186

Episode 186: Time between dogs and wolves (12)

The anti-aircraft artillerymen, who were smiling in remorse at the sight of a Stuka hit by an anti-aircraft gun falling into the sea with its black tail fluttering, froze when they saw the bomb dropped by the Stuka that appeared later coming this way.

The bomb hit the anti-aircraft turret, causing a massive explosion and causing a fire on board.

The crew of the Free French Navy's Burrasque-class destroyer Cyclone fought desperately to extinguish the fire, but it showed no signs of going out.

"Resign! "Everyone retreat!"

Ultimately, the captain judged that there was no hope and ordered all crew members to retreat. A bomb dropped by the neighboring Canadian Navy's A-class destroyer Sagnedo Stuka hit her bridge directly, and her captain and other personnel who served as the backbone of her ship were vaporized at once.

While the anti-aircraft artillerymen were distracted dealing with the Stukas, which were persistently attacking like a swarm of bloodthirsty mosquitoes, a He 111 squadron equipped with heavy Fritz

"Remember! "It must end once and for all!"

"An opportunity like today will never come again! Make sure to hit it!"

"yes!"

Their targets are the Royal Navy's battleships and aircraft carriers.

Many of the Royal Navy's battleships and aircraft carriers were deployed to the Indian Ocean to prepare for the Japanese invasion of Ceylon, so the battleships and aircraft carriers currently floating in the waters off Dieppe are part of the Royal Navy's battleships and aircraft carriers deployed in the Atlantic. It was no exaggeration to say that it was everything.

To destroy them, the Luftwaffe collected all available Leger and Fritz

Because the situation was so urgent, there were no special instructions, but the pilots knew how important their mission was.

"preparation… .."

"throwing down!"

The Fritz

A huge fireball was created, black smoke rising into the sky like an explosion, and the impact caused Queen Elizabeth to lean forward significantly.

"It's a hit!"

"Good!!"

Then, two Fritz

The second missed, and the third hit directly above the ammunition dump.

A huge explosion that was incomparable to the previous explosion shook Queen Elizabeth.

"Jump off!"

"Aaaah-!"

The Queen Elizabeth, whose hull was split in half due to an explosion in the ammunition depot, was swallowed by the dark blue sea water.

The crew, who barely survived the huge explosion, jumped into the sea without delay.

Oil leaking from the hull formed a thick layer on the water.

The crew members who were swimming to avoid the huge whirlpool that formed when the ship sank got caught in the oil slick and struggled.

Embers from the fire on the Queen Elizabeth, which was sinking into the sea, flew out and fell on the oil slick, covering the entire oil slick with flames.

The crew members who were struggling in the oil film were burned alive.

"Queen Elizabeth sinks!"

"good! "It's our turn next!"

The remaining two He 111s targeted the Illustrious-class aircraft carrier Illustrious.

Two Fritz

A pillar of orange fire rose from Illustrious.

Five FW 200s targeted the Ark Royal-class aircraft carrier Ark Royal and the Queen Elizabeth-class battleship Burrum.

Burrum hit Leger with two shots.

The first bomb missed Burrum by a long distance and fell into the sea, and the second bomb slightly missed Burrum.

But the impact alone was enough to cripple Burrum.

"What do you mean, you can't steer?"

"The starboard rudder was damaged from the impact earlier, Captain!"

"The screw propeller appears to be damaged as well!"

"Send a repair team quickly!"

Leger's explosion destroyed Burrum's screw propeller shaft and damaged her starboard rudder.

As a result, Burrum completely lost the ability to move on his own.

Another shot was fired at Burrum, who was crippled. The third, Leger, hit the deck near Burham's main gun turret.

"It's a hit!"

The bombardiers of the Fw 200 cheered as Leger hit Burrum's deck.

As the ship lost its balance and tilted sideways, the secondary battery charges mounted in the ammunition depot poured out, and the bombs that poured in exploded all at once, causing an explosion and shattering the ship's ship while the bridge was in contact with the sea level.

Burnham's crew, caught up in the explosion, were also reduced to pieces of meat and flew in all directions.

"Battle on the port side!"

"Battle on the port side!"

The captain of the aircraft carrier Ark Royal ordered a change of direction in a desperate attempt to save the ship and crew from enemy aircraft attacks.

The anti-aircraft artillerymen fired their guns like crazy until steam came out of the barrels of the anti-aircraft guns, but their efforts were in vain as two shots of Leger hit the deck of the Arch Royale, causing the ship to sink.

"Wow… .!"

"Ha, Captain!"

The vice-captain took over as temporary captain in place of the captain, who hit his head hard on the floor due to shock at the time of the attack.

However, Arch Royale's condition was already beyond their control.

It wasn't just a bomb, but Leger was hit twice, creating a huge hole in the ship and causing it to flood at a rapid rate.

