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Me thinks that the Italians are even less prepared than they were in OTL , considering that this seems to be a bit short notice.
 
Chapter II: Part XXVIII

Chapter II: The Gambit of the West

Part XXVIII


May 28, 1936

The sky was cloudless and visibility stretched to 70 kilometers as Oberleutnant Herbert Ihlefeld led his Schwarm of three Arado Ar 68s high over the French countryside. There were normally four pilots in the formation, but Unteroffizier Becker had suffered engine difficulty at the start of the mission and returned to base.

They had been ordered to sweep the area of Anglo-French fighters preparatory to Luftwaffe bombing missions in the area. Conditions were perfect for a dogfight.

The landscape below was a patchwork of farms and fields, with twisting green forests between them. France looked so different from Germany from the air -- it was a very settled, agricultural land, unlike the still-untamed German wildlands that looked much as they had in Caesar’s time. One sprawling forest gave the distinct impression of a vast dragon reaching one claw towards a little farming hamlet. Judging from the paper map pinned to the side of his cockpit, they were near the town of Toucy in the Yonne département.

His hands felt strangely unused to their gloves and his flying jacket somehow ill-fitting; this was his first mission since the one for which he had been made famous. He had been awarded the Knight’s Cross for his sortie on the fourteenth of April, in which he had shot down three French bombers and rammed a fourth before bailing out over friendly lines.

He had spent the following month on an extended press tour of Germany, promoting the commemorative stamps that bore his face. Several national newspapers had interviewed him, and a dinner in Berlin had been held in his honor.

The attention seemed to Ihlefeld rather undeserved. In the Great War, German pilots were not publicized until having achieved ten kills, and usually not awarded the famous Blue Max until having scored sixteen. That a five-kill ace was splashed all over the German press during the present war only indicated to Ihlefeld a troubling weakness. If he were the very best news of the whole war, as one of Reichsminister Goebbels’ aides had proclaimed shortly before the capture of Paris -- what did that say about German fortunes?

As the Reich began to see more good news, Ihlefeld was allowed permission to return to his Jagdstaffel. It felt good to be back at the controls of a fighter, with his mind off those wider troubles.

ar68-1.jpg

The Arado Ar 68 saw extensive service above France, both in an anti-fighter and anti-bomber capacity.


The man off his left wing was trying to catch his attention. Ihlefeld turned. He could not hear him over the throb of his engine, but the pilots had come to be able to read lips and hand signals exceedingly well.

Unteroffizier Krampski’s mouth was moving excitedly. “Oberleutnant! Three planes. Enemy, I think.” He pointed far below and slightly to the right of the Schwarm.

Ihlefeld peered down over the lip of his cockpit.

There they were: three British fighters, Gloster Gauntlets, shining silver above the brown farmland. They seemed not to have seen the Germans. Ihlefeld signaled to the others with his gloved hand. Ewert follow me in. Krampski hold back to cover us.

Ihlefeld lowered the throttle and angled his plane sharply downward. He looked back to see Ewert behind him. The needle on the altimeter was rapidly moving counterclockwise. If he fixed his eyes on a single point on the ground below, there was the illusion that he was standing still and the Gauntlets rising to meet him.

9107494ppdFajvLgj_ph.jpg

At the start of the war, the Gloster Gauntlet proved a good match for German fighters in the air, but overall British losses were much higher.


At last, they became visible above his engine cowling and he leveled out directly behind them. The British still had not reacted. He craned his neck over his right shoulder. Ewert was still there. Ihlefeld got his attention and signaled. You take the one on the right.

Ihlefeld selected for himself the center plane. He increased the throttle as far as it would go and the shiny silver biplanes began getting larger in his field of view. He aligned his sights on the center of his target and pressed the trigger. Searing tracers lanced forward, ripping into the round metal fuselage and creating a shower of debris. Ihlefeld stopped firing. The pilot was still alive, and the plane wasn’t trailing fuel or smoke. He pressed the trigger again and held it longer. Bullets tore through the Gauntlet’s thin wing surfaces and snapped several of the delicate wing struts, at last tearing into the engine and sending pieces of what looked like propeller flying in all directions.

The battered plane began to descend, and as he followed it, Ihlefeld glanced toward the other two enemy planes. The rightmost Gauntlet had taken evasive action, but Ewert was on its tail pouring fire into it. The Gauntlet on the left appeared to be trying to circle back around and engage the Germans from behind. Not today, John.

Ihlefeld pulled his Ar 68 into a sharp turn, trying to catch the Gauntlet before it passed outside his turning radius. Much higher, at perhaps 4000 meters, Krampski was still standing off. If this Gauntlet got away, Krampski would have to come down to engage him.

