Chapter 1238 The Big Winner (first update, please subscribe)
At 0:00 on August 13, under the deployment of the Soviet Union, East Germany implemented "Operation Rose" and blocked West Berlin and the entire East with barbed wire. Virtue.
For a time, the relationship between the East and the West became tense again. On the border between West Berlin and East Berlin, tanks from both sides faced off, and soldiers looked at each other with loaded guns.
After all, from the perspective of West Berlin, East Germany's actions were precisely to block them - is this another Berlin crisis?
Faced with the sudden blockade, West Germany responded quickly. The US military stationed in West Berlin immediately sent tanks to the intersection. In response, the Soviet Union also sent their tanks.
Not only that, they even held competing military exercises. Not only the ground forces and the air force also joined in, but during the exercise, they also sent two MiG-21 fighter jets to fly over West Berlin.
The reality that two Soviet aircraft appeared on the border of West Berlin. Faced with such a threat, the Luftwaffe naturally dispatched the most advanced F104 fighter jets that had just been delivered.
As a result, two of the most advanced fighter jets in the Eastern and Western worlds collided in the sky over Berlin. Because the airspace of West Berlin is narrow, an inattentive aircraft from both sides will fly into each other's airspace, so Both sides flew without bombs. And this also led to the confrontation between the two sides being a mobility confrontation.
So, while they were confronting each other on the ground, the F104 and the MiG-21 staged an extremely exciting "flight show" in the air. However, this show was destined to be a tragedy from the beginning.
The maneuverability of the F104, known as the "flying rocket" itself, is very poor. In addition, its short and flat wings are extremely easy to stall. In the exciting maneuver confrontation, an F104 fighter almost It fell directly like a falling lead weight under everyone's gaze.
This scene was faithfully captured by TV cameras, so that the whole of Germany, no, it should be said that the whole world, saw the "wonderful" performance of the F104.
While it was falling in the air, the pilot didn't even have a chance to eject.
The reality of the plane crash and the loss of lives shocked the whole of Germany. Considering the previous "arms purchase scandal", the anger of the Germans is understandable - this is what the Air Force bought. airplane!
For a time, while the Berlin crisis was happening, F104 also successfully showed its "widow maker" side to the world.
Of course, faced with the reality of the plane crashing, the German Air Force immediately blamed the Soviet pilot's "dangerous driving" for causing the flight accident. They even announced that they would fly with bombs over West Berlin!
To such a threat, the Soviet Union responded by flying with bombs.
This Berlin crisis seems to have escalated again!
Actually, this day... was not the beginning of the crisis in Berlin.
In fact, the "Third Berlin Crisis" has erupted for two full months!
“...In addition to the degree of militarization in West Germany that made it difficult for the Soviets to sleep and eat, there was another thing that troubled the Soviets in West Berlin, and that was the problem of East German population loss. Many East Germans The population loss caused by fleeing to West Germany through West Berlin has threatened the survival of the East German regime.”
In the study room of Daming Palace, Li Guoren introduced the "Berlin Crisis" to you.
“After requiring the West to withdraw from West Berlin within six months three years ago, shortly after President Kennedy took office, Khrushchev once again issued an ultimatum on the Berlin issue and announced an increase in military spending. Subsequently, Kennedy also Announcing an increase in military spending.
Subsequently, Khrushchev held talks with Kennedy for two days in Vienna. Khrushchev demanded that Britain, the United States, and France withdraw from West Berlin within six months; Kennedy flatly refused: Do not accept the ultimatum and declare that if the United States withdraws, it will be a betrayal of itself.
The situation suddenly became tense..."
When referring to the tense situation, Li Guoren thought of your Excellency in June. In his view, the decision to announce an increase in military spending was also in response to the reality of intensified confrontation between the United States and the Soviet Union.
This little blue star is really nervous!
How tense can the situation get?
Compared with people's worries in this era, Li Yian is very clear about the outcome of this crisis and also knows what the purpose of "Operation Rose" is.
"After the conversation broke down, on June 21, Khrushchev put on a military uniform at a meeting to commemorate the 20th anniversary of the outbreak of the Great Patriotic War and delivered a super tough speech: If the West wants to show off its capabilities If so, then give him a chance. And Kennedy did not show weakness. He strengthened the combat capabilities of the US military stationed in Germany in a tit-for-tat manner, and especially increased the US missile power in Germany."
Li Guoren thought for a moment, and then. Special Mention:
"This is also the reason why the German Air Force purchased the F104G fighter jet, which can also carry a tactical nuclear weapon. Although West Germany was prohibited from possessing nuclear weapons after the war, as an important member of NATO, it was allowed to participate in NATO's nuclear sharing plan. This This plan allows the West German Air Force to equip and use nuclear weapons provided by the United States during wartime. Therefore, the West German Air Force selected the F-104 fighter jet as a nuclear delivery platform. "
This is one of the main reasons why Germany chose the F104G. First, the F2 fighter jet does not have the ability to drop nuclear bombs.