"Everyone retreat! "Abandon ship!"

"I repeat. Power out. "Everyone, retreat."

The vice-captain ordered to retreat without delay.

Upon receiving the order to retreat, the Ark Royal crew gave up on damage control and gathered at the stairs and exit.

However, many of the crew members could not leave the Arch Royale.

Less than a minute after the vice-captain ordered the ship to retreat, the Ark Royal lost its balance and the ship tilted to the right.

About 10 minutes after Leger hit the deck, Ark Royal tilted completely, exposing the propeller above the sea level.

In less than 10 minutes, the Royal Navy completely lost two battleships and two aircraft carriers. Including King George V and Duke of York, which were sunk in the morning, her number of warships increased to four.

It was no exaggeration to say that it was truly the British Navy's worst day.

To make matters worse, U-boats from the Kryx Marine also appeared at the scene of the battle.

While the Stukas caught the attention of the ships, the U-boats aimed at their targets and fired torpedoes.

"Oh, it's a torpedo!"

"what?"

Before the crew, who belatedly noticed the torpedo attack, could respond, the torpedo hit the bow directly.

With the explosion, the ship shook and the crew lost their balance and fell down. Shouting and screaming came from all directions.

"Starboard attack! evasion!"

Some ships were quick to move quickly to avoid the torpedoes.

There were some lucky ships that narrowly escaped the torpedoes, but the majority did not notice the torpedo's approach and were hit by the torpedo.

Thanks to the hard work of the Air Force and Navy, German forces on the ground were able to resume their advance.

"This is Cornwall! Enemy tanks approaching ahead! "Air support is needed!"

-There is no air support. Our air force is no longer in sight!

"Fuck, then at least send reinforcements-"

The British Army captain, who was urgently calling for assistance with a radio, was reduced to a handful of dust along with the first floor of the building he was hiding in by the Panther's 75mm shell.

The tanks that would support the infantry had long since been hit and turned into burning coffins while fighting an enemy with overwhelming performance.

Allied soldiers fought desperately using the buildings in downtown Dieppe as fortresses.

Soldiers positioned on the roof of the building fired mortars, and snipers positioned at each window focused their attention on German officers, signalmen, and tank commanders.

The German army also suffered increasing damage due to the Allied forces' persistent resistance.

As the damage increased, the German army deployed the Broombear, a tank specifically designed for urban warfare.

The deployment of Broom Bear, which was active on all fronts starting from Warsaw, was like a death sentence for the Allied soldiers who had been relying on buildings to hold out.

"The five-story building in front of the target. "Tell me as soon as you finish aiming."

"Aiming complete! Did you shoot?"

"Okay, shoot."

When Brumbear's blunt 15cm gun opened fire, the building that had held back the German company's advance for about an hour collapsed.

German soldiers covered their noses and mouths with uniforms and rags to avoid breathing in the dust and smoke generated when the building collapsed.

"good. next!"

***

"What does that mean! Withdrawal... ."

"I'm sorry, Your Excellency, but the operation has already failed! "You must evacuate before the situation gets worse!"

"That's right! You never know when the Bosch will flock here! So come on!"

De Gaulle felt like he had been hit on the head with a hammer when his subordinates told him that he had to leave Dieppe immediately.

As he was also a soldier, he had no idea how dire the current war situation was.

The army that had advanced inland was pushed back to urban areas by attacks from enemy cavalry, and battles were continuing on the sea and in the air.

It's quiet now that the air raids have ended, but we never knew when the German planes would launch and turn the beach into a wasteland.

As my subordinates said, now was the right time to leave.

But De Gaulle could hardly take a step back. This is his homeland, which he stepped foot on in two years. But he doesn't last even a day and has to leave for England again.

Although the operation had not yet been officially halted, Operation Luthor had already failed.

The German defenses were much thicker and stronger than the Allied forces expected, and the Allied forces' preparedness was lacking and extremely immature.

Securing air superiority is essential for a successful operation, but the Allied Forces were unable to secure the most important air superiority, and the absence of air superiority soon caused enormous damage to the Navy supporting the ground forces.

The Royal Navy, which lost 2 and 4 aircraft carriers and battleships, respectively, which were the most important military forces in the Navy, was shocked and cried out that the operation must be stopped and withdrawn immediately.

Transport ships loaded with soldiers and equipment to land on Dieppe Beach had already turned their bows and were returning to New Haven.

Transport ships in New Haven Port also unloaded all their troops and quickly entered a defensive posture in preparation for a surprise attack by the German Air Force and Navy.

De Gaulle forced himself to take a step that he could not bear to take. He had to leave while he could still afford it.

Because we didn't know when the German bombers would come and attack us.

Even before their seawater-soaked military boots and trousers had dried, de Gaulle and his staff boarded the French Navy destroyer they had come on again.