The Ar 68 began to shudder -- it would not be able to catch the Gauntlet. Cutting the throttle, Ihlefeld decided to sacrifice range for better firing position.

Leading it by a wide margin, he depressed the trigger. He watched as the Gauntlet flew straight through a stream of bright tracers. Pieces of the aircraft trailed for several dozen meters behind. It was now crossing the centerline of Ihlefeld’s plane, crossing off to his left.

The Gauntlets were newer and faster than the Ar 68s, and Ihlefeld knew that he couldn’t catch one in a straight-line race. Instead, he banked his fighter gently around to the right, gradually gaining altitude. Slowly, slowly, the aircraft turned -- until the damaged Gauntlet came into view below him near bearing 030.

He bore down on it at full throttle. He would hold fire until close range to conserve ammunition.

The RAF roundels on the Gauntlet’s wings grew larger, and Ihlefeld could now make out every detail of the struts and wires between the upper and lower wings. He was close enough.

A short burst. Part of the engine cowling disintegrated, sending a fine white mist into the air, which now streamed behind the Gauntlet in a thin trail. Another burst. In an instant, his field of vision became painfully bright. Ihlefeld heard the roar of the flames as they engulfed the wounded Gauntlet. He felt the heat singe the hairs at his temples, pulling the Ar 68 sharply up and over the plunging inferno below.

Ihlefeld looked back over his right shoulder. Ewert was back at his wing. He had finally downed the Gauntlet he had been pursuing -- that would be his second aerial victory.

“Well done, Paul!”

Ewert was not smiling. He pointed high over Ihlefeld’s left shoulder. The ace followed his wingman’s gaze, and felt his stomach clench. High above them, Krampski’s plane was trailing gray smoke. Yellow tracers flew past it from behind.

Ihlefeld signaled to Ewert. Follow me, stay close.

He pulled his Ar 68 upward and banked to the left. Three enemy fighters were following Krampski, but two of them seemed to be detaching to engage the other two Germans below. Ihlefeld aimed his plane towards the one that was still shooting at Krampski.

The hostile fighters were monoplanes, the new French Dewoitine D.500-series. Ihlefeld knew that some of these were armed with a heavy cannon that fired out through the propeller hub, in addition to normal wing-mounted machine guns. They would be very dangerous opponents.

Gd510-2.jpg

The Dewoitine D.501 was a relatively modern aircraft, with a marked advantage over the slower German fighters.


Taking punishing fire, one of Krampski’s wings came cleanly off, flipping through the air and nearly hitting the D.501. The Ar 68 immediately began a corkscrew descent.

Ihlefeld lined up on the Frenchman and fired a burst. He saw that he had scored several hits, including one to the open cockpit, where the pilot seemed to have slumped forward.

The roar of an engine drew Ihlefeld’s eyes directly upwards. A second D.501 roared overhead, missing one wing. Good kill, Ewert. Two kills between us in just seconds.

The fighter that had shot down Krampski was now plummeting itself. There was only one more plane.

Bullets whizzed overhead and Ihlefeld saw tracers coming from behind him. Instinctively, he rolled into a right turn, and the world inverted itself.

He heard a series of dull thuds as heavy cannon rounds buffeted his plane. If he dodged suddenly to the left, the faster D.501 would probably pass him, allowing Ihlefeld to get into a position to attack it. The rudder controls were not working. He tried again. Nothing. Frantically looking back over his shoulder, he saw what was wrong. Most of his tail was missing.

With the French countryside rapidly getting closer, a decision had to be made quickly. Ihlefeld tried the controls one more time. Still nothing. He unclasped his harness, and pulled himself to the lip of the cockpit.

The next thing he was aware of was the jolt of his parachute opening. He saw the final French plane now doing its best to dodge Ewert, who was sticking to it ferociously. Within seconds this plane, too, lost a wing to Ewert’s guns.

As it tumbled downward, Ihlefeld saw the pilot bail out, and the parachute open.

The two men were no more than a hundred meters apart. The French pilot raised his right hand in salute.
 
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Here's hoping Ihlefeld makes it back to German lines. He seems to be very good at losing planes, doesn't he?
 
trekaddict - Very true. As you know, when facing Great Britain, that sort of thing can be very costly.

dublish - Ah well... as long as he shoots down more planes than he loses, people will probably stay pleased with him.
 
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Ah, you gotta admire that relatively early air combat. They're still treating it like a chivalrous duel instead of a murderous knife fight. Well, the continuing war should disabuse them of their misconceptions.
 
Slaughts said:
Seems more of a reason to get those early Bf-109 models in the air.

True. I also think that our Fighter Ace will be the first one to get his hands on them if he makes it back to German Lines.
 
Hello all,

I will be out of town tomorrow through Sunday. Part XXIX is nearing completion, and if I am able to access the internet while away there is a chance that it will be up.

