Timeline: Morgen die ganze Welt
Friday, November 10 1944 Tokyo
The Japanese navy has been almost completely destroyed in the battle of Leyte Gulf and the US has invaded the Philippines.
Monday, December 11 1944 New York
A Me-264 "America bomber" flies from Bordeaux to a point 20 km from New York to prove the feasibility of bombing New York. American coast guard is unaware of the approach.
Saturday, 'December 16 1944 Berlin
The RAF bombs Berlin with poison gas and high explosive. The raid suffers heavy losses. Of 540 bombers taking off 185 are shot down. The improvement of German night defenses is an unpleasant surprise for the British. Most of the bombers were destroyed by Me-262 night fighters. Twelve Mosquito escorts were also shot down. The Luftwaffe starts contemplating a bomber offensive against England with Me-262 escorts.
Wednesday, December 20 1944 Berlin
A nuisance raid by 120 Mosquitos on Berlin is intercepted by Me-262 jets. Within minutes 22 Mosquitos are shot down. The survivors jettison their bombs and escape by flying low. The tables are being turned in the sky. Goering proudly reports to Hitler that the Luftwaffe will soon start a bombing offensive against Great Britain.
Saturday, December 30 1944 London
The Luftwaffe starts a night bombing offensive against airfields in England with Ar-234 jet bombers and He-177 bombers escorted by Me-262 jets. The reliability of the He-177 heavy bomber has been dramatically improved. Fortunately for the Allies the number of available bombers is low and bad weather makes aiming difficult.
Monday, January 1 1945 GNP
The GNP of the Axis countries in 1944 was about 50% of that of the Allies at $120 billion. Germany is spending a greater percentage of GNP on the war effort at 70% than the USA at 40%, making military spending almost even. The GNP of Germany is increasing rapidly now that Albert Speer is in charge. Factories in occupied Soviet Union are also starting to make a contribution. Great Britain is effectively bankrupt but given an unlimited credit line by the USA. Italy is building up its heavy industry and is becoming a more useful partner to the Axis. The US is experiencing a manpower shortage.
Tuesday, January 9 1945 Rome
The Italian fleet was expanded with salvaged French ships that were scuttled in Toulon. The battleship Dunquerque is renamed to Palermo. With unlimited fuel available from their German Allies the fleet makes a daring night raid on Malta, bombarding harbor and airport and anti-aircraft defenses. The lack of response leads the OKH to contemplate an invasion of Malta.
Monday, January 15 1945 Junkers
The reliability of German jet engines improves with the use of chromium from the Caucasus and wolfram from the Ural mountains and Japan. BMW starts producing jet engines in competition with Heinkel and Junkers.
Wednesday, January 17 1945 India
Elements of Panzergruppe Kleist approach the Indian border unexpected and unopposed. The Allies have to divert troops to counter the invasion. Japanese forces fighting on the Imphal plain are driven back meanwhile.
Friday, February 2 1945 Oranienburg
The Horten Ho-229 flying wing makes its first flight under jet power. The fighter-bomber is almost invisible to radar and can fly bombing mission at 1000 km/h with a range of 1000 km. If far outclasses any Allied bombers. A first order of 1000 aircraft is placed.
Friday, February 9 1945 Birmingham
The Spitfire factories in Birmingham are bombed in broad daylight. Ar-234C jet bombers used glide bombs for the first precision bombing attack in history. Spitfire production is disrupted. Allies speculate that the Luftwaffe is trying to gain air supremacy over Great Britain.
Wednesday, February 14 1945 Karachi
Panzergruppe Kleist easily brushes off an Allied counterattack in the battle of Karachi. Von Kleist has to stop there because of enormously long supply lines. The battle has had the intended effect of relieving pressure on the Japanese. An Indian volunteer division is created for propaganda purposes by the Axis. Ghandi praises Hitler and predicts an era of progress for India with German support.
Sunday, February 18 1945 Berlin
Repeated armistice offers to Stalin have never been responded to. Remaining factories in the Soviet Union are bombed around the clock.