The destroyer carrying de Gaulle departed for England at full speed.

De Gaulle could not take his eyes off the coast of his homeland, France, which was moving away. He couldn't even guess when he would be able to set foot on his native land again.

2 years later? Or 3 years?

I may never be able to set foot on French soil. When de Gaulle's thoughts reached that point, his vision seemed to become blurry.

"dismissal?"

As De Gaulle's long, pole-like body swayed, Leclerc asked anxiously.

"Are you okay? "You seem to be unwell, so please move inside."

"… ...That's it, that's enough. "Because I'm fine."

Even after France was out of sight, de Gaulle did not know how to leave. The gunfire was still going on on the beach.

***

August 19, 1942, 4 p.m.

Unable to bear any further damage, the Allied High Command decided to suspend Operation Luthor.

With the operation halted, all troops on Dieppe beaches were ordered to withdraw.

However, even withdrawal was not easy. The landing was incredibly difficult, but the withdrawal was several times more difficult than the landing.

As the Allied forces began to withdraw, the Germans attacked even more fiercely.

Navy ships fired their guns to force the army to withdraw, and the Air Force fought desperately to protect the ships from enemy bombers by launching non-stop sorties, but it could not prevent the damage from increasing.

In addition to the Spitfire made by domestic engineers, the RAF also had the P-51 Mustang provided by the United States, but it struggled against the Bf109G and Fw190D due to its insufficient mid- and high-altitude performance.

Occasionally, a pilot would use his wits to shoot down a Bf109 or Fw190, but there were many cases where Spitfires and Mustangs crashed with holes in their fuselages while being chased by German planes.

4:30 PM.

Equipment that had been unloaded on the beach was moved to a road transport ship, or anything that could not be moved due to the transport ship being destroyed was disposed of with explosives.

The German Air Force also began bombing hard and helped destroy supplies that could not be moved.

6 pm.

Allied forces withdrew completely from the beach. Except for the troops fighting to block the Germans in the city.

German bombers consisting of He 111, Ju88, and Do 217 continuously dropped bombs on ships withdrawing to England.

6:30 PM.

The Battle of Dieppe came to an end when the Allied forces who remained in the city and resisted surrendered to the German army.

The casualties suffered by the German army in the Battle of Dieppe, including the Free Russian Army, were 920 killed and 560 wounded. About 70 fighters and bombers were shot down and damaged. 13 tanks lost.

Allied casualties totaled approximately 19,000, including killed, missing, and wounded. Loss of 29 ships, 274 aircraft, 118 tanks and vehicles, and 72 artillery pieces.

It was a crushing defeat that cannot even be described as the worst.

The only consolation was that fewer supplies had fallen into the hands of the Germans in a better condition than during the siege of Dunkirk two years earlier, and that, except for the Allied forces isolated in the city, most of the troops who had landed on the beach had succeeded in withdrawing.

And through the Battle of Dieppe, the Allies realized that the German army's coastal defense of northern France was much stronger than expected, and that the topography and ground conditions of the landing site were just as important as the geographical location.

It goes without saying that air superiority is essential for landing operations.

The lesson was certainly valuable, but no matter how valuable the lesson was, it was a very insignificant gain compared to the damage suffered by the Allied Forces.

90% of the Allied forces who died were British and Canadian troops, and although the numbers are just numbers, it was even more painful because they were elite troops that Churchill preserved rather than sending them to the Pacific War to defend the homeland and land in Europe.

The same goes for the Air Force. It was painful to lose with a disastrous exchange ratio of almost 4:1 compared to the German army, but the loss that was more critical than the loss of the aircraft was the pilot.

Because the battle took place over France, the Germans were able to return to their original positions even if they were shot down, while the British soldiers were stuck as prisoners of war.

Therefore, for Britain, the loss of an aircraft directly resulted in the loss of a pilot.

In particular, the class that suffered the most damage from the Battle of Dieppe was, by far, the Navy.

Queen Elizabeth class battleship Queen Elizabeth

Queen Elizabeth class battleship Burham

King George V-class battleship King George V

King George V-class battleship Duke of York

Illustrious-class aircraft carrier Illustrious

Ark Royal-class aircraft carrier Ark Royal

In just one day, the Royal Navy lost four battleships and two aircraft carriers, which could be considered its main force.

It was the worst damage ever seen anywhere in British naval history.

Now, there are only two battleships left on the British mainland: the Revenge-class battleship Revenge and the King George V-class battleship Anson.

Other than these two battleships were all in the Mediterranean and Indian Ocean.

Even if you include the Iron Duke-class battleship, which was converted into a gunnery practice ship, there are only three ships. It was a tragic downfall for the Royal Navy, which prided itself on being the world's number one navy.

News of the crushing defeat suffered by the Allies in the Battle of Dieppe quickly spread throughout Europe and the world.