In the meanwhile, I'd be interested to see your thoughts on something -- something that could stimulate lively and interesting discussion.

I was thinking what a good topic might be -- at first I thought of something naval, but because we haven't really explored that much yet, and because Draco Rexus, Director and El Pip sadly don't seem to be readers, that might not be the most fruitful subject ;) .

Then I thought of something about the intelligence and espionage that have been working in the background, but I think that will be a more appropriate topic during my next out-of-town absence.

So here it is... The military leadership of the Third Reich is currently in flux, with the War Ministry tainted by scandal, the Grand General Staff struggling under the leadership of General von Amsberg, and the field commanders not always on the best terms with the General Staff or Fuehrer. As the war progresses, the Wehrmacht's leadership will have to take a new shape if Germany is to be victorious.

Based on their actions and ideas so far, who do you think (either a person or a group) has the best potential to shape and lead Germany's armed forces in the trials to come?



Feel free to chime in -- you don't need to be a history expert to have a valuable opinion!
 
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Most likey some of the more sucessful field Commanders get bumped up the ladder, Bayerlein and the likes.
 
TheHyphenated1 said:
Hardraade - Thanks! You hope Schwarzbeck will be caught in a disaster? Rooting against even the poor unarmed observers now, are we :rofl: ?

Sorry. That should have read that I hope he isn't caught up in any disasters. I'm definitely rooting for the fellow. :)

Great aerial combat update. I felt very much drawn in by the description of the action. I have wanted to bring Luftwaffe characters into my own AAR for some time, but have not done so because I always am afraid that I won't be able to portray aerial combat well enough. Once again, very well done!

I'd definitely like to see the likes of Bayerlein and Hausser taking on larger roles.
 
The chivalry of war. There is a curious innocence about that. By the sounds of it though our fighter ace is already beginning to lose his own with his cynical thoughts.
 
Bayerlein seems to have a fair idea of how to run things so I'm thinking replacing von Amsberg with Bayerlein would be good overall.
 
The only real success stories of the war so far are Bayerlein in OKW and Hausser out in the field. A few more minor figures have made an impression (Nehring holding the corridor to Paris open, for example), but there really aren't many to choose from.

I imagine the Kriegsmarine will do its best to stay out of trouble until Britain quits the fight... if they quit the fight. The Soviet declaration might Britain to seek a settlement as quickly as possible in order to use Germany as a shield against Stalin, or they might go all out in an attempt to get Germany before the Reds can.
 
Bayerlien does seem to have some genius. The trouble though is that he always seems to be sort of disorganized or rushed, which could hurt his abilities as a large scale commander maybe.

Student and Brauer did amazingly well with Eben Emael, but they are probably too junior to replace Goring for a very very long time.

Naval action would be very nice too. i haven't forgotten the Exeter's duel with Graf Spee... any chance of that?

how far ahead have you played?
 
Slaughts (1) - Prototypes have flown, but it will be a while yet :( .

Ironhewer - Disabuse them it will!

trekaddict (1) - Absolutely.

trekaddict (2) - Interesting. The question then is: what becomes of those currently in power?

Hardraade - Thanks! That's two votes for Bayerlein now. When it comes to seeing great potential in him you are in good company. Well, by "good" I mean evil, murderous and megalomaniacal and by "company" I mean Adolf Hitler :p .

Atlantic Friend - Aha! The next update shall shed some light on what the French navy has been up to all this time.

stnylan - Indeed. The air combat of this period is a curious blend of WWI and (the real life) WW2.

Slaughts (2) - Another vote for Bayerlein! The man is going places, to be sure ;) .

dublish - Excellent analyis. At this point though, the Western Allies' relationship with Stalin is not nearly as strained as it would soon become in our timeline. And just to clarify -- OKW does not exist yet.

SeleucidRex - Good point! Bayerlein definitely has a streak of disorganization. About Student and Brauer, you're right -- the only matter in question is whether the AAR will be long enough to get there ;). About the Exeter duel, I know whether there will or not, and that ties into my answer to your next question. I have played all the way through, and had before the AAR began :D .


Thanks for your patience everyone. I am back, and Part XXIX will be going up as soon as possible!
 
TheHyphenated1 said:
trekaddict (2) - Interesting. The question then is: what becomes of those currently in power?


The Brits would simply send them to some backwater colonial posting, but as the Germans can't do that thei's either get retired or send to some supply depot on the Polish Border.
 
trekaddict said:
The Brits would simply send them to some backwater colonial posting, but as the Germans can't do that thei's either get retired or send to some supply depot on the Polish Border.

To some war school, to train new recruits?
 
TheHyphenated1 said:
And just to clarify -- OKW does not exist yet.
:eek:o This is why I leave the writing to others...