by gerald hall
“Yes, but things are obviously improving for you. I heard that you are responsible for these French civilians to be reunited with their husbands in the French Navy.”
“I suppose that is true. But certainly you understand that I could not possibly turn down the opportunity to get out of the wasteland where I was sent into exile.” The German diplomat said, a smile slowly returning to his face.
“These people are not being sent into exile, are they? I certainly hope not.” Harold firmly asked.
“Nein, Herr Cavill. This is most definitely not a form of exile for anyone here. These people are more than welcome to travel back and forth from French Indochina and back to France. Even the sailors are welcome to return to France, though I must admit, I don’t think that the Vichy government would allow the sailors to return here while the current hostilities continue.”
“I am very pleased to hear that. But why is your government allowing this, Sir?” Harold asked.
“Someday, this conflict will be over. At that time, Germany will have to be able to have good relations with all of its neighbors, including the French. You would call this action here a gesture of good faith. It is not the only reason that I am here though, Herr Cavill. My leaders also wanted for me to discuss another matter with you privately while I am here.”
Harold’s curiosity was instantly piqued. Perhaps that trip to Paris before the war to see Sigismund was not a waste after all.
“What do the new leaders of Germany want from me?”
“As you already know, our Fuhrer is dead. Our High Command decided that, for the best interest of the German people, certain punitive policies against religious and ethnic minorities needed to be ended. They also felt that the war against the Bolsheviks needed to be vigorously prosecuted until that threat to the West was completely eliminated.
On the other hand, our leaders want to peacefully end the conflict between Germany and Western Europe very much. You have worked with German companies and have hired Germans to work for your companies prior to the war. We know of your character and integrity as a result. You also have significant influence with the current Prime Minister of England. We need you to convince Herr Churchill that the men who are in authority in Germany are not the same people who started this war. They are the ones who want to end it and all of the threats to both of our nations.” Sigismund explained.
“I see. I also want this war to end as well. But obviously the Commonwealth and the other nations of Europe will have conditions for peace that they will not compromise on.”
“I know this too, Herr Cavill.”
“Then please make sure that your leaders do as well. It is important for everyone that we end with a just peace. Otherwise, we are simply laying the groundwork for the next major war.
We have so much more that we should be doing besides waging war upon our neighbors. I know that your brother Werner is very interested in building rockets to take humans to the Moon and beyond. I’m sure that he sees his current work for the German military as nothing more than a means to continue his research into rocket design. Like your brother, I want humanity to spread out beyond this world also. When this war is over, I would like very much for Werner to come work for me in designing and building our dreams. But first, we need to find a way to end this war before we destroy ourselves or create the circumstances of our eventual destruction.
Will you help me do this, Sigismund?”
The German diplomat scratched his chin for a few moments as he thought about what Harold had just said. It was obvious that the Australian industrialist knew far more about Werner than anyone else that Sigismund had ever met outside of Werner’s rocketry circles.
“Jawohr, Herr Cavill. I will try. I see a bit of Werner in you, I must admit. Both of you are dreamers. The dreams that both of you want are worth pursuing, I believe.” Sigismund said with a smile and an outstretched hand.
Harold readily accepted the offered handshake as he prayed that he was now one more step closer to saving humanity.
Now, he had to go out and continue today’s tasks before returning to Derby on the next Cavalier flight.
Chapter Eighteen:
Battleship HMS Prince of Wales
South China Sea
August 10, 1943
Admiral Phillips was once again on the flag bridge of the Royal Navy battleship HMS Prince of Wales leading the Coalition fleet to battle. Over the course of the last year and a half, elements of the Coalition fleet had been involved in nearly a dozen minor naval engagements. While most of the battles were at least marginally victories, the earlier loss of Dunkerque weighed heavily upon the deployment and use of the Coalition fleet. The French were certainly terrified of losing a second major unit after the sinking of the French battle cruiser.
