October 10, 1939, 12 noon GMT. In the waters near Iceland, the weather has cleared, but the wind and waves are still very strong, and there are almost 5 sea conditions, and carrier-based aircraft cannot be dispatched at all -- this is the reason why the role of aircraft carriers in the Atlantic and North Sea theaters is far less than that of the Pacific Ocean.

In addition, it is a long night in the Arctic, and there are 6 to 7 hours of daylight in the waters around Iceland. This also greatly limits the use of aviation - of course, in the summer when the wind and waves are lighter, there are also "polar day" weather near Iceland, which is very conducive to the activity of aviation forces.

"Lieutenant General, telegram from the headquarters in Wilhelmshaven, everything is business as usual in the port of Reykjavik." Major General Reifman took the telegram from the communications staff officer, glanced at it, and then said to Lieutenant General Machar. "Are we going to dock at the port of Reykjavik as planned?"

"No, the Scharnhorst and the Seydlitz cannot be ventured," said Vice Admiral Machar, "and the main forces of the British Home Fleet have also left the anchorage. ”

The main force of the British Home Fleet is now not concentrated in Scarpa Bay, but scattered to several ports in the northwest of Scotland - the German He-111, Ju88, He-115 and Fokker Zero can actually fly over from Wilhelmshaven, but they must fly through the Scottish air, and the risk of being shot down is suddenly more than ten times greater!

The German bombers could not go, but the agents of the Central Security Bureau were quickly in place. Therefore, the news of the departure of the capital ships of the British Home Fleet was reported to the battleship Scharnhorst on the afternoon of October 8.

"Let the Leipzig go and refuel and leave immediately." "The Scharnhorst and the Seydlitz have enough fuel to go around the north-west waters of Ireland and perhaps sink a few British transports," said Vice Admiral Marchar. ”

In fact, the light cruiser "Leipzig" also had a great endurance, and with a cruising speed it could sail continuously for 6,200 nautical miles. However, it still makes sense to make an appearance in the port of Reykjavik, on the one hand, to attract the attention of the British, to cover the "Scharnhorst" and "Seydlitz"; On the one hand, it would also give Britain a pretext to invade Iceland - it would be almost a "win-win" situation, and Britain would get Iceland and the Faroe Islands, two large bases covering the logistics line. Germany, on the other hand, could take the opportunity to package Britain as a demon that undermined the peace and tranquility of Europe, and it could also take the opportunity to bring Denmark itself under "protection", and at the same time conclude "treaties of friendship and mutual assistance" with "protective clauses" with Norway, Sweden, Finland, and the Netherlands (for example, in the event of a British invasion of any of these countries, Germany would provide protection, and the rest would provide financial and material assistance).

"And what about the Leipzig?" Major General Reifman asked, "Let it go back?" ”

"No, set up a rendezvous point in the Atlantic Ocean near the equator," Mr. Mashal said, "and give the Leipzig a flag." ”

Now the entire fleet was in radio silence - Hirschmann attached great importance to the management of the communications of the troops because of the memories of his past life. In operations where capital ships break through into the Atlantic, radio silence must be strictly enforced.

In addition, the famous Enigma telegraph was suddenly replaced by a regularly changed cipher code one month before the outbreak of the war. However, the German General Staff did not give up the "Enigma machine" on this, but would make targeted modifications after obtaining the degree of cracking of the Engima telegraph by the Polish side, and then consider the issue of restarting the Enigma machine.

……

"Admiral, one of the German cruisers has entered the port of Reykjavik in Iceland!"

At 5:30 p.m. on October 10, the battleship "Revenge" of the British Royal Navy received the news that the light cruiser "Leipzig" had entered the port of Reykjavik - this almost proved that the vanished "Scharnhorst" and "Seydlitz" had successfully broken through into the Atlantic!

"They've broken into the Atlantic!" Charles. Forbes gritted his teeth, "It's almost inevitable!" ”

The weather in Iceland and the Faroe Islands was not good for the two days, and it only cleared up on the afternoon of October 10. But at that time, it was only three hours before dark, and there was no time to send reconnaissance planes from Scotland. The British fleet in the waters near the Iceland-Faroe Islands was unable to release carrier-based aircraft to meet the enemy because of the strong wind and waves at sea.

"Admiral, what shall we do?" Maj. Gen. Phillips said, "Are we going to wander around the Atlantic like headless flies?" ”

Now the three fleets of Britain are almost wandering around!

Not only because of bad weather, but also because the "Scharnhorst" and "Seydlitz" were too fast. The British side except for the "Hood" and the "Ark Royal" other capital ships could not catch up at all, and even if they were discovered, it would be useless.

