"Your Excellency, the battleship *Bellerophon* is sinking. General Davidson requests permission to abandon ship," the communications officer reported to Admiral John Jellicoe.
Admiral Jellicoe's countenance had darkened, resembling the soot-stained bottom of a pot. Previously, he had dreamt of sinking around twenty of the German Navy's capital ships in a decisive battle. However, before engaging in such a confrontation, they had already fallen victim to an assault from German aircraft, resulting in the loss of yet another capital vessel. Even more alarmingly, the attacks from the German air forces were still ongoing. Who knew how many more capital ships they might lose in the forthcoming conflict?
"Grant them permission to abandon ship!" Admiral Jellicoe gritted his teeth as he spoke.
With the *Bellerophon* beyond salvation and destined to sink, Admiral Jellicoe could hardly refuse their request to evacuate. While he desired the officers and men of the Royal Navy to fight to the last, it did not mean he could willfully condemn them to death. Should he do so, he would surely face a court-martial, barring the eventuality of his own death in battle.
Upon receiving the order to abandon ship, the Royal Navy personnel aboard *Bellerophon* scrambled for the lifeboats. Yet, there were only a limited number of lifeboats available, making it nearly impossible for everyone to board. Ultimately, of the over seven hundred sailors aboard, fewer than two hundred managed to escape; the rest were consigned to the depths along with the sinking ship.
In comparison to *Bellerophon*, the *Monarch* and *Renown* fared slightly better. Although they too suffered several torpedo strikes, they were not fatal. Nevertheless, they sustained significant damage due to excessive flooding.
As the German aircraft completed their bombing run and swaggered away, the British Grand Fleet was left in profound shock. In just one round of attacks, they had lost a battleship and severely damaged two others, casting a pall over their morale in this naval engagement.
"Your Excellency, I must concede that the Germans have forged far ahead of us. While we were preoccupied with constructing ships of greater firepower and defense to outpace them, they made a stunning transformation, employing aircraft in naval warfare with remarkable efficacy. It seems the Royal Navy's centuries of dominance have led to complacency, allowing the Germans to surpass us. We are indeed facing a just defeat in this battle!" sighed Vice Admiral David Beatty.
Admiral Jellicoe nodded, reluctant to accept the truth but recognizing it nonetheless. The Germans had once again pulled ahead of Britain, employing aircraft to attack surface vessels—an innovation that had caught the Royal Navy completely off guard.
This placed them in a precarious position for the ongoing war. Winning this conflict would undoubtedly prove much more challenging.
"The use of aircraft to assault surface fleets is truly unprecedented. The Germans have devised a tactic that commands admiration. If the British Empire could achieve a breakthrough in this domain, perhaps we might turn the tide," Admiral Jellicoe remarked, refusing to abandon hope of defeating the Germans even at this juncture.
"Your Excellency, that is a formidable task. We have no understanding of how the Germans' aircraft manage to fly such distances, or if they are launching directly from the sea. To unravel these mysteries and develop a counter-strategy would undoubtedly require a considerable amount of time—time the Germans will not afford us," Vice Admiral Beatty replied.
At this, Admiral Jellicoe's expression darkened. Indeed, the Germans possessed a substantial advantage in this regard; for Britain to catch up would necessitate starting from scratch. Furthermore, the Germans had already established absolute dominance in this conflict. They would not grant Britain the opportunity to overtake them.
"Your Excellency, the Germans' aircraft have departed, but our losses are significant. However, it seems their planes can only carry light torpedoes, limiting their assaults to the *Bellerophon*. This is a stroke of fortune amidst our misfortunes. If the Germans' aircraft were capable of striking our super-dreadnoughts, that would pose a truly grave threat," Vice Admiral Beatty observed.
"Yes, God save the British Empire. British aircraft cannot threaten our capital ships!" Admiral Jellicoe asserted.
As the British celebrated the conclusion of the German naval air attack, they remained unaware that a second wave of forty-eight aircraft was en route, all equipped with torpedoes. For surface vessels, the threat posed by torpedo bombers far exceeded that of fighter planes.
While fighter aircraft could inflict some harm upon a ship's crew, they posed no direct danger to the vessel's structural integrity. In contrast, the torpedoes carried by the bombers were a lethal threat to surface vessels—even light torpedoes could be devastating.
Should the German Navy's aircraft begin to deploy medium or heavy torpedoes, they would become true maritime killers, presenting a catastrophic risk to surface ships. However, technological limitations had thus far prevented the Germans from achieving this capability.
"General, aircraft! The Germans are coming again!" an officer shouted.
Admiral Jellicoe and Vice Admiral Beatty rushed to the window, raising their binoculars to scan the eastern sky.
Before them appeared dozens of aircraft, their underbellies laden with gleaming torpedoes.
"Curse it! There must be at least forty or fifty aircraft. Where are these Germans launching from?" Admiral Jellicoe cursed, a flicker of panic flashing in his eyes.
Having already suffered the loss of a battleship and severe damage to two others from the previous German air assault, the emergence of yet more aircraft could only foreshadow even greater losses.