Chapter 426: Their respective plans
"General Hipper, lead the 1st battlecruiser detachment to set off. Now that the main force of the British has left Scapa Flow, they are no longer shrinking turtles. Then, let's have this final decisive battle with them!" Admiral Reinhard Scheer said.
"Yes, Your Excellency Commander." Lieutenant General Hipper had been looking forward to this battle for a long time. Although, the strength of the British navy has been weakened a lot by them. However, the number of its dozens of capital ships is still amazing. If the British Navy can be severely damaged or even wiped out in this battle, very fruitful results can still be achieved.
"General Hipper, it is still the old rule. If you encounter the main British fleet, then retreat and lead them to the main fleet. If you encounter the British squadron, if you can eat them, eat them These capital ships of the British will be sunk before we can completely win this naval battle." Admiral Reinhardt Scheer said.
"Yes, General." Lieutenant General Hipper nodded. Although the No. 1 battlecruiser unit he led had three powerful battleships like the 'Mackenson-class' battlecruisers, there were only six in total after all. If they encounter the main force of the British navy, they will not be able to eat it.
"The British now only have six battlecruisers left. If they eat them all, the next battle will be much easier." Admiral Reinhard Scheer said.
There are not many remaining capital ships of the British Navy, although most of those battlecruisers are thin-skinned warships. However, it has to be admitted that those warships are very fast. If these battlecruisers are lost, the British Navy will lose its fast battleships.
"I have given an order to General Spee. His 2nd Battlecruiser Squadron will abandon the attack on the British coastal cities and cooperate with your actions. Anyway, if we can completely defeat the British Navy, whether to attack the British coastal cities?" Cities are meaningless." Admiral Reinhard Scheer said.
"Yes, General. After the Royal Navy is dealt with by us, we can land on the British mainland when the army defeats the British and French allied forces. At that time, these coastal cities will be occupied by us. We can even use the British shipbuilding capabilities to Improve our own shipbuilding system," Hipper said.
Indeed, in terms of shipbuilding strength, Britain is indeed above Germany. If Germany hadn't taken a shortcut in terms of warships because of Qin Tian, it would have been impossible for them to catch up with the Royal Navy. After defeating the United Kingdom, it is just possible to use the shipbuilding capabilities of the United Kingdom to enhance Germany's shipbuilding capabilities, making Germany the veritable number one power in shipbuilding.
Half an hour later, Lieutenant General Hipper led the six battlecruisers of the 1st Battlecruiser Squadron to set off. Three "Makensen-class" battlecruisers, three "Blücher-class" battlecruisers, plus several light cruisers and destroyers, left the huge fleet and headed north. According to the information received, the British fleet set off from Scapa Flow and headed south. In this case, at dawn tomorrow morning, they will probably be able to encounter the British Navy.
On the other side, the 2nd Battlecruiser Squadron of the German Navy also ended its bombardment of Dundee. After Lieutenant General Maximilian von Spee received the telegram from Admiral Reinhard Scheer, a smile appeared on his face.
"The British finally came out. This time, I don't have to continue to attack their coastal cities and bear the infamy of a butcher!" Lieutenant General Spee said with a smile. Being able to fight against the British navy is naturally more exciting for him than attacking British coastal cities.
"Command the fleet to go north at full speed!" Lieutenant General Spei ordered.
"Yes, General."
The three "Derfflinger-class" battlecruisers and three "Moltke-class" battlecruisers of the 2nd Battlecruiser Squadron immediately went north, preparing to face the Royal Navy.
Both the British Navy and the German Navy knew that this battle was inevitable, and they never thought about avoiding it. Therefore, when both sides have the desire to fight, the outbreak of this decisive naval battle is inevitable.
On the morning of March 21, a seaplane of the German Navy spotted the British fleet heading south in the sea 100 kilometers east of Fraserburg. Six battlecruisers headed south quickly under the protection of a group of light cruisers and destroyers. The seaplane immediately reported the situation to the flagship, and at the same time prepared to patrol around to see if there were any warships of the British Navy.
However, they were intercepted by British seaplanes. Under the siege of several seaplanes of the British Navy, the German seaplanes had to withdraw from this sea area.
On the battlecruiser 'Tiger' of the British Navy, Lieutenant Admiral David Beatty had a serious face. In this battle, their disadvantage is really too great. So much so that he had to be careful with every step he took.
"General, the German seaplane flew away." A staff officer reported to Lieutenant General David Beatty.
"Well, tell the 2nd battleship squadron to speed up and keep a distance of about 20 kilometers from us. The Germans have spotted us, so their fleet should arrive soon. Hopefully, they will only send a few ships Battlecruisers are coming to deal with us." Lieutenant General David Beatty said.
If the German Navy only sent a few battlecruisers, then their strategy would be successful. At that time, the three "Queen Elizabeth-class" battleships of the 2nd Battleship Squadron will become a surprise force, after raiding the side of the German fleet, they will win the battle in one fell swoop.
Of course, if all 12 battlecruisers of the German Navy arrived, Lieutenant General David Beatty would have to retreat. Facing all the battlecruisers of the German Navy, even with the addition of three "Queen Elizabeth-class" battleships, they are definitely not opponents. After fighting against the German Navy's battlecruisers twice, Lieutenant General David Beatty knew how powerful these battlecruisers were.
"Yes, General."
On the other side, the German Navy's 1st battlecruiser formation also obtained the information. After learning the location of the battlecruiser formation of the British Navy, Lieutenant General Hipper immediately ordered the 1st battlecruiser squadron to speed up.
"Order the fleet to prepare for battle. The British are less than two hours away from us. In an hour, we will most likely start a firefight. Also, send a telegram to General Spee to speed up, and we will encircle and wipe out together." Drop the British battlecruiser." Lieutenant General Hipper excitedly gave the order.
