A huge net was spreading over the Baltic Sea and on the sea. The German Navy and Air Force had already set up nets, waiting for the Russian fleet to throw themselves into the nets. The light cruiser detachment, which acted as bait, also increased the frequency of activities at sea and pushed the cordon north.

"Major General Hopman, your mission is to attack the Russian transport fleet fiercely and force them to come out from the depths of the Gulf of Finland. Be careful not to go deep into the Gulf of Finland. There may be minefields there." After Hippel issued an order to Major General Hopman, the commander of the Fourth Reconnaissance Fleet, the prelude to the entire Baltic Battle finally came to see!

"It's very difficult, very difficult." After receiving the order, Major General Hopman agreed after discussing with his staff that this task was very difficult! The reason is very simple. After sailing out of the Gulf of Finland, the absolute territory of the Russian fleet, you can turn south and reach the northern entrance of the Gulf of Riga, the Moon Strait (the translation name may be different in different places. This article chooses the translation name on the Sea of ​​Fearlessness.)

The islands on both sides of the strait, Dago Island and Ersel Island, both of which are Russians, and mines are deployed in the strait, some of which are Russians themselves, and some of which are helped by Germans... If the light cruiser team wants to enter this sea area, even if there is no Russian warship escort, the threat will be very great, and they may be attacked by shore defense cannons or encounter mines.

If you fight in the Gulf of Finland, you may be too close to the headquarters of the Russian fleet. Once you are unlucky, the light cruiser detachment may have been destroyed by the Russian fleet before the German fleet arrives. Even if the Hippel fleet can enter the Gulf of Finland, it will also encounter the dilemma in the Gulf of Riga. The Russian mines and shore defense guns will pose a great threat to the fleet. And if the Russians choose to transport at night, the time of one night will be enough for the transport ship to walk from the Gulf of Finland to the Gulf of Riga. If you choose night battles, the risks and uncertainties will be greater. In addition, there is another disadvantage that the Gulf of Finland is a bit far from the German airport, and the air stagnation time of the aircraft may be greatly affected.

"It is impossible to move northward. Even if the Russian fleet comes out and catches them smoothly, they can still choose to enter the Bay of Riga temporarily, rely on the cover of turrets and mines, and then sneak out one night. It is impossible for our small number of warships to block the entire Gulf of Finland for a long time." Finally, Major General Hopman wrote in his report to Hippel.

After studying the situation of the war zone, Hippel also believed that the probability of successful action in the north was not high. So the German Navy turned its attention to the south! The entrance to the west of the Gulf of Riga, the Ilbe Strait between the Kurland Peninsula and the Island of Erser (some maps also become Salema Island)! This strait happened to be the route taken by the German Navy in history when launching the Albion operation.

"This route is also bad, there is still a minefield. In the part of the island of Ersel, the private Wolbe Peninsula, there are three Russians' forts, including 12-inch shore guns, 6-inch shore guns and 130MM shore guns. There are certain risks for small battleships." Major General Von Ruit, chief of staff of Hippel, marked the locations of the Russians' three forts on the map.

"Is it okay to let the destroyer and minesweeper troops sweep a passage in the minefield?" Hippel asked the commander of the destroyer squad next to him.

"If we were not too close to the Kurland area, it would be easy to pass, and it would not be difficult. The Russians deployed a defensive minefield here, but just offshore. And we are sure that the Russians did not deploy a minefield that ran across the entire strait!" the latter said.

"Why?" Hippel asked curiously.

"It is not clear that the Russians may lack enough mines. They devoted too much experience to the construction of the Gulf of Finland. In addition, in the port city of Riga, the Russians deployed an additional minefield. For these reasons, they weakened the defense strength of the Ilbe Strait. And they also had to enter and exit here. Perhaps for this reason, they left a passage." An officer replied.

"Can we find it?" Hippel immediately asked and answered.

"There is no problem at all. Our seaplanes have frequently reconnaissed and have guided submarines into the area. There has never been any problem! Recently, the Russian fleet has not added a new minefield." The officer said affirmatively.

"This is a bit difficult to understand. If I were the Russian Navy, I would fill all the entrances and exits of the Gulf of Riga with mines!" Hippel sighed. However, in fact, although the main ships of the Russian Baltic Fleet in this plane are relatively powerful, the mine warfare capabilities have been completely weakened. Judging from the current situation, the German army estimated that the number of Russian mines laid in the entire Gulf of Riga is about 2,300. This data seems to be a lot? In fact, it is not enough!

You should know that in history, the Russian Navy deployed tens of thousands of mines in the Ilbe Strait alone! There were more than 1,300 in the Moon Strait in the north! This does not include the number of mines outside the Riga port. As for how large was the overall mine laying scale of the Russian Navy in history? In 1914, the Russians deployed 5,224 mines, and in 1916? The Russians deployed 13,936 mines! Russia even created a glorious record of relying solely on mines, which directly blows 7 of the 11 destroyers of the German 10th Lightning Strike Team. However, the unfortunate part was that the seven destroyers had only killed 18 people and injured 20 people... And at that time, the number of people on a destroyer was about 80!

Now, there are only 2,300 mines in the Gulf of Riga, and the German submarine forces that often perform missions nearby say that this number is overestimating the Russians... As for why this situation is caused, there are two main reasons. The first point is that the war has only been going on for a year after all. Although this plane 1 war began at the beginning of the year, in history, there were actually not even half a year in 1914. It was the third year when the Germans attacked the Gulf of Riga. After three years of accumulation, the Russians' minefields were naturally numerous and thick.

The second point is that the Russians' military-industrial capabilities are widely occupied by the war of attrition on land. You should know that mines are not just a single iron box with explosives. The electro-hydraulic fuses or mechanical fuses are considered high-tech products. Russians are so embarrassed that they dismantle shore cannons as land cannons. How much resources do you expect them to have to deploy mines?
Chapter completed!