Romanian Eagle

Romania seized the island of Cyprus, completely exposing the territories of Britain and France in the Middle East. This naturally makes Britain and France worry about this, and because France needs to deal with the pressure of Germany and Italy, it doesn't even think about sending reinforcements, and even wants to transfer more than 60,000 French troops in Syria back to China. Therefore, the defense of the Middle East basically falls on the British army.

In the face of Romania's aggressive attitude, the British side is also under great pressure. On the one hand, he needs to deal with the needs of France across the sea, and on the other hand, he has to deal with the attack of Romania in the Middle East.

Churchill was very troubled by this, the German army was well known for its fighting ability, and the Romanians did not seem to be much weaker than Germany, plus an Italian.

Although the Italian army does not seem to be strong, its naval and air forces are still very effective. According to the report of the French Navy, in the small-scale battle with the Italian Navy, their combat capability is not weaker than that of their French counterparts, so France has not yet had the confidence to win the decisive battle of the fleet. Only small warships can be used to consume their combat power first, but it is unknown who consumes who.

In the air force, France is also the most vocal. Their battle against the Italian Air Force did not gain much. Its main fighter MS.406 is still in a disadvantageous situation in the engagement with the MC.200 fighter of the Italian Air Force.

It is worth mentioning here that the current Italian Air Force is affected by the fragmentation of the aviation industry. But no matter how someone secretly helped. The Italians are also not resting on their laurels, so their aviation industry has also grown.

The simplest example, the MC.200 fighter jet, which was originally supposed to be put into the battlefield in 1940, was successfully developed in early 1939. Moreover, the maximum speed of the aircraft reaches 510 kilometers, and the low-altitude dogfighting and climbing are good. The only shortcoming is its firepower. It is too weak to equip two 12.7mm Breda Safat machine guns.

In the face of increasing pressure from the Axis bloc, Churchill, the prime minister of the United Kingdom, was even more overwhelmed.

"Beaverbrook, how is the current production of the Spitfire?"

In the meeting room of the Prime Minister's Office, Churchill asked about the situation of the fighter aircraft as soon as he opened his mouth.

Beaverbrook, the Minister of Aircraft Manufacturing, glanced at the document in front of him and replied. "Currently, the Spitfire can only produce two squadrons per month. When the new factory in Coventry starts, the production capacity can be increased to four and a half squadrons."

When Churchill heard this, he shook his head and said. "This is not enough. The Middle East and the war in France tell us that the current hurricane cannot fight against the German BF109 and Romania's RF20, as well as the HF201. In addition, I heard that the Romanian HF201 was jointly developed with the Japanese, how could they tangled together.

"

Beaverbrook remembers this, because the fighter jet appeared in the air raid on Alexandria at that time, and he also deliberately let the intelligence department pay attention to its specific situation.

"It seems that the relationship between the two countries broke up after the Romanians received aid from the Soviet Union because of the Far East, and Romania quickly went to Japan. I heard that in order to improve the relationship between Romania and Japan, Romania specially came up with a new type of air cooler. The engine is used for the development of a new aircraft. Our intelligence personnel in Japan have heard that this new aircraft is called the Zero in Japan, and it is a carrier-based aircraft developed, but from the perspective of Romanian use, this aircraft is has a great voyage.”

"This is what I'm worried about. From the current situation of the war, my aunt can only compete with the Spitfire. At present, our enemy already has thousands of these new fighters, and we only have less than a thousand. It would cost us air supremacy, and if so, the results would be catastrophic."

Churchill told everyone present about the possible consequences here. No one thought that the beloved Great Britain would suffer such consequences, so the expressions of those present became tense.

Churchill was very satisfied with the effect of his words, so he continued to ask. "What's our next issue?"

"It's a telegram about the defenders of Majiao Island asking for help. They said in the telegram that there are currently insufficient supplies on the island. In addition, the island's air defense force is currently insufficient. Now Italian planes are bombing every day."

When Churchill heard about the island of Malta, the whole person was a little bit bad. The island is in an excellent location, otherwise it would not have been selected as the home port of the Mediterranean fleet. However, with the development of technology and the growth of the Italian Navy, I felt that it was too close to Italy, so I moved to Alexandria.

But now, the island of Malta is indeed a bit uncomfortable for the UK. Because of the loss of the Mediterranean Fleet, it lost control of the waters of the Eastern Mediterranean, and in this case, it is somewhat unrealistic for the fleet to provide supplies and equipment to the island of Malta.

At present, the material replenishment and transportation equipment to Malta is being protected by France. After the British sent the material fleet to Tunisia, France provided warships and aircraft escort. France is also quite happy to have a nail in Italian waters behind it to make it uncomfortable.

It's just that after France has transported the island several times, the loss is a bit too large. According to the French statistics, the average loss rate of each transport to the island of Malta is as high as 27%. This is too exaggerated, and only one escort fleet will be lost in four shipments. France, which has a big family and a big business, can't stand it, so France is becoming more and more reluctant to transport.

In fact, the United Kingdom can't stand it, but Malta's status is too important, and it is easy to stick to it. There is also a voice in the country that the island of Malta has become a bloody outlet for Britain and France, and that our fleet should no longer put precious supplies on this small island, but should be used where it is more needed.

The emergence of this kind of voice, but it cannot interfere with British policy at present.

In fact, in Churchill's heart, he was in favor of giving up the island of Malta. At present, the island of Malta can no longer play its role, because the current British and French naval power is not enough to protect the island.

It's just that Churchill didn't mention this idea to anyone, because this plan would be a huge blow to himself. He surrendered a strategic position to the enemy without firing a shot, and he, the prime minister, was afraid that he would not want to do it.

So he is now in a dilemma about the island of Malta, but he has to find a way. "How is the current communication with the French side?"

Sir Dudley, First Sea Lord of the Navy, answered. "At present, France has agreed to escort the next fleet, but from the next time France hopes to have our own fleet escorted, they can provide aircraft protection."

"These Frenchies!"

Churchill couldn't help but complain when he heard Sir Dudley's words. It's just that Tsushima's other assistance must continue, I saw him say. "Then the transport fleet is a bit larger this time."

"Okay, Prime Minister."

How could Sir Dudley not understand what Churchill meant.

"By the way, what does General Wavell say at the moment?"

As soon as Churchill spoke, everyone sat up straight, because this was the most important motion today.

Aiden, the Minister of War, said. "At present, General Wavell has returned to Egypt in view of the capture of Cyprus, and he is currently deploying the Egyptian and Palestinian coasts. However, he currently lacks armor and anti-aircraft guns, so he hopes that domestic support can be provided. these substances."

Churchill frowned a little when he heard Aiden's words. Because the main force of the British army is currently in the mainland, and in order to land at any time

France, its equipment is also the best. Therefore, Wavell's Middle East Corps materials are completely inferior to the local army. Of course, this also involves another topic, which is the lack of British military capability. It is pitiful to say that last year, the output of weapons in the Skoda factory was equivalent to the output of the United Kingdom in a year.

Although this proves the huge scale of Skoda, it also proves the low capability of British military industry. After the outbreak of the war, faced with the problem of large-scale military expansion, that is the shortage of military supplies. Of course, Britain and France can also import from the United States, but the unmobilized American production capacity is limited, and the United States itself is preparing for military expansion, and how much can it provide to support Britain and France.

Therefore, the decision made by the British side is to give priority to ensuring the local troops, as for the Middle East, it can only belong to the second demand. But now General Wavell's complaint came.

Churchill thought for a while, just when he was about to speak, the door was opened with a bang, and his secretary walked in with a telegram on his face.