The Rise of the Third Reich

Radar in September 1939 was still in the category of black technology, and Germany was the leader in this regard.

In the original history, Germany also had certain advantages in the field of radar technology in the early days of World War II, until their opponent, the United Kingdom, invented the multi-cavity resonant cavity magnetron, a microwave emitting device (electron tube) that could make radar The power is greatly increased, thereby improving the performance of the radar.

But that was after 1940. Now the British do not have this kind of multi-cavity resonant magnetron, but Dr. Hans Holman (the father of German radar) and GEMA (German radar manufacturer) ) has also received the highest priority supply from the Ministry of Armament, and is working hard to develop practical multi-cavity magnetrons.

In the era before multi-cavity resonant magnetrons, the German "Freya" radar and the British "Native Chain" radar were competing. Company 1A developed the "Freya" radar with a detection range of 120 kilometers. In early 1938, the first batch of improved "Freya" radars were officially installed and became Germany's most important air defense warning radar.

The British "native" chain radar far exceeds the "Freya" radar in detection range, reaching 190 kilometers. However, a long detection range does not mean that the performance of the radar is necessarily superior. Because there is no revolutionary multi-cavity resonant magnetron, the detection range of the British "local chain" radar is achieved by relying on the height of the volume (that is, making it bigger). It requires a nearly 100-meter-high iron tower to serve as an antenna, has no maneuverability at all, and can only detect a 120-degree sectoral airspace. The "Freya" radar is much smaller, can be maneuvered, and the antenna can rotate 360 ​​degrees.

Precisely because of its smaller size, the production and deployment quantity of this radar far exceeds that of the "local chain" radar. By the outbreak of war in 1939, at the request of the General Staff, the Luftwaffe had deployed dozens of "Freya" radars in the border areas of western, northern and southern Germany (Austria). Three of them are deployed in Klervaux (the terminus of the Siegfried Line), Lahr and Emden near the Dutch border.

The three radars are all deployed very close to the border. They can not only effectively cover German airspace, but also detect hundreds of kilometers in the Netherlands. Among them, the radar deployed in Kleve can even cover the sky above Amsterdam, the capital of the Netherlands!

The 96 Wellington medium bombers of the British 5th Bomb Group just flew through the airspace north of Amsterdam, which was also within the detection range of the "Freya" radar.

…

"General, at 7:35, a huge fleet of aircraft was spotted north of Amsterdam, flying rapidly eastward. The target is probably within our country!"

At 7:45 pm, German time, at the headquarters of the German Air Force's 2nd Air Force in Bremen, the commander of the 2nd Air Force, Lieutenant General Helmut Fimmel, and his chief of staff, Joseph. Colonel Kamhuber heard some incredible news.

"What?" Lieutenant General Fimmel was stunned, "Isn't there a mistake at the radar station?"

"Probably not," Colonel Kamhuber said. "The Kleve radar station reported to the Air Defense Command at 7:38, and the radar station in Lahr also reported the discovery of a large number of aircraft flying from Dutch airspace at 7:41." Come."

The organization of the German Air Force in this time and space is different from that in history. There will be no such weird air force marine divisions, and five air defense commands have also been established. In charge of the northeast, northwest, southeast, southwest, and center of Germany, and responsible for local air defense. When the four major air forces are not transferred out of the defense zone, they are under the jurisdiction of the Air Force (the Central Air Defense Command is under the direct jurisdiction of the Air Force), and after the Air Force is transferred out, it is under the direct control of the Air Force Command.

The radar stations deployed everywhere are "air defense facilities" and are naturally under the jurisdiction of the Air Defense Command. Ground anti-aircraft artillery units and air defense balloon units are also under the jurisdiction of the Air Defense Command.

In addition, the Air Defense Command will also have some fighter squadrons and reconnaissance aircraft squadrons that serve as security missions. When they are unable to cope with the air threat, they will ask for help from the superior air force or air force command.

"A huge fleet..." Lieutenant General Fimmel frowned, "Dutch?"

Since relations between the Netherlands and Germany were currently very good - due to William's restoration - no one believed that the Netherlands wanted to go to war with Germany. Therefore, the first thing that Fimmel thought of was not the incoming enemy planes, but the night training of the Dutch Air Force.

"It's unlikely," Colonel Kamhuber said. "Why are they taking off so many planes at night?"

"Let the Air Defense Command make a call to verify." Lieutenant General Fimmel said.

Because of the good relationship, the Second Air Defense Command has a hotline with the Air Force Staff in the Netherlands - the British do not know this, and they do not know that the German "Freya" radar can detect Amsterdam. nearby airspace.

