Holy Roman Empire-Chapter 1143 - 157: Strategy vs Tactics

Involved in the battle were high-speed fighters; slow bombers entering the fray were akin to a death sentence. Even if they managed to drop bombs, the suicide mission was a losing deal.

Fighters approaching the Navy did not make sense to the enemy, yet the Allied Air Force chose to intercept immediately.

Unfortunately, it was too late; the British Air Force had already engaged. Then, the detached British squadron dived towards the Navy below.

A destroyer was tragically hit by three fighter jets and, amidst intense explosions, the vessel was ripped apart, sending men and ship alike to meet their maker.

This was just the beginning. Accompanied by the onset of the British suicidal attacks, continuous colossal blasts came from the Allied fleet below.

Even with full anti-aircraft firepower, facing opponents who fought with no regard for their lives still seemed futile.

Unless they could hit critical areas and shatter the enemy planes mid-air, even damaged aircraft would still crash dive.

Witnessing a battleship sink under such a suicidal onslaught, Admiral Aldo’s heart bled.

One could never have dreamed the British would fight with such ferocity; this was hardly characteristic of the Great Britain Empire.

In fact, facing such suicidal attacks, even being prepared in advance wouldn’t have been much of an advantage.

The only consolation was the enemy’s low accuracy rate, often resulting in multiple planes crashing into the same target. Out of hundreds of planes attacking, only three warships and two troop carriers were lost.

After all, these were suicide attacks that came and went quickly. From the launch of the assault till its end, it was only a matter of minutes.

Looking over the devastated battlefield, Admiral Aldo, holding back his grief, ordered, “Promptly rescue any personnel overboard, then prepare to retreat.”

It was a feint from the start, there was no need to engage the enemy to the death. A look at the accompanying troop transports made it clear, there weren’t many people aboard.

Forcing a landing in London without thoroughly defeating the enemy’s naval and air forces first would be an utterly foolhardy act.

As soon as he finished speaking, a military staff officer hurried in.

“Commander, an enemy fleet was spotted to the west, approaching us at full speed, currently about 20 nautical miles away.”

After hesitating for several seconds, Admiral Aldo ordered, “Transmit the order, let the damaged warships, troop transports, and supply ships retreat first; the remaining ships will stay to rescue the officers and soldiers who fell overboard.

Send a message to headquarters explaining our plight and request air support from the Air Force. All main ships, prepare for battle…”

It wasn’t that the fleet lacked vigilance; it was mere 180 nautical miles from the continent. Detecting the enemy and escaping was feasible in terms of time.

Since the performance of everyone’s warships was more or less the same, with still 20 nautical miles away, it normally wouldn’t be possible for the enemy to catch up across 180 nautical miles.

Alas, plans never keep up with changes; no one could have foreseen the enemy’s use of suicidal attacks, nor the horrific extent of destruction caused.

Now, rescuing officers and soldiers who had fallen overboard required time, and during this delay, the enemy’s faster ships were already catching up.

Had the fleet not been damaged, Admiral Aldo would never hesitate; fight a battle, and if both sides suffered, they would all go back and lick their wounds.

But having just lost three warships, with several more damaged, especially including a Super Battleship among the sunk, the fleet’s strength was significantly diminished.

Of course, being in a weaker position didn’t entirely eliminate their fighting capacity; had their power disparity been severe, Admiral Aldo would have already ordered to abandon the fallen officers and flee.

Great achievements require great sacrifices; the battlefield always demands its toll, and anyone could be sacrificed if necessary.

But it clearly hadn’t come to that point yet; the era had changed, and the era of great cannons and massive ships had shone during the battle in the English Channel.

It was a transitional period, and the future belonged to the Air Force. Whoever controlled the skies would hold sway over the next era.

…

London, barely having time to celebrate the success of a stealth attack, received the dire news of Gleyer’s fall.

“Reclaim Gleyer at all costs and with utmost speed!” Prime Minister Campbell bellowed.

Logically speaking, a small town with no military or economic value, if lost, is just that—lost.

For the defense of The British Isles, it really had no effect. Even if the enemy occupied the area, they couldn’t land a large army without a suitable port.

