Chapter 221 A Good Appetite Comes with Good Teeth

Under the escort of six Bf-109E fighter planes belonging to the 26th Fighter Squadron, two Ju-52 aircraft carrying German Air Force officers smoothly landed at the newly constructed Llangefni Airport on the Isle of Anglesey. Even before the propellers had stopped spinning, the young Chief of Operations, Hans Rogan, enthusiastically addressed his subordinates:

"Since we landed on the Isle of Wight, our air force and army have jointly built 97 makeshift airfields and repaired and expanded 21 existing permanent airfields in Britain over the past four months. Do you know how the cabinet officials describe us? They say we're simply the Great German Engineering Team, specifically sent to aid in construction in Britain. In fact, among the ships responsible for logistics transport, every fourth one carries engineering vehicles and raw materials like cement! Ha-ha!"

Most of the accompanying officers were young, with about half originally serving in the Air Force Operations Department. However, in recent times, the workload of this department has far exceeded that of the Hermann Göring era, and it can even be said that it has taken on some responsibilities that originally belonged to the Air Force Command. Recognizing this, a batch of young junior staff officers have been approved by the Fuhrer and recommended by various aviation commanders to join this dynamic department.

Although the noisy engine noise made it difficult for some to hear their own commands, the officers near Rogan all smiled without exception.

"Later, I told the Fuhrer that the original materials for building the airfields were supposed to be sourced locally, but the British used their steel and cement to build those ostentatious coastal fortresses. So, we had no choice but to transport them from Germany by ship. However, the construction of each airfield ultimately proves to be immensely effective!" Rogan chuckled as he walked to the cabin door, the smoothly paved runway below already covered with a layer of flat concrete. This meant that large aircraft could take off and land even in rainy or snowy weather.

After more than half a month of refurbishment, the German army has already built eleven airfields on this island located in northwest Wales, just over 160 kilometers from Belfast. Among them, three are relatively large permanent airfields, located respectively in Llangefni in the central part of the island, Llanfaes in the west, and Blindeg in the east. As for the remaining eight, as long as the weather is good, they can all accommodate fighter jets and ordinary bombers, and even three-engine transport planes like the Ju-52.

"Welcome to the frontline, our young and promising Chief of Operations!"

Waiting at the foot of the ladder was an Air Force General wearing the Knight's Iron Cross, adorned with the Spanish Cross of the Military Order of Saint James and the Spanish Military Medal in Gold. His eyes were not large, but they had the sharpness of an eagle's, and he bore a surname well-known in Germany: Richterhofen!

Without hesitation, Rogan raised his right hand in salute. "Salute to the superior officer!"

All the young officers behind him followed suit.

The two men shook hands with smiles, their successful cooperation in Operation 'Wrath of the Sea' deepening their relationship beyond mere formality.

"Wherever you go, victory follows, so the officers and soldiers are eagerly awaiting your arrival!" The 45-year-old Air Force General praised the 27-year-old Air Force Major General. After shaking hands with all the leaders who came to greet them, the two of them got into a car and headed for the frontline command headquarters, about 10 kilometers from the airport—Anglesey Island, with an area of nearly 700 square kilometers, is twice the size of the Isle of Wight. It is flat with fertile land, historically serving as the prosperous backyard of Wales. The Menai Strait, 24 kilometers long, separates it from the Welsh mainland, with its narrowest point being less than 200 meters. Although four weeks ago, when the British army retreated, they destroyed two bridges on the strait, the German engineering troops only took five hours to build four pontoon bridges. Subsequently, with support from the Stuka formations, two tank battalions from the 3rd Armored Division and two regiments from the 13th Motorized Infantry Division stormed this flat island, and the battle was declared over two days later!

Richterhofen's frontline headquarters was established in a typical rural manor. Through newly cleaned windows, one could still see British pigs happily eating and sleeping in muddy pigsties, oblivious to the turmoil and fate of the country.

Entering the command room, Richterhofen quickly got to the point: "All fighter, bomber, anti-aircraft artillery, and transport units have been deployed according to plan, and the two radar stations are operating around the clock. As soon as a plane takes off or lands in Belfast, we will know immediately! Here you go, Chief of Operations, these are aerial photographs developed an hour ago! Taken at 7:50 this morning!"

