Chapter 398: Sea Battle VI

"Marshal, the first assault wave destroyed an aircraft carrier!" Yeshunnek cheered in the headquarters of the German-Italian Allied Forces in the Mediterranean, "In addition, a Nelson-class battleship was also severely damaged, at least 4 500 kg bombs and 3 torpedoes!"

"What? A Nelson-class battleship was severely damaged?" Admiral Cavgnari, Chief of Staff of the Italian Navy, asked hurriedly, "Are you sure it is the Nelson-class?"

"It is absolutely certain," Yeshunnek said, "The layout of the Nelson-class artillery is very strange, and the three turrets are all at the bow. It is impossible to make a mistake."

"Good!" Cavgnari was overjoyed and turned back to Hessman and said, "Marshal, I suggest that the main fleet be dispatched immediately to launch an assault on the British fleet!"

The "Nelson" class was a giant among the seven major battleships in the world during the "Navy Holiday Era" during the interwar period. It not only had 9 powerful 16-inch cannons, but also had very solid defenses. This "Nelson" class that came to the eastern Mediterranean can be said to be the most feared opponent of the entire Italian Navy! It is precisely because of its existence that Admiral Cavgnari did not dare to send out the Italian battleship force with two "Veneto" class to fight against the British Mediterranean Fleet.

"Send out the main fleet?" Hessman thought for a while and asked, "Are you sure?"

"As long as the Air Force can kill it, no, as long as the "Nelson" class can be severely damaged, there will be no problem." Cavgnari said, "Our two "Veneto" class are very powerful battleships, with firepower even exceeding the German "Bismarck" class, and they also have solid defenses. The thickest part of its side main armor belt is 360mm, which is enough to resist the British 15-inch main guns. Moreover, the Air Force has only completed one wave of attacks now, and there will be a second and third wave of attacks later. The fourth, fifth and sixth waves of attacks can be launched in the afternoon! By then, I am afraid that all British battleships will be hit and damaged, and the combat effectiveness of the British Mediterranean Fleet will be greatly reduced. This is a good opportunity for us to destroy them in one fell swoop!"

"But where did the two British aircraft carriers go?" Hessman seemed a little worried.

"Aren't there 48 Fokker Zero carrier-based aircraft?" Cavneari said, "The British have at most 60 to 70 biplane torpedo planes on their two aircraft carriers. With the Fokker Zeros, they can't get close to the fleet at all."

"And the shore-based aircraft on Crete," Yeshunnek reminded. "British Blenheim light bombers can carry heavy bombs, are relatively fast, and have combat effectiveness no less than S.M.79."

Cavgnari smiled and said, "At most, we can bear some losses, but as long as we can defeat the British Mediterranean Fleet in one fell swoop and seize the sea power in the Mediterranean, the lost ships can be rebuilt quickly... Both Italy and France have strong shipbuilding industries!"

Italy actually has its own "Z Plan". As early as 1935, the Italian Navy proposed a grand shipbuilding plan to have 9 new battleships (excluding the "Count of Cavour" class and the "Doria" class), 3 new aircraft carriers (excluding the "Eagle" and "Sparrowhawk"), 36 cruisers and ocean reconnaissance ships, 142 destroyers and torpedo ships, and 85 submarines before 1942. However, due to the high cost of the Abyssinian War and the subsequent colonial development, as well as the interference in the Spanish Civil War, this grand shipbuilding plan was ultimately not realized. But in January 1939, Mussolini, sensing the approach of war, approved a smaller shipbuilding plan, preparing to start construction of two new "Veneto" class ships (in addition to "Veneto", "Littorio", "Roma" and "Empire") and two 15,000-ton aircraft carriers, 20 2,100-ton destroyers and 20 1,000-ton torpedo boats, plus a shipbuilding plan for 60 submarines between 1939 and 1940.

However, with the outbreak of the war, the supply of various raw materials became tight, and the shipbuilding plan approved in 1939 also came to a standstill. However, as long as the Italian Navy can control the Mediterranean and the German Army can sweep North Africa and the Middle East. Raw materials will no longer be a problem, and by then, Italian and even French shipyards will be running at full capacity!

Hessman smiled and nodded: "Okay, I approve the fleet. In addition, the shore-based aviation forces are preparing the 4th, 5th and 6th assault waves!"

"Yes, Your Excellency Marshal!"

...

The commander of the Italian fleet's flagship "Veneto", the chief of staff, Major General Baroni, said happily to Admiral Igoni Compioni: "The shore-based aircraft sank an aircraft carrier and damaged a "Nelson" class. Now Admiral Cavgnari asked us to go out and fight the British fleet!"

"Very good!" Admiral Compioni clapped his hands, "Finally, we have waited for the opportunity! Leave 5 heavy cruisers and 10 destroyers support the landing force, and the rest of the ships will set off immediately! "

"Admiral, the British fleet should flee northeast after being damaged, and then turn east in the waters south of Crete. Considering that a Nelson-class ship was damaged, their speed should be less than 18 knots."

