The reason for the dispute between the two was that a British reconnaissance plane was shot down by a guarding fighter jet outside the fleet. However, before it was shot down, radio waves had been detected. In other words, their location had been discovered.
Faced with this situation, Vice Admiral Midrafael, as the commander of the fleet, requested to leave immediately after the carrier-based aircraft returned. However, Major General Fernandez, as the chief of staff, had different opinions on this. He believed that
At present, the British Egyptian army should not have many aircraft that can attack the fleet. As long as the fleet is ready for anti-submarine warfare, they should launch another wave of aircraft to bomb Alexandria more thoroughly.
Facing Major General Fernandez's idea of trying to maximize the results of the war, Midrafael did not agree at all, and he retorted.
"Your Excellency, Chief of Staff, as hunters, we cannot only focus on the prey in front of us and forget about the possible dangers behind us. Although I also know that another wave of air strikes will completely paralyze Alexandria, but this will put us in danger.
middle."
"Your Excellency, Commander, our air strikes have wiped out the British air force in Egypt. Combined with the telegram we received a moment ago, the British Army has dispatched Gladiators and Hawker fighter jets to intercept our air strike fleet. This is enough to show that
question."
Faced with Fernandez's rebuttal, Midrafael strongly disagreed. "Sir, what you want is the most ideal state, but the war cannot be conducted according to your most ideal state. And the air raid group is in
The British fighter jet Alexander encountered was only the first interception.
And have you ever thought about it, now that our position is exposed, it is very likely that the British army will no longer intercept our air raid group in Alexandria. They can completely let us attack and organize fighter planes to attack our fleet. At this time, what should we do?
Where are the troops?"
Yes, Midrafael may not have heard of the story of the Tianqi horse racing, but the reason is clear. Compared with the British Mediterranean fleet, which basically consists of old ships, this Romanian ship is a new one. Not to mention that it cannot be replaced.
From now on, even if I touch Midrafael, I feel distressed.
Moreover, this fleet is basically the entire strength of the Romanian Navy. If there is an accident, how will Midrafael explain it?
However, faced with the words of Commander Midrafael, Fernandez could not speak. Although he consciously believed that the British army did not have much air power anymore, he only needed to work harder to defeat them.
Alexandria was completely destroyed. But this was just self-consciousness, but self-consciousness could not be used as a reason to express it, let alone that this fleet could be regarded as the full strength of the Romanian Navy.
So he could only say it in a negotiable tone. "We can wait for the fleet to return and then reduce the scale of the third air strike to 150 sorties. This can reduce our detention time."
Midrafael was furious when he heard what his chief of staff said.
"My chief of staff, it's past 12 o'clock when the fleet comes back. How late do you plan to come back after the next air raid? It will take at least more than 2 hours. This does not include the replenishment time for the return. If added, it will take at least 3-
It won’t be over until 4 o’clock. Do you know the danger of leaving the fleet in a position known to the enemy for 4-5 hours?”
Seeing that the commander completely rejected his suggestion, Fernandez wanted to give it a final try.
"But……"
I saw Midrafael reaching out to stop him. The chief of staff wanted to continue speaking. He said categorically, "No but. Now I issue an order with the authority of the fleet commander: wait until the fleet returns and set off immediately.
According to the planned plan, we entered the Aegean Sea from the west of Crete and returned to the port of Thessaloniki."
Facing Midrafael's order to retreat, Fernandez did not argue anymore. He walked out of the command room and came outside.
Looking from the command tower of the Kurmis, this sea area is full of Romanian warships. From the mighty and majestic battleships in the inner layer to the destroyers in the outermost layer of the fleet, they all closely protect the five ships in the core area.
aircraft carrier.
Fernandez secretly felt that after this war, the pattern of naval warfare would change. Aircraft carriers would also be upgraded from a supporting position to a position of equal importance to battleships.
"Perhaps after I return, I should report to my superiors and urgently increase the aircraft carrier construction plan."
Fernandez was smoking a cigarette and thinking in his mind.
Of course, the time it takes to build a regular aircraft carrier is not short at all, it will take at least two years. Of course, before that, perhaps a few more escort aircraft carriers should be built.
He looked at the Buck and Jarscu, which were obviously different from the three fleet aircraft carriers, and thought that he needed to see which other fast cruise ships in Romania were suitable for transformation. They were long and fast and also suitable for transformation.
, these requirements are really a headache, maybe I have to wait until I get back and find someone to help.
That's right, Fernandez is already thinking about what's next. Now that Commander Midrafael has made a decision, he doesn't continue to struggle. And he learned through telegrams that the two air strikes were basically
Although there are some regrets about the results achieved, for example, in the third air attack plan, in addition to continuing to attack the warships in the harbor, it is also necessary to further attack the facilities in the harbor.
Not long after, the returning fleet appeared in front of everyone.
The five aircraft carriers have begun the intense and busy reception work, but compared with the last time, the ground crews are much more relaxed because they no longer need to refuel and load these fighters.
However, the blood-stained people carried out from the fighter planes from time to time are also showing their danger. The crews of carrier-based aircraft are more dangerous than others.
So although the time for returning aircraft is more concentrated this time, the reception work proceeds very quickly. They only need to direct the aircraft to park, and then use the elevator to put them into the hangar. Of course, the last one to land must be the HF201 fighter jet, this one
The plane stays in the air for a long time, and it is a fighter jet, so of course it needs to be left until the end to receive it.
Moreover, after receiving them, many of them were not put in the hangar, but were left on the deck. This was also a move made to deal with possible dangers.
It's just that the pilot has been working hard for a while since he flew all the way from morning to now.
After recovering the returning fleet, Midrafael took a look at the casualty report and issued the order. "Start returning now."
Following his order, the fleet that had been here for a short time immediately sped away.
As for the victim of this air attack, General Cunningham of the Mediterranean Fleet also received news of the departure of the Romanian fleet an hour and a half later.
Of course, being able to know so quickly is also the credit of the British Air Force. Although the British Air Force does not know about the indecent assault, it must take revenge, even if it is not strong enough. So when the British fleet was divided into several groups, it pounced on the telegram.
After the position of the Romanian fleet, no fleet was seen.
While continuing to look around, he was nowhere to be seen. It’s not that he didn’t see it, but the news of nearly a hundred fighter jets over the fleet at that time made these big herrings and swordfish dare not go there to seek death. Of course, there were also
One reason is that the Romanian fleet is already outside their combat radius.
