Time Slip Reiwa Japan

055 - Karelian Isthmus Conflict - 4

The Finnish humanitarian aid convoy, escorted by TF-391, and Admiral Ewald, passed through the second Suez Canal via the Japanese Federal Armed Forces' base in Kuwait and arrived at Portsmouth Naval Base on the British Isles. There, they conducted maintenance on the ships and provided rest for the crew.

TF-391's headquarters deemed this area to be effectively enemy territory, and they took every precaution to ensure their safety in case of any unforeseen circumstances. In particular, many of the transport ships prepared by the Siberian Republic were smaller in size and more crew-intensive than those registered under Japanese flags, as they had borrowed ships from American and British shipping companies.

Despite the large ships, such as the aircraft carrier Zuikaku and the air-defense escort ship Musashi, which were designed to provide sufficient living space for the crew, the fatigue of the crew on the relatively small and low-crew Asakaze-class multifunctional escort ship (FFM) weighing 3.900 tons could not be ignored. Fortunately, the situation between Finland and the Soviet Union had not yet escalated to war, nor had it reached a tense state that could be described as a hair-trigger situation. *1 Therefore, TF-391 headquarters confirmed with the Japanese government, the Siberian Republic government, and the Finnish government and took two weeks for maintenance and rest.

. . .

Germany

They had deployed spies in Portsmouth to obtain any information they could about the Japanese fleet, and had also requisitioned large fishing boats and converted them into spy ships to monitor their movements. This was not only an intelligence operation but also a sort of retaliation against Japan.

P-1 patrol planes were flying regularly just outside German territorial waters, and the Luftwaffe had dispatched planes to harass them under the guise of surveillance. However, they were completely ignored, causing significant damage to their pride. If they dispatched bombers considering the range, they would be left far behind due to the significant speed difference. If they dispatched fighters considering speed, they could keep up for a short time at their maximum speed, *2 but they had to withdraw within 30 minutes due to excessive fuel consumption.

This situation had developed into a responsibility issue within the Luftwaffe. As a result, Hitler ordered further efforts to develop jet planes.

. . .

Britain

For Britain, which vividly remembered the damage suffered from submarine attacks during the World War, the P-1 patrol aircraft brought in by Japan was a highly desired aircraft that they couldn't resist. After understanding its performance during joint exercises with Japan, Britain demanded that Japan sell them the P-1 at any cost. As long as it was Britain, with its loose restrictions on the sale of advanced weapons under the expanded G4 agreement, Japan was not reluctant to sell the P-1. The conditions of the sale were that Britain would not conduct reverse engineering through disassembly analysis, would not resell the aircraft, and would import all consumables from Japan.

Britain was hesitant to accept the offer as they preferred to purchase a completely domestically produced product. However, Japan proposed to conduct a sufficient accumulation of consumables within the Japanese Federal Armed Forces airbase in Britain, which satisfied Britain. Thus, the purchase of the P-1 patrol aircraft by Britain, which had advanced to the verge of a contract, was suddenly stopped by an unexpected source.

The one who raised the objection was the Prosperity through Information (PFI) organization, Britain's proposal for information analysis. The PFI organization was composed of former embassy officials and British nationals who had defected to Britain and proposed various ideas to the Cabinet based on future information.