But politics is never reasonable. With his rich experience in political struggles, Campbell was certain that once the Austrians captured the town of Gleyer, they’d immediately announce a successful landing to the world.

Ordinary people wouldn’t care whether Gleyer had military value; having established a foothold in The British Isles was enough for them to consider it a successful landing.

Then, everyone would conclude, using their own logic, that the Great Britain Empire was about to collapse.

Once public opinion boiled over, Britannia would indeed face internal and external troubles from all sides.

Foreign Minister Adam added, “The enemy planned this in advance, and the news must have spread by now.

Next, the governments of various nations will verify the news, and we need to reclaim Gleyer before everyone confirms it.

Otherwise…”

He didn’t need to finish his sentence; everyone knew the gravity of the consequences.

Once it was confirmed that the Allied Forces had successfully landed, the allies of the Great Britain Empire would desert them one after another. Everyone was wise enough to cut their losses, and the sooner, the lesser the damage.

Sharing both good times and bad, life and death together—that’s for dramas, never popular in real politics.

Verify the news?

That’s overestimating everyone’s consciousness. Even in the information-rich 21st century, a rumor could deceive many; it goes without saying these days.

Moreover, this wasn’t even a rumor; the Allied Forces had genuinely completed a landing.

It’s hard to undo what’s done; even if the British Army managed to repel the enemy into the sea, the political damage was done. Politicians would assume:

“Since the Allied Forces landed once, they can land a second time. As the defenders who cannot launch an effective counterattack, it’s only a matter of time before collapse.”

The Oceanic Alliance was already on the brink of disintegration. With this stimulus, it would take divine intervention to calm everyone.

The pressure was all on them; the Army Minister and the Minister of Military Affairs exchanged a look and bitterly accepted this overwhelming task.

…

The atmosphere in the British Government was gloomy, and it wasn’t much better in the Vienna Palace. The landing was complete, but the fleet had suffered heavy losses in a feint operation.

Losing a Super Battleship was painful, Franz felt it, and so did everyone else.

However, in Franz’s view, the losses were worth it. Trading the sinking of a Super Battleship for a successful landing was a valuable exchange.

Tactics and strategy were never equal. A successful landing meant the chance to dissolve the Oceanic Alliance had appeared.

The Great Britain Empire, without the wings of its allies, was like a tiger that had lost its claws. Although its teeth were intact, it lacked the ability to hunt, and would eventually starve or be trapped to death.

After brief contemplation, Franz decisively gave up on assigning blame. Who knew the British would play an unexpected hand, which was simply unfair…

“There’s no need to worry too much, Death Squads are easy to find, but pilots are hard to train, and those willing to be Death Squad pilots are even fewer.

Such suicidal plane attacks as pilots, are not sustainable. I expect this to be just one wave; even if there are more, they won’t scale.

How is the situation in Gleyer town? How long can our landing troops hold out there?”

Franz didn’t underestimate the British; Britannia simply had no cultural tradition of ‘dying for the cause.’ Gathering a squad of Death Squad pilots had already been a record-breaking feat, and expecting more was frankly unrealistic.

If it were easy, the planes involved in the day’s attacks would have been numerous.

If the British suddenly managed to gather three to five thousand Death Squad pilots, a single wave could cripple the Allied fleet.

That was obviously impossible; perhaps the Japanese could do it, given some time to do ideological work, as only a minority possessed such fearless spirit.

Army Minister Feslav, “The terrain in Gleyer is complex, inherently unsuitable for large troop engagements, which is very advantageous for our upcoming defensive operations.

Currently, we’ve deployed a paratrooper brigade and an infantry brigade to Gleyer, and we will decide whether to send more troops based on the situation.

Unless the enemy can block both sea and air routes, they can’t dream of taking Gleyer from us!”

The strength of an army lies exactly here. Once a nail is driven in, as long as reinforcements can flow, it’s difficult to pull out.

Moreover, Gleyer was deliberately chosen by the military as a landing point, considering a potential enemy counterattack, specifically picking a town unsuitable for large troop movements.

Without the ability to leverage troop strength, the conflict becomes a raw battle of combat power. If they can’t even hold that, the Sacred Shinra Army would hardly justify its standing in the world.

…