Mediterranean Hegemony Road

Ferdinand dragged the Italians into the water at the beginning, but it was not random. Before the outbreak of the war, the Allied Powers considered the threat of the Italian Navy, and the two countries also formulated a set of action plans for the Italian Navy.

The Italian Navy is distributed in ports such as Taranto, Tripoli, and Naples, among which Taranto is the main one.

According to the plan, as soon as the war broke out, the French navy would cut off the connection between the Italian navy in Tripoli and the country, and the Bulgarian army pushed across from Libya to force the Italians to surrender!

Well, this is all idealism, the Mediterranean Sea is still so big, unless the French Navy does nothing and just stares at the Tripoli fleet of the Italians every day, people can still run if they want!

Obviously these are the winds that Ferdinand deliberately released, deliberately creating pressure on the Italians, forcing the naval fleet in Tripoli, Italy to go to Taranto Harbor to join the main force.

To kill the Italian navy, Ferdinand did not expect the French navy alone to be able to accomplish anything. After all, the French have a great task, and they are responsible for the defense of the entire Mediterranean.

Ferdinand thought of the famous Battle of Taranto in World War II, the historical night of November 11, 1940, when the Italian Navy launched a violent attack in Taranto.

By night, at 8:35 pm, the first attack wave - 12 "Swordfish" attack aircraft, led by Major Williamson, took off from the "Glorious" aircraft carrier.

6 of them each carry a 545 kg aerial torpedo, and the remaining 6 each carry 4-6 112 kg aerial bombs.

At 11:02 p.m., the fighter jets arrived at the port and the air assault began. 6 "Swordfish" mounted torpedoes went straight to the battleship, and "Swordfish" mounted aerial bombs were responsible for attacking cruisers, destroyers and dock facilities.

At 9:20, the second attack wave of seven "Swordfish" took off under the leadership of Admiral Hale.

At 11:00, the second wave of attacks started at 55 minutes. Five of the torpedo-mounted "Swordfish" once again launched a fierce attack on the Italian battleship.

The British navy's raid sank and severely damaged 3 Italian navy battleships, 2 cruisers and 2 destroyers, and almost destroyed half of the Italian navy's wealth.

What was dispatched was just an aircraft carrier with an old-fashioned plane, and it achieved amazing results. Ferdinand's attention was attracted in the previous life, and now it is natural to follow suit.

"Swordfish": The aircraft is 10.87 meters long, 3.76 meters high, and has a wingspan of 13.87 meters.

The maximum take-off weight is 3,406 kg. The aircraft is equipped with a 750-horsepower 9-cylinder air-cooled engine, with a cruising 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 mount a 730kg torpedo or a maximum 680kg depth charge.

Obviously the performance of this aircraft is very average, although the Bulgarian aircraft is now more backward than it, but this gap is not fatal!

It is nothing more than a slower speed and a shorter range, but with such a strong bomb load, Bulgarian bombers can also do it!

Moreover, the Taranto Peninsula in the Apennine Peninsula in Italy and the Vlora region in Albania are only about 70 kilometers away from the sea, which is just within the coverage of the Bulgarian Air Force firepower.

In fact, at this distance, most bombers in World War I could achieve fire coverage. The representative models are: Italian Caproni, which can carry 453~1450 kg bombs, range 500~800 kilometers, and fly at a speed of 116~152 km/h.

The British V/1500 weighs 13,608 kg, has a bomb load of 3,390 kg, and has a battery life of up to 6 hours.

The Germans' "Gotha" and "Gotha" GV, the former has a bomb load of 500 kilograms, and the latter has a bomb load of two tons. There is no doubt about the range, and the existence of bombing London from Germany!

The Russians' Ilya Muromets "E Why, 105 km/h, with a bomb load of 800 kg and a battery life of up to 5 hours.

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Therefore, the Italians are going to be unlucky. As early as 1912, when the Bulgarian Air Force was established, Ferdinand formed a heavy bomber brigade, which was equipped with Falcon 1 generation bombers.

Parameters: The flight altitude is 5,200 meters, the range is 480 kilometers, the speed is 118 kilometers per hour, and the bomb load is 836 kilograms.

Now three years have passed, and the Air Force is no longer the original two or three kittens and puppies. Now the Bulgarian Air Force has equipped more than 350 bombers, of which heavy bombers account for one third and more than 280 bombers. fighters, and with the outbreak of war this number is sure to increase dramatically!

The newly developed Falcon 2 bomber has made a new breakthrough. The range has been doubled, the speed has been increased by one third, and the bomb load has reached 1.2 tons.

Originally, these were prepared for the Austro-Hungarian Empire, and they were planned to attack Belgrade and be caught off guard.