"No," Admiral Forbes shook his head, "it can't be like this...... We can't look for them, we have to let them come in on their own! ”

"Admiral, do you mean ......"

"They're here to fight merchant ships!" Admiral Forbes said, "And our merchant ships can be prey or bait!" ”

"You're going to use a merchant ship as bait?" Rear Admiral Phillips reminded, "But the Germans have aircraft carriers, and they will definitely conduct reconnaissance first, and if they find that battleships and aircraft carriers are involved in escorting, they will not rush over." ”

"No," Forbes shook his head, "we're not going to escort ...... The most important thing now was not the loss of merchant ships, but the capture of battleships and aircraft carriers of the Germans. Otherwise, sooner or later there will be big problems with our routes! Because, according to intelligence, the Germans were also building more powerful battleships and aircraft carriers! ”

He's right! Two "Scharnhorst" and two "Seydlitz" class broke into the Atlantic, and the British could still cope with it, but if two more "Bismarck" classes were added, the British "Hood" and the "King George V" class under construction would probably not be able to withstand it. At that time, I am afraid that the maritime lifeline of the British Empire will really be cut off!

Historically, just one "Bismarck" burst into the Atlantic, which made the British Empire break out in a cold sweat. Fortunately, the "Bismarck" did not have an aircraft carrier escort, and if the Germans built the "Count Zeppelin", then how could the British "Swordfish" aircraft break its rudder with a torpedo?

And now, the Germans have 2 "Seidlitz" class aircraft carriers, and they also have carrier-based aircraft that can compete with the "Spitfire"!

"We can't let Germany's surface ship forces continue to grow!" Charles. Forbes said in a solemn tone, "Now there must be a decisive battle at sea...... Rear Admiral, now go and let the convoy sailing in the North Atlantic report the location.

In addition, I ordered the formation of an escort convoy AB-1 (A is the first letter of the Atlantic, and B stands for Britain, which means returning to Britain from the Atlantic), with heavy cruisers as the main force to escort the ship. ”

The Royal Navy of the British Empire is now the hegemon of the oceans and does not need to hide itself with "radio silence". As a result, radio waves were unabashedly transmitted through the "Revenge" radio.

……

"Prime Minister! Prime minister! The German cruiser sailed into the port of Reykjavik! ”

Chamberlain was sitting in his office in a daze when he heard Churchill's excited voice. Then the door to the office was pushed open, and Churchill, the Secretary of the Admiralty, came in breathlessly.

"The Germans are going to occupy Iceland!" Winston Churchill said, "It is obvious! ”

Nonsense! Chamberlain thought to himself: no one would believe Churchill's lies, how could Germany occupy Iceland so far away?

"We must send troops to save the peace-loving people of Iceland!" Winston. Churchill said, "We have two fleets near Iceland, and they have dozens of combat ships and tens of thousands of officers and men, including 2,000 Royal Marines!" ”

Unlike the marines of other countries, the Royal Marines of the United Kingdom are stationed in detachments. They can also disembark and fight when necessary. Although the combat effectiveness cannot be compared with that of other countries as elite marines, it is no problem to occupy this Danish vassal country with a population of only a few hundred thousand.

In fact, if a heavy cruiser and a few destroyers sailed into the port of Reykjavik and figuratively fired a few guns, Iceland would have surrendered.

"This is not to be deceived," Chamberlain said, looking at Churchill, "and all of Europe will treat us as invaders!" Denmark, Norway, Sweden will all fall to Germany! ”

Denmark, Norway, and Sweden have historically been in the same spirit, and have always been relatively pro-German. If Britain were to attack Denmark first, not only would Denmark fall to Germany, but even Norway and Sweden would follow to a certain extent -- not necessarily an immediate alliance with Germany, but certainly a stronger relationship with Germany.

"Prime Minister!" Churchill said, "Don't hesitate...... The battleships and aircraft carriers of the Germans have already broken into the Atlantic! If we can't sink them, we must put two solid gates on the Atlantic! Iceland and the Faroe Islands are such gates. ”

"What about the home fleet? What are they doing? Chamberlain asked.

"They are ready to put a trap on the battleships and aircraft carriers of the Germans!" Churchill said, "Admiral Forbes has ordered merchant ships sailing in the North Atlantic to form a super-escort flotilla AB-1, and AB-1 will be a huge decoy!" However, the AB-1 operation was not necessarily successful, and taking control of Iceland and the Faroe Islands, and deploying aircraft there, was necessary to defend the British Empire. ”

Chamberlain sighed softly and nodded, "Okay, then we can occupy Iceland and the Faroe Islands...... If the AB-1 operation had not been successful! (To be continued.) )