and serious.

However, Bismarck found that Zeppelin's walking was a little unsteady, probably due to the sequelae of the damage to the steering gear.

Fortunately, it wasn't the main axis, otherwise she would have had difficulty walking.

Behind Zeppelin, several other BF109Ts also began to land. Although the arresting nets were a little distracting, under Zeppelin's guidance, the last few fighters all landed safely. Finally, Lutjans, Bonte, Bismarck and others in "C3I" who had been paying attention to the landing of carrier-based aircraft, as well as the damage control team and maintenance team in front, breathed a sigh of relief.

There are not many planes to begin with, and it would be a shame if one or two were hit during landing.

"Fortunately, the front deck repair was not delayed..."

Bangtai said as he wiped the cold sweat from his forehead.

"Indeed, it would be troublesome if the flight deck of an aircraft carrier was damaged. But fortunately, it is temporarily stable now. After the bombing of this area yesterday, they can only send out these few planes for the time being."

Lutjens took a sip of coffee calmly, although the blue veins on his forehead that had not yet completely healed and the cold sweat on his back showed that he was actually very nervous.

Although the span was only a few hours, it felt like several centuries. Lütjens felt that this was even more difficult than the battle in Iceland.

Maybe it’s because the aircraft’s combat tempo is faster.

Bismarck didn't say anything. She didn't know how to face her sisters... But there was no point in being afraid. Soon, Zeppelin's voice sounded at the door...

"Commander, Captain, Major Zeppelin reporting in!"

The heroic military salute, the handsome and cool expression, and the serious but not rigid movements all show the character of a soldier.

However, although it cannot be seen from the outside, her slightly immobile legs and feet show that her true body does have an impact on her projection.

It must be painful... Bismarck lowered his head even lower... He didn't pay much attention to how Zeppelin reported to the two captains...

But soon, Zeppelin came over after finishing his report.

Zeppelin changed his usual cold expression, bent down towards the smiling man, and pinched Bismarck's ear using his height advantage.

"Hey!" Bismarck, who was already nervous and ashamed, was pinched like this and became so nervous that his hair stood on end.