Romania's seizure of the island of Cyprus completely exposed the territory of Britain and France in the Middle East. This naturally made Britain and France worried about this. France, because it needed to deal with the pressure from Germany and Italy, had no idea of ​​dispatching troops for reinforcements, and even wanted to send troops to Syria.
More than 60,000 French troops have been transferred back to the country. Therefore, the defense of the Middle East basically falls on the British army.
In the face of Romania's aggressive attitude, the British side is also under great pressure. On the one hand, it needs to deal with the needs of France across the sea, and on the other hand, it also needs to deal with Romania's attack in the Middle East.
Churchill had a big headache over this. The combat capabilities of the German army were well known, and the capabilities of the Romanians did not seem to be much weaker than those of Germany, plus Italy.
Although the Italian army does not look very strong, its naval and air forces are still very effective. According to reports from the French Navy, in small-scale battles with the Italian Navy, their combat capabilities were not weaker than their French counterparts. Therefore, France
At present, there is no confidence in winning a decisive fleet battle. We can only use small warships to consume their combat power first, but it is not clear who consumes whom.
In terms of air force, France also has the most say. They did not gain any advantage in the battle with the Italian Air Force. Its main fighter MS.406 was still in a disadvantageous situation in the battle with the Italian Air Force's MC.200 fighter jet.
One thing that needs to be mentioned here is that although Italy's current air force is affected by the fragmentation of the aviation industry, some people are secretly helping. The Italians have not rested on their laurels, so their aviation industry has also developed.
The simplest example is the MC.200 fighter aircraft, which was originally supposed to be put on the battlefield in 1940, but was successfully developed in early 1939. Moreover, the aircraft has a maximum speed of 510 kilometers, and is good at low-altitude dogfights and climbing. The only shortcoming is
Its firepower, equipped with two 12.7mm Breda SAFAT machine guns, is too weak.
Faced with the increasing pressure from the Axis group, Churchill, as the British Prime Minister, was even more worried.
"Beaverbrook, what is the current production status of the Spitfire?"
In the conference room of the Prime Minister's Office, Churchill asked about the situation of the fighter planes as soon as he opened his mouth.
Beaverbrook, the Minister of Aircraft Manufacturing, glanced at the document in front of him and replied. "Currently, Spitfires can only be produced at a production scale of two squadrons per month. After the new factory in Coventry starts construction, it will be able to produce
Capacity increased to four and a half squadrons."
After hearing this, Churchill shook his head and said, "This is not enough. The war cases in the Middle East and France tell us that the current hurricane cannot fight against the German BF109, Romania's RF20, and HF201. In addition, I heard that Romania's
The HF201 was jointly developed with the Japanese, how could they get entangled."
Beaverbrook remembers this, because this fighter jet appeared in the air raid on Alexandria at that time, and he specifically asked the intelligence department to pay attention to its specific situation.
"It seems that after the Romanians received aid from the Soviet Union in the Far East, the relationship between the two countries broke down, and then Romania quickly came to Japan. I heard that in order to improve the relationship between Romania and Japan, Romania specially came up with a new air-cooled
The engine is used in the development of new aircraft. Our intelligence personnel in Japan learned that this new aircraft is called the Zero in Japan, and it is a developed carrier-based aircraft. However, judging from the use of this aircraft in Romania,
It has a great range."
"This is exactly what I am worried about. Judging from the current war situation, I only have Spitfires that can compete with them. At present, our enemies already have thousands of these new fighter jets, and we currently have less than a thousand.
This will cause us to lose air superiority, and the results will be catastrophic."
Here, Churchill informed everyone present about the possible consequences. No one thought that our beloved Great Britain would suffer such consequences, so the faces of those present became tense.
Churchill was very satisfied with the effect of his words, so he continued to ask, "What is our next agenda?"
"It's a telegram about the defenders of Malta Island asking for help. They said in the telegram that the various supplies on the island are currently insufficient. In addition, the island currently lacks air defense force. Now Italian planes are bombing every day."
