Battle of the Third Reich Chapter 341: Route
All morning, Colonel Alfred Zaft seemed to be in a good mood.
After having breakfast with the senior officers of the fleet, he took the adjutant and strolled around the deck two times, and then stayed in the command bridge without moving.
Sitting on the personal observation stand, Captain Zaft looked at the view of San Francisco outside the porthole in a daze. On the face that had always been tight and kept cold and majestic, occasionally showed A strange smile that made people shudder.
The abnormal performance of the captain made the atmosphere in the entire bridge become strange, and everyone was nervous.
The deputy captain and the third-value star officer quickly found a good-sounding reason to slip away. Even the gunner Commander Trenhof, who usually claims to be sturdy and incomparable, sneaked to the bottom. The armored control tower went to smoke, but only the navigator and a few hapless guys on duty remained by the captain.
Last night, the German Embassy sent a batch of domestic mail. Among them was a personal postal parcel addressed to Colonel Zaft. It was about the size of a marching backpack and looked heavy and heavy. But at this time, no one associates the captain's weird performance with that extra-large postal package, because this is really not in line with the captain's usual personality settings.
Captain Zaft is an excellent German navy soldier. This has been recognized by all crew members. In previous training since taking office, Zaft has demonstrated outstanding professionalism and command ability. He was proved to be a qualified battleship commander, and at the same time he possessed a distinct personality and a strong personality. In a few months, he has successfully established his absolute authority on this brand-new, unparalleled German warship.
Many high-ranking generals in the German Naval Headquarters believed that, over time, this officer might be like those prestigious predecessors, engraving his name in the history of the German navy.
A captain walked into the bridge holding a document. He didn't seem to notice the strange atmosphere around him, and he walked directly to the captain sitting by the porthole.
"Sir." The captain stood up and saluted his superior, and then handed the document in his hand to the captain: "This is your waiting call."
"Finally here." Zaft returned a military salute, and then took the telegram from the opponent.
"Thank you, Captain Drizzt." Zaft waved his hand, indicating that Captain could leave.
"Willing to help, sir." The captain saluted the officer again, then turned and walked towards the hatch on the back of the bridge.
Only then did the young military officer realize the relieved expressions of the colleagues around him, so with a trace of confusion, the captain scratched his head and crossed the hatch.
"Ryanborg." Zaft stood up from the observation deck and greeted the navigator who was sitting aside.
"Yes, Captain." Major Ryanberg agreed aloud.
"Come here." Zaft walked to the chart table behind the bridge.
There is a chart room on the Bismarck bridge, which is equipped with a track recorder driven by a mechanical computer, which will automatically mark the position and track of the ship on the chart according to the navigation parameters. But at this time, the advanced equipment is not used, Zaft just needs to check conventional nautical charts.
"Marshal Raidel's order." Zaft took off his military cap and handed the document to the Lieutenant Commander.
"Command of the General Command?" Ryanborg took the document and also took off his military cap and placed it on the chart table.
"Well, order us to execute plan number two." Zaft picked up the red and blue pencils on the table.
"There is no problem at all, sir. It's all ready, we planned the route two weeks ago." Ryanborg replied.
"There are some changes in plans now, we have to go here first." Zaft pointed to a string of islands in the southern Pacific Ocean.
Looking at the target pointed out by the captain, the navigator asked in surprise: "Is New Guinea?"
"Yes, the former "German" New Guinea." Zaft replied with a little emotion.
"You should take a closer look at this order. The Navy Department wants us to re-survey the chart of this area. At the same time, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs wants us to bring an expedition team to investigate the status of these islands." Zaftchuk Raise your finger and tap the chart with your knuckles.
"It takes a lot of time." Ryanborg said, looking down at the message, scratching his chin with a ruler in his hand.
"About one to two weeks, no more. I planned it this way, Ryanborg." Zaft replied with his hands on the chart table: "The British promised to cooperate with us. , I don’t really believe what the British say, but at least they should not cause us trouble. Look here" Colonel Zaft drew a cross on the chart with a pencil.
"The main part of the Bismarck Islands, the fleet will be anchored here."
"Port Rabaul?" The navigator frowned: "I need to check the hydrological data there.".
The port of Rabaul was once a German colony. The town of Rabaul was originally established by the Germans, but was taken over by the British after the First World War. Although Germany has preserved the HNA data in this sea area, these old parameters are no longer applicable after decades.
"I will ask the Royal Navy to provide the required information, and if necessary, I will ask them to send an experienced pilot to guide us." Zaft replied, scratching his nose.
The size of the Bismarck has added a lot of difficulties to this voyage. Many ports cannot park such a large warship. Because the width is too large, she cannot pass through the Panama Canal. As a result, she can only circle the South American continent. It took a lot of fuel and time.
But this is also in the arms of the German government. The German navy has a reasonable reason to make a short stay in South American countries. At that time, many Latin American countries held a pro-German stance, especially Brazil, Argentina, and Chile. There were a large number of German immigrants there, and most of the country was a dictatorship, and they were close to fascism from the bottom to the top.
However, the Germans' attitude towards this diplomatic cruise is very low-key. After all, this is the backyard of the United States. Especially when the other party has determined "America first", or should say "America first", it should not be too public. Touched the giant's nerves.
"Can supplies be provided there?" the navigator continued.
"It's still not clear. In theory, it is a good harbor. I think the headquarters will arrange everything for us, but when we leave San Francisco, we have to load as many supplies as possible."
"We can fill up Piggy." Ryanberg said with a smile.
"Yeah, stuff the piggy full." Zaft also laughed.
The German Navy’s supply ship [FACKEL] is a 7,500-ton mixed cargo ship that used to fly back and forth between the United States and Europe before the war began. After the German Navy bought this high-speed freighter, it carried out a series of transformations. It was originally intended to be used as a submarine supply ship, but the European war ended before it was completely completed.
As a result, this cargo ship was used as a technical test ship, equipped with the sea replenishment system "invented" by the head of state ~ IndoMTL.com ~ provided first-hand technical information for the research and development of the [Drian] class high-speed replenishment ship.
This freighter has reached a speed of 26 knots and can follow the conventional fleet to maneuver for long distances. Because of the huge cargo capacity and complete facilities, it was unanimously welcomed by the fleet members during this long-distance voyage.
Because the design of the two side-by-side anchor chain holes on the left side of the bow is quite special, they look like a pair of pig’s nostrils, plus the name of the ship [FACKEL] sounds like the little pig (FRCKEL) in German. ) Is very similar, so German sailors who like to joke call her "Little Pig".
Zafter pointed to a point on the chart with a pencil: "After leaving Rabaul, we bypassed the Solomon Islands and headed to Brisbane. On the way, we had to stay near this island for another two days.".
"Solomon Islands? What is the name of the island you are talking about?" Ryanborg leaned down and examined it.
"The pronunciation is awkward. The Spanish who discovered it called Guadalcanal." Colonel Zaft replied with his arms folded.
PS: Thank you for your support. We are working hard to recover and let us continue our journey.