But this time, Admiral Phillips and his fleet were ready to fight as a whole against an identified major Japanese fleet.
“Our carriers have just launched a strike against the Japanese fleet carriers located about one hundred and fifty miles northeast of us. A Dutch submarine patrolling in that area had spotted the carrier group less than thirty minutes ago.
The Japanese outnumber our carriers, four versus three. However, with Melbourne and Indomitable supplemented by Hermes and the availability of some shore-based air support, we should outnumber the Japanese in terms of available aircraft. We also believe that the quality of our carrier-borne aircraft, especially with the integration of new types, will give us the advantage as well.”
“What will the rest of our fleet be doing during our airstrike?”
“Gentlemen, our scout planes have spotted a pair of Kongo-class fast battleships about fifty miles ahead of us and closing. At least four of those big Japanese heavy cruisers and a dozen destroyers are also supporting the Kongos. They appear to be trying to intercept us to protect their carriers. So, we are finally going to get the chance to engage and destroy the enemy with our main guns.” Admiral Phillips told his ship commanders via wireless and signal lights.
Very soon, the fast battleship HMS Prince of Wales, followed by the battle cruisers HMS Repulse and FN Strasbourg began to form a line of battle as they increased speed towards the enemy surface force. On their flanks, a polyglot of cruisers formed up a pair of parallel lines on either side of the Allied capital ships. The French cruiser force on one flank was led by the heavy cruiser Algerie, light cruiser Emile Bertin plus the Dutch light cruisers Tromp, Java and de Ruyler, USN heavy cruiser USS Houston, light cruisers USS Boise and Marblehead and supported by the large French contre-torpilleurs Mogador and Volta. The County-class heavy cruisers HMS Cornwall, HMS Devonshire, HMAS Australia and HMAS Canberra anchored the Commonwealth cruiser force on the other side. The heavy cruiser HMS Exeter supporting Commonwealth light cruisers HMAS Sydney, HMAS Perth and HMAS Hobart followed the Counties. An outer screen of more than twenty destroyers from France, England, Australia, Netherlands and the USN surrounded and led the overall force.
None of them knew of the second Japanese force that was circling around to reinforce the battleships Hiei and Kirishima. This force was intended to catch the Allies in a pincer movement and prevent them from escaping. This force consisted of the battleships Nagato and Mutsu supported by four more heavy cruisers in addition to fifteen lighter warships.
The Coalition also did not expect the size of the Japanese carrier force assembled against them. The fleet carriers IJN Shokaku, Zuikaku, Hiryu and Soryu were to be the main striking force while the surviving carriers from the attack on Derby, Shoho, Zuiho and Ryuho provided additional support after returning to service. The three light carriers had been heavily damaged during the attempted assault upon Derby. The Japanese carrier-borne force was more than twice as large as the Commonwealth’s. However, the Coalition did have a larger land-based aerial force available now than before.
The Japanese expected this to be just like the battle that annihilated the US Navy’s Pacific Fleet. The Japanese were forced to modify their plans because they could
not make their usual nighttime torpedo attack as a result of the growing effectiveness of Coalition radar systems. The attack would have to occur in the daylight in conjunction with the main battle.
But this time, the Coalition force was ready for battle in spite of having commanders who spoke at least three different languages.
The Coalition force also had a pair of brand-new Cassowary heavy bombers in support as well. Each bomber had a mixed load of guided bombs, two long-range glide bombs that were newly designed for lightly armored targets like carriers and transports were carried on the wing hardpoints. Two bombs of the original armor-piercing design were carried inside of the bomb bay. The Cassowary bombers had also been modified from the original prototype in that they now had four hardpoints on their wings. The outer hardpoints on each bomber were carrying external drop tanks for increased endurance though also capable of carrying bombs when needed. The new Cassowary’s also had the new airborne search radar finally installed on them. This radar allowed the bomber to search the ocean and even over land for targets in all weather conditions.
