The US Air Force can be described as fighting with all its might in this air defense operation, exhausted and suffering heavy losses, so what is the US Navy doing? They also gave their strength in this encounter. Except for the 60 F6F fighters left behind by the two Essex-class aircraft carriers, all the remaining fighters joined the air interception operation with the naval land-based aviation, and paid nearly 3% of the losses! The planes were dispatched, and the huge fleet, led by two aircraft carriers, escaped to the far sea before the Germans arrived. It took about 2 hours from the time the Americans discovered that the German aircraft group was pointing at Saint-Nazaire to the time when the Germans brought death to the city, which was enough time for the main force of the American fleet to run out more than 100 km. Although horizontal bombing by strategic bombers poses no threat to the high-speed fleet, it is difficult to say that they do not carry torpedoes or other special ammunition, and it is not the style of the US fleet to stay in place and be bombed. And this time, the Americans really guessed correctly, as an additional task for this attack on Saint-Nazaire, Grim's troops included a special attack ship unit codenamed Sea Hawk, they carried guided bombs and remote-controlled anti-ship missiles. It was in the hope of finding an opportunity to inflict heavy damage on the American fleet in Saint-Nazaire. But alas, the Americans have gone far.

However, after careful investigation, two HE177 bombers in the Sea Hawk unit really found a target, judging from the radar echo, it should be a large warship, and then called 2 colleagues who threw bombs and carried electronic jamming equipment at the same time, a 4-plane squad plus 8 DO335 fighters. Rushing in the direction of the target, looking from the sky, they can finally distinguish the attributes of the target, the other party is about 200 meters long, has 3 turrets, and has a slender hull, it should be a heavy cruiser. However, it is impossible to determine which level it is, and it seems that the heavy patrols of the Americans are like this except for a few models. To be honest, it would be nice to be able to distinguish a cruiser and a battleship at this distance, after all, the difference in the reflection area between the two sides is not too big.

"Let's get started. We're making history. We will complete the record of the first time in real combat that the Luftwaffe used guided weapons to attack an enemy warship. Hall said in the channel, then he motioned for two planes carrying jammers to begin suppressing each other's radar and radio communications. The accuracy of the Americans' shipborne radar to guide anti-aircraft guns is very high, and Hall needs to reduce the altitude in order to ensure the accuracy of the strike, so he hopes that friendly forces can suppress the opponent. As for suppressing radio communications? It was to ensure the secrecy of the attack as much as possible. Although secrecy is not necessary, Hall still hopes to be able to take out his opponent quietly.

At this time, the Atlanta heavy cruiser, under the cover of 3 F6F Hellcat fighters, did not find itself in danger. The battleship remained offshore for the purpose of observing the bombing operations of the Germans. And because the number of fighters on his side is already very small, the aircraft carrier can only be equipped with 3 F6F fighters. The radar screen is filled with points of light that are doing Brownian motion. Although the Seahawk squad was shown on the radar screen, there was no computer to help. It is difficult to distinguish between the opponent's attack waves by manual means. Not to mention the fact that the Germans had already taken countermeasures when they attacked, and in the process of flying towards the target, the Germans gradually reduced their altitude, from 5000 meters all the way to 1500 meters!

Thanks to fuel consumption and the powerful power of the BMW 801 engine. (The HE177 in this book is equipped with DB601, JUMO211 and BMW 801 engines.) Well. At this time, the Seahawk team, which had used up nearly half of the fuel, was not slow, and these planes could reach speeds of more than 480 kilometers per hour when sprinting at low altitudes. "Electronic warfare begins! The escort team takes out those fighters! "With Hall's order, the electronic jammers on the two HE177 aircraft responsible for cover were at full power. The interference wave spread out at the speed of light, enveloping the Atlanta in an instant, and in an instant, snowflakes appeared on the radar. The anti-aircraft warning radar and fire control radar failed in an instant, and when the captain ordered the technicians to clear the interference. Long-range communications between the Atlanta and the fleet were also cut off.