As soon as Churchill heard about the island of Malta, he felt a little uncomfortable. The island is in an extremely advantageous location, otherwise it would not have been selected as the home port of the Mediterranean Fleet. However, with the development of technology and the Italian Navy
With the growth of the country, I felt that it was too close to Italy, so I moved to Alexandria.
But now, the Malta Island is indeed a bit uncomfortable for the United Kingdom. Because of the loss of the Mediterranean Fleet, it has lost control of the waters of the Eastern Mediterranean. Under such circumstances, it is somewhat inappropriate for the fleet to provide material supplies and equipment replenishment for the Malta Island.
Reality.
At present, the supply of supplies and equipment transportation to Malta is protected by France. After the British sailed the supply fleet to Tunisia, France provided warships and aircraft escorts. France is also quite happy to have a nail in Italian waters.
Make him feel uncomfortable behind his back.
It's just that France's losses after several shipments to the island were a bit excessive. According to French statistics, the average loss rate for every shipment to the island of Malta was as high as 27%. This is too exaggerated. One escort was lost in four shipments.
France, which has a large fleet and a large business, can't bear it, so France is becoming more and more reluctant to transport.
In fact, the UK can't stand it, but Malta's status is too important, so it can only grit its teeth and persevere. There is also a voice in the country that believes that the island of Malta has become a bleeding mouth for Britain and France, and precious supplies should no longer be used.
I put my fleet on this small island, but it should be used where it is needed more.
The emergence of this kind of voice is just that it cannot yet interfere with British policy.
In fact, in his heart, Churchill was in favor of abandoning the island of Malta. At present, the island of Malta can no longer play its role because the current naval forces of Britain and France are not enough to protect the island.
However, Churchill never mentioned this idea to anyone, because this plan would be a huge blow to him. He, the Prime Minister, might not want to do it anymore if he surrendered strategic locations to the enemy without firing a single shot.
So he is now in a dilemma about the island of Malta, but he has to find a way. "How is the communication with France currently?"
Sir Dudley, the First Sea Lord of the Navy, replied. "At present, France has agreed to escort the next fleet. However, from next time on, France hopes to have our own fleet escort. They can provide aircraft protection."
"These Frenchies!"
After hearing what Sir Dudley said, Churchill couldn't help but complain. However, the assistance to the horses must continue, so he said, "Then the transport fleet will be larger this time."
"Okay, Prime Minister."
How could Sir Dudley not understand what Churchill meant?
"By the way, what does General Wavell say now?"
As soon as Churchill spoke, everyone sat upright because this was the most important motion today.
As the Minister of War, Eden said. "Currently, General Wavell has led his troops back to Egypt in view of the capture of Cyprus Island. He is currently deploying defenses on the coast of Egypt and Palestine. However, he currently lacks armor and air defense.
There is also a shortage of cannons, so he hopes that the country can support him with these materials."
Churchill frowned a little when he heard Eden's words. Because the main force of the British army is currently on the mainland, and in order to land at any time
France also has the best equipment. Therefore, the materials of Wavell's Middle East Army are completely inferior to those of the local army. Of course, this also involves another topic, that is, the lack of British military industry capabilities. It is pitiful to say that last year, the Skoda factory
Weapons production can be compared to the UK's annual output.
Although this proves that Skoda is huge, it does not prove that the British military industry capabilities are low. After the war broke out, they faced the problem caused by large-scale military expansion, that is, the shortage of military supplies. Of course, Britain and France could also obtain supplies from the United States.
Imports, but the U.S. production capacity that has not been mobilized is limited, and the U.S. itself is also preparing for military expansion, so how much can it provide to support Britain and France.
Therefore, the decision made by the British was to give priority to ensuring local troops, and as for the Middle East, it could only be a secondary requirement. But now General Wavell's complaints have come.
Churchill thought for a moment, and just when he was about to speak, the door opened with a bang, and his secretary walked in with an excited look on his face, holding a telegram.