"General, the Air Defense Command has already contacted the Netherlands," Colonel Kamhuber said. "They have also dispatched two squadrons of BF-110s, but these few aircraft are not enough to intercept, so they are requesting our reinforcements."

If it were daytime, just four squadrons equipped with BF-109s under the Second Air Defense Command would be enough to shoot down all the invading British aircraft.

In fact, on September 4, the day after the Scapa Flow air raid, the British sent 24 Wellington bombers to bomb the Wilhelmshaven HNA Airport with the help of cloud cover (it was a cloudy day). The result was detected by radar. The Naval Air Force dispatched 20 Fokker Zeros and 24 BF-110s to intercept and shot down 17 of them.

But now it is night, and the BF-109 and Fokker Zero have no night combat capabilities. The only ones that can be used are the BF-110 (the BF-110 is larger and can be equipped with a searchlight). However, even the BF-110's ability to detect enemies at night is very weak. Two squadrons of 24 aircraft may not be enough to drive the invading aircraft back to their hometown.

"Interception? Do they suspect...that the British are violating Dutch airspace?"

"Yes, Air Defense Commander Lieutenant General Gayler believes that these aircraft are likely to come from the UK!"

Lieutenant General Fimmel took a breath, "Damn it! These damn British guys want to drag the Netherlands into the water!"

He paused and said, "Call the Naval Aviation Command immediately and ask all their BF-110s to take off. Let all our BF-110s take off too. We must stop the damn British!"

As he spoke, he had already picked up the phone on his desk and was about to call the Air Force Command.

He already understood what was happening. The British had hit Germany's vitals with one punch this time!

Once the neutrality of the Netherlands was violated, Germany's northwestern land frontier would immediately lose cover. There are now only thirty divisions stationed on the Siegfried Line, and the German-Dutch border north of Kleve is almost undefended.

If the French armored forces come from that direction, both Bremen and Hamburg may fall!

…

"Leader, please rest assured that not a single British aircraft will fly over Berlin. Our air defense force in the northwest is very strong. We have the Second Air Force and the Naval Air Force. There are 8 squadrons of BF-110 aircraft alone. , and there are radar stations that can guide them..."

At 8 o'clock in the evening on September 6, Berlin time, Marshal Schleicher called Hitler and reported the news of an incoming British plane flying through Dutch airspace in as relaxed a tone as possible.

Night bombing will not cause any serious damage. Berlin has now implemented night lights, and the bombers high above cannot see the target - and Berlin is a very open city with a lot of greenery, wide streets, and many squares and parks. Even if a few planes fly over Berlin, it is unlikely to cause relatively large losses.

The real trouble is that the air in the Netherlands has become a battlefield!

Hitler, who was holding the phone receiver in his hand, immediately understood what was going on. He asked in a gloomy tone: "If their army comes from the Netherlands, can we stop it?"

"Leader," Marshal Schleicher said, "unless the Netherlands and Belgium immediately turn to Britain and France, the British and French forces will not be able to attack quickly. It will take half a month to occupy the Netherlands... By then, Poland will definitely be finished. ”

"What if Poland is not finished yet?" Hitler asked, "How many troops are there on the Western Front now?"

"There are 33 divisions on the Siegfried Line, 11 of which are well equipped. The 2nd Air Force, the 3rd Air Force and the Naval Air Force also have 1,000 aircraft to support them. On the southern front we have 5 divisions left Deploy... If the Italians do not take hostile actions, we still have 3 Waffen-SS regiments, 2 parachute regiments, 1 Guards infantry regiment, and some Miuta troops available in Wilhelmshaven. There is a brigade of Marines. They are all elites and can be transferred to the western front for defense.

In addition, we have many reserve divisions undergoing training, and if necessary, they can also be sent to the battlefield. "

After listening to Schleicher's report, Hitler's face became even more gloomy. The defense on the Western Front relied on the former Siegfried Line. And where the defense line cannot cover, there is simply no power to defend it!

He was silent for a long time and then said to Schleicher: "The British bombers flying through Dutch airspace must be kept secret, as if they came from the sea. This may delay it for a few days. In addition, find a way to mobilize troops from the Eastern Front. ...I have to admit that the British played a good card and we are in trouble now!"

Yes, there is trouble, and it's big!

Because when Hitler gave Schleicher the order, the BF-110 fighter jets of the Luftwaffe and Hainan Airlines were overly aggressive and had already flown into the airspace of the western Netherlands to intercept the British bomber group.

An air battle is taking place in Dutch airspace!