Vol 4 Chapter 65: Sneak attack on Taranto

Ferdinand dragged the Italians into the water from the beginning, but it was not a mess. Before the outbreak of war, the Allies considered the threat of the Italian navy. The two countries also developed a set of action plans against the Italian navy.
The Italian Navy is located in Taranto, Tripoli, Naples and other ports, of which Taranto is the main.
According to the plan, as soon as the war broke out, the French navy cut off Tripoli ’s Italian navy and domestic ties. The Bulgarian army pushed over from Libya and forced the Italians to surrender!
Well, this is all idealism. The Mediterranean is still so big. Unless the French Navy does n’t do anything, it just stares at the Italian Tripoli fleet every day, or they can do it if they want to run!
Obviously, these are the winds that Ferdinand deliberately released, deliberately creating pressure on the Italians, forcing the Italian naval fleet in Tripoli to travel to the port of Taranto and merge with the main force.
To kill the Italian navy, Ferdinand did not expect that the French navy alone could make things happen. After all, the French have a huge task. They are responsible for the defense of the entire Mediterranean.
Ferdinand thought of the famous Battle of Taranto in World War II. In the evening of November 11, 1940, the Italian Navy launched a violent attack.
In the night, at 8:35 pm, the first attack wave—12 Swordfish attack aircraft, led by Major Williamson Navy, took off from the aircraft carrier Glorious.
Six of them carried one 545 kg aerial torpedo, and the other six each carried 4-6 112 kg aerial bombs.
At 11:02 pm, the fighter jet arrived at the port and the air raid began. Six "swordfish" with torpedoes flew into battleships, and "swordfish" with aerial bombs were responsible for attacking cruisers, destroyers and terminal facilities.
At 9:20, seven "Swordfish" of the second attack wave took off under the command of Major Hale.
At 11:55, the second wave of attacks began. Five of these "swordfish" with torpedoes launched another violent attack on the Italian battleships.
The British navy's raid sunk and severely damaged three battleships, two cruisers, and two destroyers of the Italian Navy, destroying almost half of the Italian Navy's home.
And it was only an aircraft carrier with an old-fashioned aircraft that had achieved amazing results. The previous life has attracted Ferdinand's attention, and now it is natural to follow suit.
"Swordfish": The aircraft has a length of 10.87 meters, a height of 3.76 meters, a wingspan of 13.87 meters, and a maximum take-off weight of 3,406 kilograms. The aircraft is equipped with a 750-horsepower 9-cylinder air-cooled engine with a cruise speed of 193 km / h, a maximum speed of 222 km / h, a ceiling of 3,260 meters, and a maximum range of 1,658 kilometers. The aircraft can carry a 730 kg torpedo or a maximum 680 kg deep-water bomb.
Obviously, the performance of this aircraft is average. Although Bulgarian aircraft are far behind compared to it, this gap is not fatal!
It is nothing but a slower speed and a shorter range, but Bulgarian bombers of this strength can also do it!
Moreover, the Taranto Peninsula of Italy's Apennine Peninsula and the Vlora Region of Albania are only about 70 kilometers apart. This distance is well within the coverage of the Bulgarian Air Force.
In fact, most of the bombers in World War I were able to achieve firepower coverage. The representative models are: Caproni of the Italian, can carry 453 ~ 1450 kg bombs, has a range of 500 ~ 800 kilometers, and a flight speed of 116 ~ 152 Km / h.
The British V / 1500 weighs 13,608 kilograms, has a load of 3390 kilograms, and has a battery life of up to 6 hours.
The German "Gotha" and "Gotha" GVs, the former carrying 500 kilograms of ammunition, and the latter carrying two tons of ammunition, there is no doubt about the voyage from Germany, bombing London!
What is the Russian Ilya Muromec "E, 105 km / h, the ammunition load is 800 kg, and the battery life is up to 5 hours.
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Therefore, the Italians were out of luck. As early as 1912, when the Bulgarian Air Force was established, Ferdinand formed a heavy bomber squadron. At that time, the Falcon 1 generation bomber was equipped.
Parameters: Flight altitude of 5200 meters, range of 480 kilometers, speed of 118 kilometers per hour, and a load of 836 kilograms.
Three years have passed now. The Air Force has not been two or three kittens and puppies. The Bulgarian Air Force has been equipped with more than 350 bombers, of which one-third are heavy bombers and more than 280. Fighters, this number will definitely increase sharply with the outbreak of war!
The newly-developed Falcon 2 bomber has made new breakthroughs. The range has been doubled, the speed has been increased by one third, and the bomb load has reached 1.2 tons.
These were originally prepared for the Austro-Hungarian Empire, and they were planned to use them in offensive Belgrade, beating them by surprise.