"Predict their route and then take the shortest route to pursue them!" Admiral Igni Compioni said, "We will first pursue them at a speed of 28 knots for 3 hours, and then reduce it to 26 knots."

"Admiral, we can't drive at 28 knots," Rear Admiral Baroni reminded, "The two aircraft carriers have a maximum speed of only 25 knots. "

The two aircraft carriers of the Italian fleet were converted from cruise ships, and they were not based on the expensive "Blue Ribbon" cruise ship, so their speed was relatively slow.

Admiral Igni Compioni waved his hand and said, "Then let them follow behind. It's nothing to pull 3 nautical miles in an hour. It takes 24 hours to pull 72 nautical miles. This is not a problem for the Fokker Zero."

Around 11 o'clock noon, the main force of Italy was divided into three parts on the sea near Malta, forming a battle fleet with battleships as the core, an aircraft carrier fleet with aircraft carriers as the core, and a support fleet with heavy cruisers as the core.

The battle fleet includes all battleships and most light cruisers and destroyers; the aircraft carrier fleet consists of 2 aircraft carriers, 2 heavy cruisers and 6 destroyers; the support fleet has 5 heavy cruisers and 10 destroyers.

After the division was completed, the support fleet continued to be responsible for shelling Malta. The battle fleet rushed eastward under the personal command of Admiral Compionni, while the aircraft carrier fleet commanded by Admiral Anzu Aquino also sailed eastward behind the battle fleet.

The Italian fleet's division was discovered by a Mosquito reconnaissance plane that took off from Crete at around 1:30 pm, and was quickly reported to Admiral Cunningham, who was a little overwhelmed.

At this time, the Mediterranean A Fleet commanded by Cunningham had survived two assault waves launched by the German and Italian Air Forces, and was now preparing to meet the attack of the third assault wave.

Under the attack of the first two waves of enemy aircraft, the "Eagle" aircraft carrier sank at 11:10. The "Lorraine" battleship belonging to the Free French Navy also suffered a fatal blow after the second assault wave arrived. It was hit by 5 500 kg armor-piercing bombs. Its thin deck armor (25mm) could not withstand such an attack at all. Three bombs penetrated the battleship, and one of them directly hit the engine room, causing the 23,000-ton battleship to lose most of its power and become a target for the S.M.79 torpedo bomber. At 12:05, three aerial torpedoes hit the "Lorraine", tearing three huge holes on its starboard side. In just a few minutes, the battleship and nearly 1,000 French sailors on it disappeared into the sea.

After successfully destroying the "Lorraine", the remaining bombers and torpedo planes of the second assault wave aimed their firepower at the smoking "Rodney" near the "Lorraine". 500 kg bombs rained down like raindrops. In just 15 minutes, the Rodney was hit by 4 more bombs. One of them penetrated the stern deck and exploded outside the engine room. Although the armor of the Rodney's engine room was strong and it was impossible to be destroyed by a 500 kg bomb, the explosion still damaged some pipes, causing steam leakage in the engine room. The speed of the Rodney also dropped from 20 knots to 10 knots.

After the speed dropped, the Rodney became a live target for the S.M.79 torpedo bombers, which launched an attack from the starboard side of the stern of the Rodney. Several bombs were hit near this position, and most of the anti-aircraft guns and secondary guns were damaged. In addition, the fire on the lifeboat deck also blocked the gunner's sight, so the anti-aircraft firepower seemed very weak. More than 20 S.M.79s dropped torpedoes from this direction, and 6 of them hit, almost destroying the stern of the Rodney. Although the serious damage to the stern would not cause the "Rodney" to sink, the large amount of water inflow and damage to the rudder still made the battleship lose most of its combat capability.

While the "Rodney" was besieged by torpedo bombers, the Ju88, which had not yet dropped its bombs, took the slow-moving "Royal Sovereign" as its target. This was a battleship with huge flaws in its design. Its power compartment was too narrow (it was originally planned to use a coal-fired boiler, but it was changed to an oil-fired boiler halfway), which limited the space for major changes in the future. Therefore, the British Admiralty, in the spirit of breaking the ship, did not carry out large-scale modifications for more than 20 years after its construction.

Today, not only does it seem to be underpowered, but even its armored defense has become outdated. The horizontal armor of the "Royal Sovereign" is only 1-3 inches, which can't withstand the attack of 500 kg armor-piercing shells.

As a result, every 500 kg armor-piercing shell that hit the deck of the "Regal" penetrated into the body of the "Regal", blowing up the interior of the battleship, destroying the boiler room, engine room, soldiers and officers' cabins and an oil depot. The fire began to spread on the "Regal", and everyone knew that the battleship could not be saved.