They are the Second Task Force commanded by Major General Fernandez. The fleet is lined up and sailing rapidly on the Mediterranean Sea. There are dozens of fighter planes in the sky guarding the airspace of his fleet.
As the commander of the fleet, Major General Fernandez looked at the sea with a serious expression. "How far is it from the target?"
"According to the results of the reconnaissance ten minutes ago, the current distance is still 120 kilometers. However, the other party should have discovered our previous two reconnaissances and was driving desperately towards Crete."
After hearing what the communications staff officer said, Major General Fernandez looked at him with some dissatisfaction, and then asked, "What is the opponent's current speed? Is there any sign of diverging?"
After being glanced at by the major general, the communications staff officer who was a little flustered quickly replied. "The opponent's ship speed is currently around 14 knots, and we haven't noticed any further attempts to disperse. Maybe he was frightened by our previous actions."
"Okay, I understand. Now I order all the warships to continue to speed up and increase the speed to 30 knots. I want to see the enemy fleet today."
Following Rear Admiral Fernandez's order, each ship was at full power. The white waves on the stern of the ship were stretched even longer, and the speed of the fleet was further increased.
While Major General Fernandez was giving the order, Colonel Colcos, the commander of the transport fleet whose target number was B-12, was anxiously standing in the mail room waiting for the news.
"Crete, haven't you called back yet?"
"Your Excellency, Colonel, there has been no call back yet."
"It's been almost two hours. Haven't they figured out a way yet? We're here to reinforce them."
Colonel Korkos was anxious and wanted to curse. As a veteran who participated in the Battle of Jutland (first officer of a certain destroyer), Colonel Korkos had a hundred reasons to be dissatisfied with being assigned to command the transport fleet.
But the situation was not up to him, because Alexandria was attacked by air, and the fleet commander, General Cunningham, and the chief of staff, General Hawkins, were ordered to retire. Now the newly appointed General Somerville is an old guy with a tough style. He dare not
There is no resistance to this appointment.
This time, the B-12 transport fleet he was responsible for consisted of more than ten transport ships, which were filled with supplies to support Crete. There was also a British-Indian infantry brigade on board to reinforce Crete.
In fact, the B-12 transport fleet was the last fleet transporting to Crete. When Romania seized the Cyclades Islands, the Greek government that retreated to Crete kept asking for help from the United Kingdom. Not only did they want
Weapons and ammunition and other military supplies, as well as food and daily necessities, were needed, and they also hoped that the British would send reinforcements to help them defend.
Considering that Greece is an ally and Crete is also very important to Britain, Britain has sent several fleets to take the opportunity to transport a lot of weapons, ammunition and supplies ashore. More importantly, Britain has also sent reinforcements from India.
Nearly 20,000 Australian and New Zealand officers and soldiers are fighting alongside the Greeks on Crete. They are commanded by Major General White, who also commands all British military forces in Crete.
This time, there were many supplies and personnel that he had specified he needed, especially the more than 50 anti-tank guns and more than 180 anti-aircraft guns on board the ship, which he urgently needed.
Colonel Colcos's hope was that the major general would pay enough attention to this batch of equipment that he would be able to send aircraft to support him.
The waiting transceiver saw the green light on the radio and said quickly, "The telegram is here."
After the transceiver prepared the message, Korkos took it over. There were only a few words in it. Enter the Crete defense circle as soon as possible. We will send aircraft to support you.
It was this telegram that Korkos was waiting for, and he shouted loudly, "Inform all the crew immediately of this news and let them know that we have not given up."
So this telegram from Crete was immediately sent to every ship.
For Corcos to do this, in addition to the low morale of the fleet due to being attacked by Romanian fighter planes, there was also their pessimistic attitude towards this being a transportation mission.
Because this can all be seen with a clear eye, the youngest transport ship in the current fleet is the Martin, which is 15 years old. Not to mention other transport ships, which are generally 20 years old.
.As for the warships escorted by Korcos, they were all old-timers. There was not a single newly built warship after the war. They were all old-fashioned characters.