Later, Ferdinand no doubt thought of the Battle of Taranto, so he changed his attention. In any case, the presence of the Italian navy poses a more serious threat to Bulgaria's security.
Rather than worrying about the threat of the Italian navy, it is better to kill them or damage them at the beginning of the war and completely establish the sea power of the Allies in the Mediterranean.
The most important thing is that you can also kill a future opponent. Once the Italian navy is severely damaged, their value will no longer exist, and the combat effectiveness of their army will be inconspicuous.
The joke of "ten divisions" in order to protect Italy is not groundless, anyway, it is a difficult problem to feed more than 35 million Italians!
Under the German submarine war, the Allies' own capacity was very tight. Who is willing to give money for nothing?
If the Italians become defeated and Ferdinand supports the French to cede them to Turin, Milan, and Sardinia, coupled with huge war reparations, it will be difficult for the Italians to turn around!
However, Ferdinand has not yet ordered an operation. Although the airport in the coastal area of ​​Albania has already been built, the Air Force is already in place, and even the bombs specially prepared for this operation are already in place.
But he is waiting for news, waiting for a news that can attract the attention of all countries, and this news is coming soon!
On March 5th, the third day after the declaration of war between the two sides was completed, the Germans implemented the Schlieffen plan and submitted an ultimatum to Belgium, asking Belgium to open the channel for German troops to attack France by way of order, and ordered the Belgians to reply within 24 hours.
I don't know if the Belgians knew the allusions of "fake doomsday", flatly rejected the Germans' request, and turned to the British for help.
On March 6, the Germans invaded Belgium, and the British waited for the excuse of war, which was brought to the door by the Germans themselves.
The British Foreign Secretary issued a warning to the Germans, demanding that the Germans abide by the permanent neutral treaty signed by Belgium in 1839 and stop the offensive against Belgium.
The understatement of Britain's warning would not be taken by Germans, and German diplomats made it clear that international treaties are nothing more than scrap paper!
After receiving this news, Prime Minister Asquith was ecstatic and the excuse of war came. Therefore, on March 8, the British government declared war on the Germans on the grounds that the Germans destroyed Belgium's neutrality and ignored international treaties. The First World War broke out .
"The British are fighting!" People around the world are attracted by the news, and the Italians are no exception.
The birth of the aircraft is still too short, and it is still only used as a reconnaissance aircraft. What is a bomber? Is it just a few grenades lost?
This is the image of the aircraft in people's minds at that time. Most people also think that the aircraft is just a toy. At most, a machine gun is hung up and scatters in a high position.
As for bombing, airships are more popular in this era, both in terms of range and ammunition load.
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"Are the air forces ready?" Ferdinand asked
After all, this is the first appearance of the Bulgarian Air Force. Whether it is a glorious result or a shame will be seen this time.
"Your Majesty, rest assured, all of our 350 bombers and 172 fighters have been deployed and we can launch an attack at any time!" Chief of General Staff Imia Dimitev
In the early morning of March 9, the world was still shocked by the news that the British were participating in the war. At 6:35, the 138 bombers of the Bulgarian Air Force, escorted by 46 fighters, took off from the Vlora region of Albania and aimed directly at the port of Taranto, Italy's largest naval base.
At 7:40, the second batch of 126 bombers of the Bulgarian Air Force, escorted by 58 combat forces, also took off from the Vlora region, with the target still being the port of Taranto.
At 8:50, the Bulgarian Air Force's last batch of bomber formations, 86 bombers, escorted by 72 fighter jets, took off from the Vlora region, and the target was still the port of Taranto.
Obviously, this time the Bulgarian Air Force bombers came out of the nest. Ferdinand is ready to kill the Italian navy at one time and solve this Mediterranean center's competitors!
At this time in Port Taranto, most of the main forces of the Italian Navy ~ EbookFREE.me ~ they were waiting to meet with the Ottoman Navy coming, ready to fight.
Originally Ferdinand wanted to join the Austro-Hungarian navy, but after thinking about it, he decided to give up this tempting idea. What if their navy ran away after converging?
After leaving the port of Taranto, Ferdinand can only watch them anxious, after all, the aircraft's range is limited!
It ’s better to take it as soon as you see it. As long as the main force of the Italian navy is killed, the allied navies will not be able to turn the waves in the Mediterranean.
As for learning the British's night attack, Ferdinand was very doubtful that the pilot would get lost, in case it blew up the wrong place and scared the Italian Navy away.
Anyway, in this era, everyone has no awareness of air defense. The new thing of bomber is still the original of the Bulgarian Air Force.
Even if it was discovered, the Italian plane came over to intercept, and Bulgaria's fighters were enough to deal with these troubles.