Then Ferdinand undoubtedly thought of the Battle of Taranto, and changed his mind. In any case, the presence of the Italian navy posed a more serious threat to Bulgaria's security.

Rather than always worrying about the threat of the Italian navy, it is better to kill or severely damage them at the beginning of the war to completely establish the Allied power in the Mediterranean Sea.

The most important thing is that they can also kill a future opponent. Once the Italian navy has been severely damaged, their value will no longer exist, and the combat effectiveness of their army will not be looked down upon by the Allies.

In order to protect Italy, the joke of "ten divisions" is not groundless. Anyway, it is a problem to feed the more than 35 million Italians!

Under the German submarine war, the Allied countries' own transportation capacity is very tight. Who is willing to pay for nothing without value?

If the Italians become a defeated country, and Ferdinand supports the French to cede Turin, Milan, and Sardinia, plus huge war reparations, it will be difficult for the Italians to turn over again!

However, Ferdinand has not ordered the operation yet, although the airports in the coastal areas of Albania have already been built, the air force has been prepared, and even the bombs specially prepared for this operation have been in place.

But he is waiting for news, a news that can attract the attention of all countries, and this news is coming soon!

On March 5, the third day after the two sides declared war, the Germans implemented the Schlieffen plan and delivered an ultimatum to Belgium, asking Belgium to open the passage for the German army to attack France, and ordered the Belgians to respond within 24 hours.

I don't know if the Belgians knew the allusion of "fake road cutting Guo", they categorically rejected the Germans' request, and asked the British for help.

On March 6, the German army invaded Belgium, and the British had been waiting for the excuse of war, which was sent 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 neutrality treaty signed by Belgium in 1839 and stop the attack on Belgium.

The British understatement of the warning will naturally not be taken seriously by the Germans. German diplomats made it clear that international treaties are just a piece of waste paper!

Prime Minister Asquith, who received this news, was overjoyed, and the casus belli came, so on March 8, the British government declared war on the Germans on the grounds that the Germans had destroyed the neutrality of Belgium and ignored international treaties, and the First World War broke out in an all-round way. .

"The British are in the war!" People all over the world were attracted by the news, and the Italians were no exception.

The birth of the aircraft is still too short, and now it is only used as a reconnaissance aircraft. What the hell is a bomber? Is it just throwing a few grenades?

This is the image of the aircraft in the minds of people at that time. Most people still think that the aircraft is just a toy. At most, a machine gun is hung up and scattered.

As for bombing, airships are more popular in this era, and their range and bomb capacity are much larger than aircraft.

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"Is the Air Force ready?" Ferdinand asked with concern

After all, this is the first appearance of the Bulgarian Air Force. Whether it is a brilliant victory or a shame is to see this time.

"Your Majesty, don't worry, all of our 350 bombers and 172 fighter jets have been deployed and ready to attack!" Chief of General Staff Imya Dimitev

In the early morning of March 9, the world was still in shock at the news that the British had entered the war. At 6:35, 138 bombers of the Bulgarian Air Force, escorted by 46 fighter jets, took off from the Vlora region of Albania, targeting the port of Taranto, the largest naval base in Italy.

At 7:40, the second batch of 126 bombers of the Bulgarian Air Force's attack group, under the escort of 58 combat power, also took off from the Vlora region, targeting the port of Taranto.

At 8:50, the last bomber formation of the Bulgarian Air Force, 86 bombers, escorted by 72 fighter jets, took off from the Vlora area, and the target was still the port of Taranto.

Obviously this time the Bulgarian Air Force bombers came out in full force, and Ferdinand was preparing to kill the main force of the Italian Navy at one time, and to solve this competitor in the center of the Mediterranean!

At this time, most of the main force of the Italian navy gathered in the port of Taranto. They were waiting to join the Ottoman Empire navy, ready to make a big fight.

Originally, Ferdinand wanted to join the Austro-Hungarian Navy. After thinking about it, he decided to give up this tempting idea. What if the navies merged and ran away?

After leaving the port of Taranto, Ferdinand could only watch them in a hurry, after all, the flight range of the plane is limited!

It's better to take it as soon as possible. As long as the main force of the Italian navy is killed, the navy of the Allied countries will not be able to turn the tide in the Mediterranean Sea.

As for studying the British night attack, Ferdinand doubted whether the pilots would get lost. If they bombed the wrong place and scared the Italian Navy away, it would be a waste of time!

Anyway, in this era, everyone has no air defense awareness. The new bomber is still the original creation of the Bulgarian Air Force.

Even if it is discovered, the Italian planes come to intercept, and the Bulgarian escort fighters are enough to deal with these troubles.