The prototype Cassowary was unavailable due to modification work being done on it. That particular Cassowary was Harold’s testbed aircraft for virtually all new equipment intended for use on other aircraft.
The six powerful R-1820-86 Wright Cyclone radial engines of each Cassowary roared loudly as the two massive, heavily laden bombers climbed into the air and turned towards the north. The bombers had several fighters escorting them initially. But eventually, the friendly fighters had to return to refuel. The pair of heavy bombers continued to climb higher for nearly an hour until they made first contact with the Japanese force.
“We are picking up several contacts on our surface search radar.” The first Cassowary’s bombardier/navigator Sergeant Theodore Wellington reported.
“Very good. Give me a bearing on the targets, please.” Captain Nigel Asheboro, the Cassowary’s pilot calmly requested.
After getting the information from his navigator, Captain Asheboro turned towards the Japanese naval formation, followed by Captain Howard Shaw in the second heavy bomber.
Less than five minutes later, the two heavy bombers spotted the first pair of Japanese battleships and their supporting escorts through a break in the clouds.
“Have you seen any carriers yet, Ted?” Captain Asheboro asked his bombardier/navigator.
“I’m afraid not, Sir. But I do see a pair of bloody big battleships down there. No one said anything about these monsters being here.”
“Well, mates. Let’s go drop some bombs on the bastards.”
Both heavy bombers selected a target and each dropped one of their heavy guided bombs toward it.
The bomb dropped by Captain Asheboro’s bomber guided in and hit Mutsu in the bow, blowing a huge hole in the battleship foc’sle and causing heavy flooding forward. That caused the Japanese battleship to immediately slow down to less than twenty knots.
Shortly after this, the heavy armor-piercing bomb being guided by the second Cassowary also found Mutsu and hit her adjacent to her third main battery turret. The bomb penetrated through the battleship’s main deck armor and three other decks before detonating next to that turret’s magazine. The resulting massive explosion tore the Mutsu in half in seconds.
The Cassowary’s crew cheered as they saw the flash from the surface followed the huge rising column of smoke emanating from where the large Japanese battleship had been.
The two Cassowary’s then turned to attack Nagato. But the Japanese had picked up the radio emissions from the bomber’s guidance systems now.
“Target acquired. Keep her steady, Sir…..Bomb released.” Sergeant Wellington said as the Cassowary suddenly rose after another one thousand plus kilogram guided bomb was dropped from a wing hardpoint.
Sergeant Wellington began to guide his bomb towards Nagato when suddenly the bomb started to ignore his radio commands. Immediately, Ted began to listen to the guidance signals through an adjacent radio receiver tuned to the same frequency. Instead of the normal clicking tones of the radio guidance commands, Ted heard a loud squeal on the same frequency that drowned out his commands to the bomb.
“Damn it! We were afraid that this was going to happen, Sir. The Japs are using a radio transmitter to jam our command frequencies. I hope that the bomb’s frequency timer is working and that I can regain command of it in time. I am changing channels to the secondary frequency now.” Ted announced over the intercom while switching a dial on his control console.
As a precaution a few months after the first use of the guided bomb against the Japanese, engineers working for Cavill Ordnance modified the bombs and their control systems to account for the possibility of the Japanese attempting to jam the bomb guidance signals.
The controls on each bomb had a built-in timer that counted down after each command input from the launching bomber. If there was more than a ten or fifteen second period between correct command signals, the bomb would then automatically switch to a secondary channel and wait for a new set of good command signals. Some of the bombs actually had as many as three different radio receivers, each with its own distinct receiver channel. Since a jamming signal would not match a normal guidance command pattern, the enemy could not take control of a bomb. Enemy jamming could only prevent commands from being ‘heard’ by the bomb. If no more commands were received by the bomb, its controls would lock in a neutral position. The bomb would then proceed in a purely ballistic trajectory during the rest of its flight downward.
