Chapter 2087： Demolition of the Strait of Dover 1

"Will there be a fleet war?" Prime Minister Asquith asked.

"The Great Fleet is definitely not allowed to enter the area near the Dover Seaman during the day. This is looking for death. The German bombs may not be able to erase London, but it is absolutely possible for thousands of bombers to severely damage the Great Fleet, and I think now The imperial aviation force is simply not enough to support the air defense of the fleet."

"As for the night? There are mines deployed by us and the Germans. Large fleets operating in such a small area are inherently dangerous. Mines, submarines, and torpedo boats are all huge threats. You know, the Strait of Dover is the most dangerous thing. The narrow place is only 20 nautical miles, and the formation of the large fleet is more than 10 kilometers. This kind of place is almost impossible to fight. Therefore, the two sides can only fight with light warships." Jericho said.

"Well, I don’t understand the specifics. Marshal Jericho I can only say one thing, that is, the situation we faced this time was worse than the situation faced by Marshal Nelson back then, even better than the Netherlands during the Anglo-Dutch War. The fleet enters the Thames Estuary but there is still a crisis, so you and the big fleet must do your best." Prime Minister Asquith said at last.

The so-called professional matters must be entrusted to professionals. This sentence is absolutely correct. Especially as one of the most professional navies in the world, the Royal Navy cannot be said to be the first in all aspects, but in general, almost all aspects Without shortcomings, even if they encounter some unprecedented situations, they can still respond in a short time!

And anti-submarine warfare is like this! Regardless of the fact that the British sea transportation line was still hit so badly, but to be honest, if the Germans were not facing the United Kingdom and were replaced by another island country, they would have been dragged to death by submarine warfare. Anti-submarine is more than just financial resources. , Manpower issues are also issues of strategic thinking, coordination and command, etc.! The British took great pains to anti-submarine, but now they are forced to dismantle the anti-submarine system they had worked so hard to build in the Strait of Dover in order to allow more fleets to enter the port of Dunkirk.

So now someone wants to ask, why do you want to demolish? The willingness is very simple. The first point that needs to be explained is that although the British army is backed by Dunkirk Port, it has never been one of the main cargo handling ports of the British army. After all, the German army has approached Dunkirk several times in the previous two years of battle. Kirk, the German ultra-long-range train cannon to bring Dunkirk into range is also common. After all, the German 380MM train gun can hit 40 kilometers when using a light bomb...

Therefore, before here, it was generally used to transport some urgently needed materials that needed to be delivered directly to the front line, such as aircraft engines, vehicles or other technical equipment. The amount of transportation was not large, and because they were close to the east exit of the Dover Strait. German submarines often travel to and from areas, so the British were cruel and laid a few horizontal Dover Seaman anti-submarine systems. As the port of Dunkirk, it is the focus of fortification, except for one. Except for the wide and tortuous waterway, a large number of mines, anti-submarine nets and trawling patrol boats are deployed in the sea area beside it!

Don’t laugh, it’s a trawl patrol boat. In the 21st century, some people say that anti-submarine fishing with fishing boats is a joke, but in World War I, the British really tried to use trawl to anti-submarine! What's even more incomprehensible is that this tactic has been successful!

There are two main methods for the British trawl anti-submarine. The first method is single-boat trawl. Simply put, a large tail about yards is added behind the stern. The length of the tow lock between the ship and the trawl is 70 feet. To prevent the distance from being too close, the trawl is entangled with the propeller of the ship itself. In order to ensure the stability of the trawl, two 50-ton ballasts are hung at the bottom of the trawl. In order to mark the position of the trawl, the trawl is not made of glass. Floating body. This trawl tactic is actually not very effective, mainly used in routine patrols in low-risk waters.

The second method of trawling anti-submarine is two-ship towing. The two boats hold the anti-submarine nets separately, keep a yard distance between the two sides, and then sail back and forth on the sea like a plow. It’s very simple. It is very difficult. The two ships have to cooperate with each other. Think about the large net that is nearly a kilometer is very difficult to control under the impact of ocean currents, and the English Channel is not deep, and the deepest part of the Strait of Dover is not too deep. 120 feet, maybe when the trawl is hung on the bottom of the reef and other things, it is common for the ballast to fall or the glass buoy to fall off when it is dragged halfway. So, to be honest, this anti-submarine technology is not very effective. It's not very reliable in theory, but it's actually even less reliable.

But in history, this kind of tactics that are not reliable, as early as the beginning of 1915, the trawler cooperated with the destroyer to obtain the first result! On March 4, 1915, the U8 submarine set off from the port of Ostend and entered the English Channel. In the process, the submarine would send reports to the headquarters at regular intervals, and this regular radio communication naturally caused the British People’s attention This time, this submarine was unfortunately spotted by the British Navy’s 40th room responsible for monitoring U-boat operations. Then, on the only way this submarine must pass, a submarine and A trawler blocked it!

This unlucky submarine was entangled by the anti-submarine net carried by the Bourne at 3 o'clock in the afternoon. Then, at about 4 o'clock, the navigator of the U8 submarine Suland felt something abnormal, and the submarine could not be maintained stably. The depth of navigation, and the submarine often continued to swing. The German who realized that it was wrong raised the periscope and observed that he was entangled in the anti-submarine net. As for the rest, it was simple. In the end, the submarine was destroyed by the destroyer Kuka The thrown blasting minesweeper destroyed. (Yes, you read that right, the British used anti-mine tools to kill the submarine!)

But this time, what the British wanted to dismantle was the fixed anti-submarine network. At this time, several British navy ships were preparing to dismantle part of the anti-submarine network outside Dunkirk.

"William, be careful, pay attention to the signal indicator on the top of the anti-submarine net, and the hollow tube under the indicator. If this thing comes into contact with water, it will emit thick smoke!" On a small boat, several British navy The officers and soldiers are dismantling the signal indicator lights on the anti-submarine network one by one. This kind of indicator light is said to be a lamp, but it is actually a smoke generator. The lamp body is spherical, and there is a hollow tube filled with calcium phosphide under the lamp. When the submarine hits the anti-submarine net, it will tear off the floating body and cause the seawater to infuse. Then the seawater reacts with calcium phosphide to produce thick smoke, and the buoy next to it will pay the surface of the water to mark the position of the submarine.

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