"Oh God! What did I see?" the gunner on a Sailfish maritime reconnaissance aircraft suddenly pointed at the billowing smoke screen on the distant sea level and said.

"Damn it, it's the Allied fleet. Only their fleet can make such a big noise in Gibraltar! Report to the base quickly. I hope the radio won't malfunction again this time!" the pilot said after careful observation.

Soon, Thomas in Lisbon received information that the Allied fleet had entered the Atlantic again. According to the results of several close-in reconnaissances, the fleet was very large. In addition to Count Spee's seven fast battleships, there were also

There are 4 Italian Calacciono-class battleships.

"It seems that the admiral's plan is not going to work. The Allies are going to go all out this time!" Thomas said with a bitter smile after drawing the Allied track on the chart. Some time ago, after receiving the news that the Allied fleet entered Gibraltar,

, he realized that this was the German Navy's request for Italy and other countries to cooperate in actions in the North Sea. Its role was naturally to firmly contain the Allied Atlantic Fleet in the Atlantic Ocean. But this time, they actually came out!

"Sending a report to General Magiffin, whether to follow the original Plan A or follow the subsequent Plan B, I suggest implementing Plan B. The other party is not intimidating this time, but is serious about it!" After weighing it again and again, Thomas thought it was better.

We need to discuss this with Magiffin. This is no longer something he can handle. In Lisbon, he only has 6 capital ships, 4 Queen-class battleships and 2 fast battleships. The remaining battleships are either in France or being repaired in docks.

After the British Admiralty submitted the plan to temporarily redeploy some warships to the highest military decision-making body of the Allied Powers, Britain and the United States considered the feasibility of this plan. That is to temporarily abandon the Atlantic Ocean to concentrate their forces to severely damage the High Seas Fleet. This is the so-called Plan A, and the other

One plan is to create the illusion that the fleet is withdrawing from the Atlantic Ocean and entering the North Sea, and at the same time concentrate all the forces in the Atlantic Ocean to fight against the Allied Mediterranean Fleet! Completely let the Allied Mediterranean Fleet

After being unable to move, go north to support the North Sea. This is the so-called Plan B. For this reason, the Allied Powers also specially concentrated a large number of high-speed merchant ships and disguised them as warships in order to confuse the other party's reconnaissance force. If you choose Plan A, this ship will be codenamed Liar.

The fleet will stay in Lisbon and serve as doorkeepers. If plan B is chosen, the liar fleet will go to the North Sea, and the main fleet will be hidden in a port in Portugal, waiting for the other party to fall into the trap!

As the supreme commander staying in Lisbon, Thomas is now leaning towards plan B. He believes that it will be a very long process to expel the German High Seas Fleet from its base in Norway. Norway is too close to Germany, and the Germans can send a large number of

Aircraft and submarines are deployed near the station.

Even if the fast fleet returns, what if the large fleet has the advantage? Fight against the opponent's submarine ambush circle, minefields and aircraft bombings with the High Seas Fleet? This is definitely not a wise choice. Therefore, he prefers to concentrate his forces to deal with the threat in the Atlantic first.

, and then return to the North Sea to strengthen the blockade of Germany.

After Magiffin received Thomas's telegram, he was also calculating how much he had in his hands. Not one of the Austro-Hungarian warships in the Allied fleet came out. He estimated that the four Italian battleships might also have been injured in the attack.

The New York and Seven Provinces are still being repaired on the slipway, and the 4

Two American battleships and two French battleships can attack. If the other party really wants to fight him desperately, Ma Jifen can't ask for it, but what he is worried about is that the other party may not really want to fight hard. It is just a containment force. As for

Could the Liar Fleet be effective? He didn't have much hope.

It is difficult to detect one or two warships in the fleet. This has been proved to be effective in the Battle of Jutland and the just-concluded Battle of the Atlantic. In the former, Hipper successfully deceived the fleet by using two camouflaged ships.

After passing Betty, it was Thomas who used a disguised boat to scare away Count Spey.

But if the entire fleet is a camouflage ship, it’s really impossible to hide it! After all, the camouflage warships mixed in the main fleet can be protected and covered by other warships in the main fleet. And if there are only fakes but no genuine ones,

.That’s different! First, the other party may go back to test

.Whether it is a close-up reconnaissance by aircraft or submarines. You cannot tell this thing from a distance, but you can definitely see it when you are close. And if you pretend to be a main fleet, you must have auxiliary warships, right? A main fleet.

How is it possible to go out without a follower? It’s fake at first glance.

, and now, where do you ask the Allies to find so many high-speed escort warships to support the situation? Although the British have a large number of light cruisers, after many losses, they are currently only enough for the main fleet. How can they divide the costs?

Organized auxiliary warships to accompany these civilian ships in their performances?

The opponent mainly mobilizes a small group of bombers to attack once to see the authenticity of these warships. After all, no one will install a large number of anti-aircraft guns and corresponding sighting equipment on these cannon fodder. And the "illegal buildings" temporarily built on the hull

It is very fragile, and a few bombs can completely expose it! However, although there are many problems, Magiffin believes that these things can still be used for some feints, but it is not possible to expect them to scare the Italians. Therefore, it is also inclined to implement

Plan b.

"Give me two weeks, and I will arrange all related matters, whether it is the feint fleet or the future combat plan after the main fleet converges." In his reply to Thomas, Magiffin said. Whether it is Jericho and

Magiffin seemed to think that he had an insight into the Allied Powers' combat intentions, but in fact, none of them figured out what the Italians were coming out for this time!

"We can rely on the army and air force to solve the problems that the navy cannot solve. We will help you solve the problems on the ground, and you are responsible for providing us with sufficient fire support. You must know that in order to get the troops into battle as soon as possible, I am

They didn’t even bring many heavy artillery.” At the temporary anchorage of the Allied fleet in the Gulf of Cadiz, Mackensen was the first German army general to board the Italian Navy’s flagship Kaiser. While he was admiring this powerful battleship

, he said half-jokingly and half-seriously.

"Within 10 days, you will have the firepower to wipe out everything!" Tycho said confidently, pointing to the 15-inch heavy gun of the Caesar. "We can even provide transportation capacity to land behind the Portuguese defense line, cutting off Faro from the surrounding areas.

contact.”

"There was never an option for a naval decisive battle in our plan this time. We just wanted to cooperate with the army to remove Portuguese ports one by one! And then gradually expel the Allied fleet under the cover of shore-based forces!" After this meeting

, Tycho wrote proudly in his diary.

Thanks to book friend zhouyuaikaka for the reward~~~, as well as book friend athlon9527 and book friend Quanchengren for their monthly ticket support~~~~. It’s the end of the month~~. Please vote for support~~~. There will be another update this afternoon~~
Chapter completed!