Although his vision was 1.5, Rogan still needed to use a specially made optical magnifier to discern some small details in the enlarged photos. By 1940, Belfast was already a large-scale port, serving as the core area for the British Empire's rule in Northern Ireland. Airports, barracks, fortresses, factories, and warehouses were all present. Of particular note was that its largest airport was adjacent to the largest dock. This meant that if an airborne assault could successfully seize the airport, controlling the dock would become very easy. Of course, the British couldn't overlook this fact. Through aerial photographs, one could see that the airport was surrounded by anti-aircraft gun emplacements. If it were just a frontal aerial photograph, tactical camouflage nets could completely conceal them. However, the German Luftwaffe's aerial reconnaissance department had developed a comprehensive set of aerial photography techniques long before the war broke out. Aerial photos taken from multiple angles could create a three-dimensional effect, making it difficult for those anti-aircraft gun emplacements to hide!

"The British are constructing 'Churchill's Asparagus' in the fields east of the Belfast city, but the quantity is not yet significant. It seems they are not aware that we will choose that place for our airborne operation! General, your boys are doing a splendid job!" When Logan said "splendid," he referred to the recent frequent sorties of the 8th Air Corps commanded by Richthofen, which bombarded Scottish port cities like Greenock, Milford Haven, and Workington vigorously over the past week, and dispatched bombers and transport planes to drop leaflets over Ireland, urging the Irish to seize the opportunity to reclaim Northern Ireland and fulfill their dream of a unified Ireland.

Now, it seemed these two tactics had indeed diverted the attention of the British. The preparations for defense in Belfast harbor were proceeding at a sluggish pace, and there was no sign of departure for the three large warships under construction—the illustrious-class aircraft carrier HMS Audacious, the battleship HMS Prince of Wales, and the under-repair Queen Elizabeth-class battleship HMS Warspite—especially the yet-to-be-fitted chimneys of HMS Audacious, which rendered it unable to navigate under its own power. While the HMS Prince of Wales had three main gun turrets in place, careful scrutiny of the aerial photographs revealed that most of its secondary guns and anti-aircraft guns were yet to be installed. Even if they set sail forcibly, their combat and defensive capabilities would be severely limited!

"We are deploying according to plan. If we talk about 'splendid,' the planners behind this scheme truly deserve the credit!" Richthofen spoke frankly.

"Hey, then you should treat the boys from our Operations Department to coffee on the Champs-Élysées one day!" Logan continued to scrutinize the aerial photographs in his hand, trying to find something that the technical personnel might have overlooked.

"Why not by the Thames?" Richthofen corrected him kindly.

"Oh, right, by the Thames! Thames?" Logan suddenly stared at the aerial photographs for a while, then said, "General, come and see, what's this near the coast?"

"What?" Richthofen leaned in, scrutinizing carefully with his ace pilot's eyes. Half a minute later, he said with a speculative tone, "It seems to be torpedo launchers deployed on the coast, but it could also be just drainage pipes!"

"If they are torpedo launchers, then they could attack the two battleships anchored in the harbor and the gates of the dockyard at any time!" Logan picked up a triangular ruler and gestured towards the photograph. Sure enough, there were only some small boats between the suspicious objects and the British warships and dockyard used to build aircraft carriers. Typically, these boats wouldn't interfere with the trajectory of torpedoes!

"Hmm... Is this a random coincidence or something the British intentionally did?" Richthofen rubbed his right temple with the tip of his pencil. "Perhaps they're just ordinary sewage pipes in the city, but we can't rely on such wishful thinking!"

"Yes, we cannot underestimate any suspicious object!" Logan pointed at the photo with his finger. "For the second wave of bombings tomorrow, assign two squads from Stuka Group to deal with it!"

"Agreed!" Richthofen readily consented. "General, you're considering this very thoughtfully!"

"Bold recklessness can only be indulged occasionally. To secure an invincible position, meticulous planning is required!" Logan responded, borrowing a warning from Studdert for himself. After discussing and confirming the next day's air force bombing operations, he then inquired about the readiness of the paratroopers.

"Our soldiers secretly arrived two days ago, and everyone is staying quietly in the barracks. I had each of them check their parachutes and weapons at least three times!" General William Susman, the newly appointed commander of the 7th Parachute Division, answered with precision. If Logan had studied the Battle of Crete in another historical timeline, he would have realized that the stout middle-aged man before him was the unlucky one who died before achieving any victory—he was on a glider that crashed after its towrope was severed by the wing of a friendly aircraft. Of course, if he had examined the family tree of his fiancée, whom he had met only once, he would have found that she had a quite close blood relation with this General Susman, to be precise, she called him uncle!

However, in this historical timeline, General Puechel, the former commander of the 7th Parachute Division, unfortunately died in the airborne operation in Cardiff, just like what happened to his predecessors. The probability of such events occurring successively should be negligible!