Chương 121: Chapter 199 Great Victory
In the future, there's a World War II movie titled "Attack from Beneath the Sea", depicting a German U-boat sent on a mission to search and destroy British merchant ships in the North Atlantic. When they completed the task and prepared to return, it was already the 65th day, severely damaged with fuel running out. Despite surviving an unfortunate hit by Allied destroyers and sinking to the seafloor, they faced another mission to traverse the Strait of Gibraltar. However, during the celebration upon their return, they were sunk by Allied aircraft in the German-occupied La Rochelle shipyard in France.
The film begins with the chilling data: "40,000 German submarine force members, 30,000 never returned", seemingly confirming the failure of wolf pack tactics. In the movie, we see these "lone wolves" lurking anxiously underwater, awaiting Allied merchant ships, only to encounter Allied "bait and ambush" tactics and deep-sea bombs. The "wolf pack" turned into a "herd of sheep" in the eyes of the Allies. The portrait of Dönitz hanging on the submarine was no longer revered by the soldiers; instead, it became a subject of mockery. Their expectation was not about sinking as many merchant ships as possible but rather completing torpedo launches and rushing home.
This was the tragic fate of the German submarine force in the later stages of the war.
Yet, the initial wolf pack attacks were fearsome and chilling. Even the king of beasts would struggle against successive wolf pack attacks. The Allies suffered significant losses. At the peak of wolf pack operations, they sank 1,160 merchant ships, totaling 6.3 million tons, with their own losses not even reaching seven percent. British Prime Minister Churchill remarked, "The only thing that made me uneasy during World War II was the German U-boats."
This statement came from the heart because Britain, being a resource-poor island nation, relied heavily on overseas colonies to transport essential materials for domestic production and daily needs. In those times, 75% of their petroleum, 88% of iron ore, 95% of copper, 99% of lead, 89% of wheat, 84% of meat, and 93% of cooking oil were imported. The annual shipping volume exceeded 68 million tons, with up to 2,500 British transport ships sailing the seas daily. If these convoys suffered heavy losses, Britain might become incapable of continuing the war due to resource shortages.
Therefore, Dönitz was also known as the "Wolf's Head".
The frenzied attacks by the wolf packs initially left the Allies at a loss, especially when dealing with the "unsafe zone" German submarines (areas unreachable by land-based bombers). However, when their attention turned to naval aviation, a solution to crack the wolf pack tactics was conceived. Since land-based bombers couldn't reach, why not bring aircraft into the "unsafe zone"?
Without further ado, a fleet that had just completed the North African "Torch Operation" set off for the Atlantic "unsafe zone". This fleet, centered around an aircraft carrier, featured 2-3 layers of protection with destroyers and fast escort ships. It could guard against surprise attacks by German submarines, protect the aircraft carrier, and deploy carrier-based planes to strike German submarines.
This fleet patrolled within the "unsafe zone", and as soon as a German submarine was spotted, they immediately organized carrier-based planes and fast escort ships for interception. Unexpectedly, the counterattacks were highly effective, either sinking Dönitz's submarines or forcing them to stay submerged without exposing themselves. Finally, transport convoys could safely proceed to their destinations.
At last, the Allies found the nemesis of the German submarine force - the aircraft carrier.
From then on, the wolf packs repeatedly suffered defeat in their clashes with the Allies. Even with all of Dönitz's strategies, he couldn't change this dire situation. In May 1943, as the Allies used carrier battle groups to attack the "wolf packs", Dönitz lost 41 submarines in just one month. His attempt to blockade the Atlantic shipping lanes was shattered, and he had to order all submarines to withdraw from the sea routes.
Wilhelm doesn't want to repeat the past. "If the enemy can send escort carriers, we can too. If they want to use carrier-based planes against our submarines, we'll use carrier-based planes against their carrier-based planes and carriers. General Dönitz, this is why I say that without the coordination of large surface vessels and naval aviation, submarines are ultimately hard-pressed to stand alone."
Currently, German carrier-based planes are of the Fw 190T type, and Wilhelm believes that these aircraft can dominate maritime air superiority for at least one or two years.
Generally, naval aviation carrier-based planes tend to have slightly inferior performance compared to land-based counterparts. This is because carrier take-offs and landings require additional structural strength and design considerations, which are unnecessary for land-based aircraft, allowing for significant space savings and performance optimization.
At this time, German carrier-based planes are adapted from land-based models, and their performance is comparable to land-based planes. With powerful capabilities, including flight altitude, speed, and various parameters like roll, climb, and dive, German planes surpass their counterparts by far.
Once a large-scale naval battle begins, Wilhelm seriously doubts if the British can hold out for two years.
The more Wilhelm thinks about it, the more frustrated he becomes. He equipped the navy with such powerful weapons, and these guys still lack the courage to fight the British! Must he let Dönitz command the surface fleet?
Repeating the same mistakes again and again. If the surface fleet returns skulking this time, certain individuals will surely pay the price.
As Wilhelm gets more agitated and uneasy, Anna enters with a face full of joy. "Your Highness, a great victory!"
"Let me see!" Wilhelm abruptly stands up, almost snatching the telegram from Anna's hands. "Royal Oak sunk, Iron Duke sunk, Nelson sunk, Argus sunk, Ark Royal sunk, Illustrious heavily damaged; Rodney sitting on the seabed; Queen Elizabeth heavily damaged! Casualties estimated to be no less than 5,000. Also, Scapa Flow naval base commander Hebrew Jones passed away due to a heart attack."
"Hail to German victory!" Listening to Wilhelm recite the formidable names of the warships, Dönitz trembles with excitement, suddenly standing up and roaring, startling Wilhelm.
However, equally thrilled, Wilhelm doesn't blame him. He hands the telegram to Anna. "Immediately give this to Goebbels for extensive propaganda."
Wilhelm quickly calculates that the tonnage of warships sunk or heavily damaged by Prien in this operation is not less than 250,000 tons. "General Dönitz, I think the Oak Leaves Knight's Cross awarded to Prien previously is far from sufficient to commend his heroic deeds. I've decided to award him the Swords and Silver Oak Leaves Knight's Cross." The Swords and Silver Oak Leaves Knight's Cross is a higher military honor than the Silver Oak Leaves Knight's Cross. The only difference is the addition of a pair of swords beneath the oak leaves. Usually, a soldier who has been awarded the Silver Oak Leaves Knight's Cross and continues to display exceptional bravery in battle, fulfilling their mission, has the chance to receive the Swords and Silver Oak Leaves Knight's Cross.
In the German military, the Silver Oak Leaves Knight's Cross is colloquially known as "cabbage", and the unfortunate Swords and Silver Oak Leaves Knight's Cross is referred to as "cabbage with knife and fork."
"Your Highness, a wise decision!" Dönitz naturally has no reason to object.
In less than an hour, all German radio stations begin reporting this astonishing and unbelievable news.
The entire Germany is immersed in jubilation.
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