"For now, the situation in Europe is very tense. The United States is sending more troops to the area and has dispatched multiple aircraft carriers to the Mediterranean and Europe."
Nodding, Li Yian said.
“The situation is tense, that is, the situation is a problem. Khrushchev is just engaging in blackmail! As for Berlin, it is nothing more than building a wall! A wall that turns the virtual Iron Curtain into reality.”< br>
"Build a wall?" Li Guoren asked confused?
“Yes, the purpose of building a wall is to prevent East Germans from fleeing. Seeing that it is impossible for Americans to withdraw from West Berlin, a large number of people from East Germany fled to West Germany. The population The massive reduction has caused a crisis of economic collapse in East Germany, because these people who ran out are young people, especially well-educated engineers, doctors, and professors, who are the backbone of society.
Russians are not. This situation will be allowed to continue, so building a wall to prevent East Germans from escaping becomes the only option!”
“Is this okay?”
Li Guoren was a little confused about their thinking.
“Aren’t they afraid of being laughed at by others? They always say that they are the most superior, but in the end they use walls to prevent their own people from leaving! Is this the superiority of East Germany?”
“This The problem is that of East Germany. Although it is strategically wrong, they have no other choice. Although building a wall can prevent East Germans from escaping to a certain extent, building a wall will further expose the problem. In the future, East Germans will try their best to escape to West Germany, and every person who escapes is a victory for West Germany!”
In the next few decades, people will use jumping off buildings and digging. Thousands of people managed to escape to West Germany by tunneling, swimming, hot air ballooning and other methods to break through the wall, while thousands more were arrested or shot.
That wall is not only a symbol of the Cold War, but also a symbol of the failure of the Soviet and Eastern blocs.
Russians...are always so simple and crude!
With this thought in mind, Li Yian said to Li Guoren:
"Issue a statement in the name of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, asking them to exercise restraint for the sake of world peace and resolve the crisis through negotiation as much as possible!"< br>
In a word, it’s just a few nonsense words on the side.
Europe is too far away from Nanyang. In Nanyang now, the focus is not on Europe. Therefore, all Nanyang needs to do is to make a voice.
But everything was just as Li Yi'an said. Just two days later, a cement wall was quickly built along the outside of the West Berlin Wall. This wall cut a country in half. This was the "Berlin Wall".
Nanyang people have no feelings about this wall. After all, the distance is too far. If they say they have a lot of feelings, it is the German immigrants in Nanyang, but they can only pay lip service to it. Just complaining.
Compared with the Berlin crisis itself, Nanyang people are more concerned about the opportunities brought by the crisis. For example, the tense situation makes countries realize that they must strengthen their armaments as soon as possible.
After all, armaments are the only option to stop other countries’ ambitions.
Yugoslavia, which was originally interested in purchasing Soviet aircraft, immediately hesitated. Although Yugoslavia normalized relations with the Soviet Union a few years ago, as we all know, that was just normal on the surface.
As a result, the Nanyang military immediately seized the opportunity and invited the commander of the Yugoslav Air Force, General Ulepich, to visit Chang'an and invited its pilots to conduct a comprehensive test of the F2 fighter. The results of the test were naturally beyond their expectations - although the F2 fighter It is only twice the speed of sound, but its maneuverability is excellent, and it is equipped with a new "Sidewinder air-to-air missile", coupled with a powerful radar system, which immediately conquered the Yugoslav military.
In contrast, although the Soviets stated that they could provide MiG-21s to the Yugoslav Air Force, they did so in a pretentious manner. When showing the MiG-21s to them, they were not allowed to take pictures, and the Yugoslav Air Force personnel had to draw sketches from memory. For superior research.
As a result, the two countries quickly reached a series of arms trade agreements. On August 29, General Ulepic officially approved the plan to purchase the F-2 and its production license, code-named "Thunder".
While successfully retaining orders from Yugoslavia, Italy also sent air force test pilots - the German arms procurement scandal changed the attitude of the Italian Air Force, which originally planned to purchase F104s. They really didn't want to be covered in shit. , although the US aid is very good, but if it reverses the political crisis, it will be worth the loss.
As a result, Nanyang Aviation Industry Corporation has welcomed many groups of customers one after another, both from Europe and the Americas - South American countries also have the need to upgrade to second-generation jet aircraft.
With its excellent performance, the F2C fighter jet has won orders from many countries.
It has to be said that this was all thanks to the assistance of the Soviets - relying on the performance of the F104 during the crisis, it successfully made the countries that originally intended to purchase it turn to Nanyang or France - the French Mirage fighter The test aircraft has also been completed, but delivery is still far away, at least for a few more years.
In contrast, the F2 fighter jet has been put into service with the Nanyang Air Force and Naval Air Force as early as last year. It is the only advanced fighter jet in the Western world that can reach twice the speed of sound, apart from the British Lightning and F104.
As a result, Nanyang Aviation Industries naturally became the biggest winner in this "Berlin Crisis" - it received orders for more than 500 aircraft from the air forces of European and South American countries.
(End of this chapter)