Thursday, March 1 1945 Hamburg
US air force makes a maximum effort trying to overwhelm Axis defenses. General Galland decides that the time has come for the Luftwaffe to also make a maximum effort against the American 8th and 9th Air Force. A 2,000 bomber raid is intercepted by 240 rocket-firing Me-262s and 1,600 conventional fighters. The jets attack the leading bombers in waves releasing volleys of R4M rockets. Within fifteen minutes 75 bombers explode and whole squadrons jettison their bombs and scatter. Mustang are harassed by FW190D "long nose" and Me-109K fighters. The scattered bombers become easy targets and at the end of the day the total loss is 195 bombers destroyed and 800 damaged, a disastrous loss. Twenty jets are reported destroyed mostly due to technical problems and accidents. There are reports of crews bailing out of bombers in panic when jets approached. This was the first large scale jet attack on bombers and the Allied pilots pilots were completely horrified. The Luftwaffe has 900 Me-262 fighters in service and 5,000 on order. New jets like the Ta-183 and Me-362 are being tested. Hitler congratulates Goering on he performance of the Luftwaffe
Friday, March 2 1945 Maikop
Output from the Maikop oilfields is now 150,000 barrels per day. More oilfields in the Baku area are coming online. Refineries in Grozny are producing at top capacity.
Thursday, March 8 1945 Tokyo
A Me-262 Staffel from JG 3 comprising 16 jets is bodily transported to Tokyo. The staffel will be used to defend the capital against B-29 attacks and to introduce Japanese pilots to the jet age. Giant Ju-390 cargo planes transfer the staffel in a few days flying over the north pole. Mitsubishi will build Me-262 fighters under license. The Japanese are greatly heartened by this show of support. Japanese forces are still driven back in the fighting in India but German reconnaissance groups are moving forward. American forces destined for the Pacific are diverted to India to help the British.
Thursday, March 15 1945 Leuna
American bombers raid the synthetic oil factory at Leuna. The facilities are destroyed but this is to little avail as Germany is now getting oil from the Caucasus. In spite of tight bomber discipline and increased fighter escorts 140 bombers out of 630 are shot down. This brings total B-17 losses over Germany to 4,000 bombers. Even to the USA such losses are unsustainable. Bombing of Germany is restricted to short range nuisance raids and raids on V2 launching sites. The fact is noted that the speed of German jets makes it difficult for them to aim at small targets like fighters. Therefore Mustangs will roam over Germany to attack any German targets and keep the pressure up.
Wednesday, March 21 1945 Atlantic
U-2501 and U2502, the first new type 21 U-boats are heading for the Atlantic. They easily evade allied patrols by diving deep. Every day two new type 21 submarines are assembled using a modular process. More submarines are being commissioned every day now after acceptance tests in the Baltic Sea.
Monday, March 26 1945 Iwo Jima
The island fortress Iwo Jima is finally taken after more than a month's fierce fighting. For the first time the Stars and Stripes flies over Japanese home ground to the dismay of the Japanese. The US air force now has a base from where escort fighters can protect B-29 bombers.
Monday, March 27 1945 Atlantic
U-2501 and U2502 attack a convoy spotted by Ju-390 patrol aircraft. The submarines dive deep beneath the thermocline in silent mode to evade the escorts and surface in the middle of the convoy undetected. Using the fast torpedo reload mechanism they fire all their torpedoes in minutes, sinking 21 cargo ships. The submarines dive deep again and return to port, still undetected by frenzied escorts. This is he shortest and most devastating submarine attack ever.
Monday, April 2 1945 Junkers
Junkers improves its Jumo 004 jet engines now providing 17 kN thrust, an increase of 80% with 15% better fuel efficiency. The BMW003 and He-011S have similar performance. Junkers is testing the revolutionary Jumo 012 with 27 kN of thrust. General Milch is in charge of aircraft technology and has demanded supersonic jets capable of mach 2. A futuristic looking Horten XIIIB is being assembled. The aircraft is expected to have a speed of mach 1.6
Tuesday, April 3 1945 Kiel
U-2501 and U-2502 return to Kiel welcomed by a brass band, photographers and a gloating Doenitz. An orderly struggles to carry a chestful of decorations for the crews. Two years of suffering of the U-boats has been turned around in one day.
Thursday, April 12 1945 Atlantic
Four more type 21 submarines enter the Atlantic. All type 7 and type 9 submarines still patrolling are recalled to base to be scrapped.