Ted was unfortunately unable to regain control of his bomb in time. It landed in the water and detonated over a hundred meters away from Nagato. The bombardier of the other Cassowary was more fortunate because his bomb was dropped a few moments later. He was able to switch to the secondary channel and regain control of his weapon in time to hit Nagato. The bomb struck the Japanese battleship in the stern, damaging one of her four shafts and reducing her speed to only twenty knots.
Unfortunately, both bombers then lost sight of Nagato after it turned into a large smoke screen that had been laid by several of her escorting destroyers.
“Let’s just loiter around here to see if anything appears that is worth attacking.” Captain Shaw radioed.
“We can only stay for a short while. You can be certain that the Japanese have already dispatched fighters to intercept us. We don’t have any escorts any longer so we will be like a pair of rabbits surrounded by a pack of dingos shortly, I’m afraid.” Nigel replied back.
“That might mean that we will have to fly back with bombs still on board.”
“Fair Dinkum. But if we don’t have targets, we can’t afford to simply waste these weapons. We have damned few of them as it is.”
“Just do us all a big favor and try to land your plane gently if you still have bombs aboard, please. We would prefer not having to dodge a bloody big hole in the runway when we are trying to land behind you.” Ted requested, only half-jokingly.
“We’ve got enemy fighters coming our way.” Ted’s tail gunner called out over the intercom.
“Time for us to go, mates. Let’s see if we can lure these fine gentlemen into the gunsights of the Tomahawks and Hurricanes based now near Darwin.” Ted sarcastically noted as he quickly turned the Cassowary towards the southeast. Captain Shaw’s aircraft quickly followed as the two huge bombers sought to gain speed and altitude along the way towards Darwin. Nearly forty Japanese Zeros pursued the heavy bombers, stripping the Japanese force of a large portion of its fighter support.
Far to the west, Admiral Phillips and his task force steamed towards the Japanese armada. The news from the Cassowary’s about the sinking of one Japanese battleship and the damage to a second battleship certainly lifted the morale of the force. Another note of good news was a radio report from the carrier attack force. They were about to reach the location where the Japanese carriers had been sighted.
“Well, gentlemen. We still have three battleships that we know of to deal with. P
lus, if our chaps in the air aren’t able to keep those Japanese bombers off of our backs, we will end up just like that battleship whose sinking we just cheered.” Admiral Phillips told the others on Prince of Wales’ flag bridge.
At the same time, the two Cassowary’s were racing back towards Derby ahead of the Japanese fighter pursuit, the strike force from the three Commonwealth aircraft carriers dove down below the clouds to seek the Japanese carrier fleet.
Fifty Fairey Barracuda bombers dove down upon the Japanese carriers. Half of the bombers were set up for dive bombing while the other half were armed with torpedoes. Overhead were two squadrons of Dragonfly fighter-bombers, a squadron each of Sea Hurricane and American-built Grumman Martlet fighters.
The torpedo-armed Barracudas dove to near wave-top height before leveling out and seeking out their targets. The other Barracudas, along with the Dragonflies, began to dive also. But their dives were much steeper as they were seeking specific ships to drop their bombs on.
Two of the Dragonfly pilots had previously flown for the Derby militia’s air arm. Now, Flying Officer’s Toby Matthews and his wingman, Oliver Windale were flying into combat as part of HMAS Melbourne’s strike force. Each of their fighter-bombers carried a pair of drop tanks and a single five-hundred pound semi-armor piercing bomb. Both pilots had released their drop tanks as soon as they spotted the Japanese fleet.
Now, they were among the dozens of Commonwealth warplanes diving down upon the enemy fleet.
“I thought that the scouts said that there were four aircraft carriers out there. I’m seeing another three just to the west.” Oliver radioed.
“I see them too. I guess that means we have a lot more targets to hit today, doesn’t it?” Toby quickly answered back while turning to the west.
“Yes, but it also probably means that we are going to have to deal with a lot more Zeros while we are at it, unfortunately.”