"Damn it." The captain cursed as he ordered the fleet to enter a state of imminent battle, and the signal could not be more obvious, they were in trouble, they were targeted! At this moment, the battle in the air has begun, and three F6F fighters and eight DO335 fighters have already fought. The opponent's numerical superiority caused the already inferior Hellcat to fall into decline, and a few minutes later, the three planes turned into a flood of splinters, and countless aluminum pieces and parts fell one after another.

"The road has been paved, it's up to you!" The captain of the escort fighter said to Hall. At this time, the two HE177 bombers responsible for the attack entered the final attack stage, and the Fritz-type guided bombs were ready. The person handling the bomb placed the target in the middle of the crossscope and pulled down the bomb stick. The bomb weighing 1.4 tons detached from under the wing. After falling for about a few tens of meters, the wings on both sides automatically popped off, and the increase in drag caused the heavy bomb to leap upwards slightly, and then the tracer tube at the tail of the bomb emitted a bright light. The HE177 bomber entered a state of constant speed in a straight line, and with the assistance of the mechanical system, the controller adjusted the distance according to the direct distance between the bomb and the warship.

"This bomb can change direction?" The American soldiers at the lookout post were shocked to find that the bomb was actually moving with their own warship. The anti-aircraft guns on both sides of the battleship began to fire into the air, and the 5-inch high-level dual-purpose guns, 40MM Bofors machine guns, and 20MM Erlikon anti-aircraft guns spewed out a barrage of hot bullets, but the opponent's attack was too close. The fire control radar was again jammed. In a hurry, each battle position was almost on its own, and the dense barrage was not as powerful as people thought. Although the Atlanta tried to dodge, the Fritz-type guided bomb did not give it a chance to accelerate its maneuver, and about 20 seconds later, the bomb landed between the Atlanta 1st main turret and the 2nd good main turret!

The warhead of the Fritz-type guided bomb was a 1-ton semi-armor-piercing bomb, which easily tore through the armor of the Atlanta's upper bomb under the action of huge kinetic energy. (A thin layer of steel allows low-yield high-explosive shells to detonate early.) Protect the compartment underneath. AND THEN SMASHED THROUGH THE MAIN HORIZONTAL ARMOR OF THE AMMUNITION DEPOT UP TO 90MM THICK! THE VIOLENT IMPACT ACTIVATED THE TIME-DELAY FUSE, AND WHEN THE SHELL FELL INTO THE AMMUNITION MAGAZINE, THE FUSE SUCCESSFULLY DETONATED THE CHARGE OF UP TO 200KG INSIDE THE BOMB!

Rumble! A deafening explosion came from behind Hall, and the violent explosion spread rapidly in all directions with powerful energy, and the resulting shock wave caused even the huge HE177 plane to shake a little. Hall looked back and saw a column of water rising from the surface of the sea, each 100 meters high! The massive hull of the Atlanta was now completely enveloped in water, flames, and smoke. "Beautiful! One shot kills! Hall and his crew cheered. At this moment, two-fifths of the front hull of the battleship had disappeared from the sea, and Hall could even see something like a secondary gun turret thrown high into the air. The aft half of the hull also quickly sank into the water. The huge whirlpool formed when the huge battleship with a full load displacement of more than 20,000 tons sank again swept the US officers and men who hurriedly jumped into the sea into the deep sea. In just 2 minutes, this majestic battleship completely disappeared from the sea! Along with it perished thousands of officers and men on the ship.

"Beautiful! We've taken out a big guy, and the Order of the Knights is waiting for us at the base! After confirming that the target had sunk and taking photos of the Atlanta sinking into the sea, Hall began to lead the group to evacuate, accompanied by the return of Hall's group. The long-range bombing, led by the German Independent Strategic Bomber Aviation Agency, was completely over, and nearly half of the area burned in the city of Saint-Nazaire in this air raid, and 30% of the city area was seriously damaged. And key targets such as the port area and the cargo warehouse were bombed one by one. I'm afraid it will be difficult to play a role in two months. The Entente lost an important port and base for the advance of the fleet on the first day of the engagement.