Monday, April 16 1945 Atlantic
A convoy spotted by a Me-264 is attacked by submarines and scatters. This time 16 ships and an auxiliary aircraft carrier are sunk. One destroyer makes sonar contact with a U-boat going at incredible speed. It tries to use depth charges but the submarine attacks from great depth with a homing torpedo and the destroyer has its stern blown off. Upon hearing of the action Hitler personally decorates Doenitz with the Iron Cross with oak leaves, swords and diamonds. He orders that the type 21 submarine will henceforth be known as the Sea Wolf.
Thursday, April 19 1945 Atlantic
Six Sea Wolves are now patrolling the Atlantic. It is a humble beginning but Doenitz is elated. No submarines have been caught but enemy ships are sunk at will.
Friday, April 20 1945 France
The USAAF sends 4 P-80 Shooting Star jets to England for evaluation. The P-80 is inferior to the Me-262 and its engine is not reliable at this stage. The RAF has Meteor jets in service but they are slower than some piston fighters.
Saturday, April 28 1945 Atlantic
Some fast convoys slip across the Atlantic without being attacked. It is expected however that there will be problems when numbers of Sea Wolves increase. U-boats are built at the rate of two per day days using modular techniques.
Friday, May 4 1945 Kirchheim
A Me-262 HGIII with uprated Jumo-004 engines breaks through the sound barrier in level flight above Kirchheim. Dozens of windows are shattered by the sonic boom. General Milch witnessed the demonstration and is elated. He jokes with a gloating Willy Messerschmidt "I want 10,000 of them by tomorrow!" In the future test flights will be undertaken in remote locations. The aircraft shows remarkable capabilities and the new Me-362 will be based on it.
Tuesday, May 8 1945 Ta-183
artwork by Marek Rys artwork
A Focke-Wulf Ta-183 jet takes off for the first time at the Focke-Wulf facilities. The fighter has a speed of Mach 0.9 and a ceiling of 15,000 meter. The test pilot is very enthusiastic about the agility and speed of the fighter. It can turn tighter than a FW190D and has terrific acceleration. Based on the first flight, an order of 2000 fighters is placed. This aircraft will be a Mustang killer.
Saturday, May 12 1945 Atlantic
The battle of the Atlantic is starting in earnest after the Allied thought they had won it. Germans are using Me-264 and Ju-390 patrol aircraft to spot convoys and Sea Wolves to attack. The Allies counter by diverting auxiliary aircraft carriers from the Pacific to form submarine killer groups. The subs are difficult to detect though because they never surface. In one encounter a U-boat sinks battleship Ramillies and several cargo ships while staying submerged at 50 meters. A barrage of depth charges is futile. The U-boat uses the standard getaway of a high-speed dash followed by silent escape at maximum depth. Although this depth is officially 270 meter U-boat commanders routinely dive below 350 meter.
Wednesday, May 16 1945 Great Britain
Four P-80 take off to intercept a German raid. Two of the aircraft suffer flame-outs and crash. The other two are shot down in the first jet dogfight at high altitude. A squadron of Meteors is handled roughly in the same engagement, losing six for no result. Clearly the Germans are technologically more advanced in jet fighters. General Galland takes careful note and decides that tactics will be made more aggressive.
Thursday, May 17 1945 Great Britain
A Miles M.52 supersonic research aircraft crashes in a test flight when it becomes unstable close to the speed of sound.
Thursday, May 24 1945 Ural
140 Axis divisions are withdrawn form the East Front. One million soldiers are demobilized to alleviate the chronic labor shortage. The 6th army is sent to the Suez line to support Rommel, the remainder to France. An indication of the use the armies are going to be put to is a popular new marching song "Yankee Doodle here we come". Remaining Soviet industrial centers are regularly bombed with He-177 bombers from Ula.
Sunday, May 27 1945 Atlantic
Great Britain begins to suffer from the Atlantic blockade. Rations are reduced. This causes great dissatisfaction. The population sees no end to the war. The biggest problem is oil shortage.
Wednesday, June 6 1945 France
The Luftwaffe has started to use the strange looking Ju-287 heavy jet bomber with forward swept wings. The bomber is too fast to intercept except by P-80s.
Thursday, June 7 1945 Tokyo
Saburo Sakai shoots down the 300th B-29 bomber for JG 3 staffel over Tokyo. The Japanese ace has been selected to lead the first Japanese jet squadron. His training with JG 3 earned him great respect from his German comrades. Mitsubishi has started building the Me-262 under license.