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1185 Bombing 1

The British bomber team entered the position very well. They were backed by the sun and kept in the same direction as the German fleet. Before the bombing began, the huge fleet was dismantled into four squads to launch air strikes. Three of them targeted Hippel's flagship, while the other squad set their targets on the light cruiser.

"16 O-400 bombers, carrying 20 500-pound bombs and 24 250-pound bombs. It should be able to achieve some results, right?" Lieutenant Colonel Henry whispered to his most proud bomber team.

When the second wave of British bombers approached the target, the entire German fleet's anti-aircraft artillery fired for the first time in actual combat! One large, four small and five warships had a total of 18 88mm anti-aircraft artillery, 46 2-pound guns, and a huge number of 127mm machine guns. The 88mm anti-aircraft artillery and 2-pound machine guns were generally placed on the deck, while the numerous machine guns were placed in all areas with good shooting circles. For example, the top of the main turret, the mast, and the decks in front and back of the warships.

Many of the heavy machine guns were taken out of the warehouse before firing. A squad of twelve people set up a double gun rack, two machine guns, boxes of bullets, and sights completed the assumptions in a few minutes, like an army machine gun team, and then aimed the machine gun in the air under the guidance of an officer holding a telescope. As for the actual function, wait for actual combat inspection!

The roar of guns and cannons resounded throughout the warship, and the 88mm gun team shot frantically at the targets in the air. With the efforts of a 10-man gun team, each gun fired at a rate of more than 10 rounds per minute. As orange flames ejected from the muzzle, a brass shell was quickly thrown out, and then the auxiliary loading device next to the blast bolt would push another shell into the barrel.

The shooting of the 2-pound cannon and the 127mm machine gun is simpler. The former can theoretically fire 8 shells in one second, while the latter has a rate of fire of more than ten. A 1-meter-long fire snake ejected from the 2-pound cannon mouth, and the drum on the side of the cannon was almost instantly blown away. More than a dozen people lined up in a row to transport shells from the ammunition compartment below. In just a few minutes, the yellow orange shell shells were already piled up next to the cannon!

When the British flew in, the air-to-air fire of more than three-digit anti-aircraft artillery and machine guns did scare the British, especially Hippel's flagship performed very well in this air defense operation. The dozens of artillery and machine guns even projected more than one ton of ammunition into the air per minute! Hundreds of shells and bullets flew in the air to form a funnel-shaped barrage. This barrage swayed in the air as the warship moved, like a scythe of death, harvesting any object that dared to approach it. The shells splashed into the sky like a tide. It was more beautiful than the biggest fireworks performance in the festival, but under the gorgeous flames, death was hidden!

"When we approached the target, there were many shells flying above us, below and beside us. From time to time, shells exploded around us. We could hardly hear the sound of talking between each other. Shields and flames were flying around us. We seemed to have entered a world of flames in an instant." At that time, a British pilot described the scene at that time with lingering fear.

Faced with an air defense firepower intensity that had never been seen, the first group of British bombers were frustrated. They began to climb, then flew over a relatively safe altitude of more than 800 meters, and then dropped bombs downwards in a covering manner. (The effective shooting height of the 127mm machine gun is very limited, and at this height, only 88mm guns and 2-pound guns are threatened)

"Right full rudder!" The huge Weimar fast battleship drew a huge arc on the sea surface, and the four rudders were hit to the maximum. Even the hull wanted to tilt the right side 10 degrees, leaving a huge trail on the sea surface like a giant whale. During this dodge, relying on the shock of anti-aircraft fire, more than a dozen bombs hit. Water columns once again surrounded the huge battleship. But just like the first time, it was useless.

"They are flying back again!" A moment later, the lookout hand at the top of the mast found that the first wave of attacking aircraft returned again. This time, Hippel felt that something was wrong, because Hippel discovered that these aircraft were directly dispersed, abandoned the original formation bombing, and rushed towards the Weimar from all directions! In order to deal with the scattered bombers, Weimar's air defense firepower was also forced to disperse, and the long-range dense barrage instantly became fragmented. The facts proved that such air defense firepower was concentrated together and it was okay to intimidate, but after dispersing, even intimidating the opponent!

"We can't stop them!" A German naval soldier who was struggling to shoot a 2-pound gun in panic looked at the British bomber getting closer and closer. The British bomber, which had already thrown away some of the load, quickly approached from the stern. After approaching a certain level, the four Wicks machine guns on the front sprayed out deadly fire snakes, and balls of bullets began to strafuse the deck. Bullets like locusts jumped between the deck and the hull, occasionally harvesting those unlucky lives. After the anti-aircraft fire was dispersed, a British aircraft finally passed by at a height of 300 meters, and then threw a 500-pound bomb on the rear deck of the Weimar!

How powerful is a 500-pound bomb? If the bullet weight itself is converted into kilograms, it is 227kg. However, a bomb that is not too heavy is loaded with explosives of more than 130kg! What is this about? If it is converted into a 15-inch-level armor-piercing bomb, it will be about 4 to 5 rounds. It is calculated in time by the British large-scale grenades, which is also the standard of more than 2 rounds!

The grenade fell at a height of 300 meters easily smashed through the upper deck, and then exploded on the upper deck! A huge ball of fire directly lifted the deck within a radius of dozens of square meters! A large hole with a diameter of more than 3 meters appeared at the back of the Weimar battleship. The huge explosion power pushed the shrapnel and penetrated the middle deck below the upper deck! Many fragments even fell on the lower deck before being blocked by the main horizontal armor!

Countless fragments swept across a large number of cabins on the two decks, and swept away many anti-aircraft machine guns deployed in the open air! Although they did not penetrate the core layer, the energy after the explosion of hundreds of kilograms of picric acid explosives was still terrifying. Several channels more than 20 meters long at the back of the entire hull and the cabin next to them turned into a sea of ​​fire in an instant. The fire caused by this bomb is much larger than that of the shell!
Chapter completed!
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