Take the Caradoc cruiser under my feet as an example. This is currently the most chronological light cruiser in the navy. Its history can be traced back to World War I. You must know that small warships are different from large warships. The replacement cost of small warships is not
Large ones are higher, so countries basically replace small warships much faster than large warships.
So the Caradoc is a very old ship, but this old ship is also the backbone of this small fleet, and the other ships are even worse.
The destroyer Panyan on the right is obviously in the style of a lightning strike ship before World War I. But judging from its slow pace, don't even think about lightning strikes. Be careful of breaking down halfway. The Antelope on the left is in much better condition, at least
It is in the style of World War I. The only bad thing is that the failure rate is relatively high, and it has to be repaired three times along the way.
With such a group of veterans and remnants protecting this transport ship, no one would have the confidence to do so.
This is not to say that Britain does not have good warships, but that the risk of transporting this route from Egypt to Crete is too high. When they lose control of the sea, they can use old ships but not new ones, because they are
The battleships intercepted by Romania were all vulnerable to attack.
This telegram somewhat increased the confidence of the fleet, at least letting them know that a rescue plane would come. Therefore, the fleet still maintained a maximum formation speed of 14 knots and fled towards Crete.
One more thing, the B-12 fleet is the last transport fleet in Crete. Because Britain needs Crete to delay Romania, rather than filling the bottomless pit of Crete with British troops and supplies. Britain hopes
The island can withstand Romanian attacks for more than one month, and at best it can hold off the Romanians for three months, allowing British colonial troops to gather in Egypt and the Middle East.
Every move of the B-12 fleet is under the eyes of the Second Task Force. Rear Admiral Fernandez, who holds three fleet aircraft carriers, will naturally not let this fleet escape. If he had not wanted to capture
On the other side, the carrier-based aircraft of three aircraft carriers alone can send them all to the bottom of the sea to feed the fish.
He may not be sure about attacking a warship formation, but a transport fleet is like target practice.
Time passed slowly as the two fleets chased and escaped. When the time came to four o'clock in the afternoon, a column of smoke appeared on the horizon.
This made Colcos' heart sink, because it meant that the Romanian fleet had caught up.
"How far are we from Crete now?"
Anxiously, he pulled the captain over and asked about the distance. Colcos, an old navy man, knew at a glance that there were many ships coming. The only ones that appeared at this time could be the Romanian fleet chasing him. There was no one at the moment.
Who dares to go near the waters near Crete?
The captain, who was also frightened, answered truthfully: "Currently we are still about a hundred kilometers away from Crete."
"At this speed, we cannot get rid of the Romanian fleet that is pursuing us. Let the transport ship go first, and we will block the Romanian pursuit."
At this moment, Captain Colcos is possessed by the century-old spirit of the British Navy, and he wants to block the Romanian fleet.
"As you command, Your Excellency."
Following his order, the escorting warships slowly left the convoy, allowing the transport ships to pass by first. Now they plan to use their own warships to block the pursuing enemies and buy time for the transport convoys.
"Damn it, didn't I say the island would support us? Where did the plane go?"
Although the order was issued to intercept the incoming Romanian fleet, Colonel Colcos still hoped to receive support from aircraft, even if it meant harassing the Romanian fleet.
"Report, this is a telegram from Crete. The reinforcement fleet they sent was intercepted by a Romanian fighter jet group. It is reported that the number of intercepted fighter jets is more than 70. The reinforcement fleet suffered heavy losses and is no longer able to support us."
The communications officer's words made Colonel Korcos' heart sink to the bottom of his heart.
"Okay, I get it."
"I now order the Z flag to be raised to tell all sailors that the British Empire requires everyone to perform their duties faithfully."
Although later generations know more about the Z flag being used by Japan, this was just Japan's imitation of the British Navy. During the Battle of Trafalgar, Viscount Nelson used it for the first time in a naval battle.
Now Colonel Colcos plans to imitate the feats of his ancestors and use this flag. Although he does not have the strength and means to defeat the incoming Romanian army, he wants to let the Romanians know that the British Empire is determined to never surrender.
So I saw five old British warships rushing towards the incoming Romanian fleet without hesitation.