The losses of the US Air Force and Naval Aviation were also significant compared to the losses on the ground. The interception plan was very unsuccessful, the opponent's strategic bombers were hardly intercepted, and their own fighters suffered heavy losses in the death with the escort group, except for the P47 group and the opponent's combat exchange ratio was 1.3 to 1, the remaining fighters and the opponent's exchange ratio can be described as miserable! The old fighters, represented by the P40 and P39, were beaten into dogs. In addition to relying on a sturdy fuselage, the new F6F fighter of the naval aviation also performed well. However, although the air combat exchange ratio was relatively bad, the Germans actually lost a lot of aircraft, but the main reason was that the distance was too long, and some German planes ran out of fuel when they returned, or they could not return to base because of war injuries. There are even individual treks.

Soon, though. Li Mei regained confidence from elsewhere that the British and French air forces in the eastern border area and the Luftwaffe were even worse than herself! It is entirely possible to describe the tragedy of this first day of air combat. For the first time, the Spitfire was completely suppressed by the fighters of the Germans in real combat. Under the attack of superior German forces, the battle between the two sides on the border almost exhausted the Royal Air Force troops on the French border, and in just one day, the Royal Air Force lost 300 aircraft of all kinds! And the performance of the French Air Force was even worse. Not to mention the 3.5 to 1 exchange ratio in air combat losses, if you count the planes destroyed on the ground, it is possible that this exchange ratio will eventually exceed 5! And what's even more frightening is that this is still the record of the most elite first-line wing of the French Air Force. With quantity, quality, tactics and readiness all suppressed, the French Air Force was already showing a great disadvantage on the first day of engagement.

From a strategic point of view, the northern front can still be regarded as maintaining the basic market. Then the southern front can be described as a collapse, the Germans deployed considerable forces in the south, launching air raids on the south of France with the help of the Austro-Hungarian and Italian puppet armies. The few thousand fighters were quickly suppressed under the onslaught of the other side. There is even a rumor that the air fighting in much of southern France is almost over after only one morning. For the remaining half a day, there were no wing-level aircraft sorties in France. Although the adjusted and replenished French Air Force could continue to fight, the first day of fighting had already left many French Air Force officers and men in despair.

The Germans bombed civilian facilities such as transportation lines, transportation hubs, and power plants in southern France, according to the Germans. They wanted to turn the south of France into an island with planes and bombs, and all the French ** teams could only hide in the fortifications in the shadow of the Luftwaffe. The lack of access to the south and the destruction of various civilian facilities will exacerbate the cost of living for local civilians, which in turn will lead to social instability and the spread of anti-war sentiment. The Germans did this with both military and political hands. Both hands must be hard! Simultaneously disintegrate the will of the French to resist from the outside and from within. In the face of such a blow, the French behaved quite well this time, after all, they had been preparing for such a long time, and a lot of various plans had been drawn up, coupled with the strong support of the United States and Britain, the French quickly took advantage of the gap in the German bombing and the night time to repair the communication lines, and in order to prevent the landing of the Germans, they sent part of their troops from the Maginot Line in the east to the south. Among them was General de Gaulle's Fifth Army, which was subordinate to two mechanized infantry corps and two armored corps, which was the leading elite unit in France and one of the few units equipped with Huaxia Type 29 tank destroyers on a large scale. And these equipment were also introduced at the insistence of de Gaulle.

Mainland France has been beaten like this. Then Corsica, which hangs over the coast, is even more not. After bombing the island's important facilities with bombers in the morning, the Luftwaffe dispatched a large number of airborne troops to carry out airborne operations at airfields and important transportation hubs in the afternoon. To add insult to injury, the German Navy also joined the battle sequence at noon, and the German marines also launched a landing operation on Corsica with the fire support of 3 battleships and 8 cruisers. Several French submarines tried to sneak up on the French fleet cruising in the Mediterranean, but in addition to sinking one minesweeper, their own submarines sank three. Although the beachhead fortifications have slowed down the pace of the opponent's advance, but the fall is a matter of time, think about the situation once Corsica is captured, it is closer to the French mainland, if the Luftwaffe uses this as a base, then the combat efficiency will definitely be improved to a notch, all the port cities in the south will be in crisis, and the other side can choose to attack at any point on the long coastline in the south.

Thanks to the book friend zhouyu1976 for the tip~~~, and the book friend Hell Queen, xiaoyaoseng, and athlon9527 for their monthly pass support ~~~. (To be continued.) )