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Hello all,

Firstly, a caveat; this is my first post so it will probably seem quite illiterate to all you AH experts (particularly lacking in some of the abbreviations / acronyms I have been unable to decipher around these forums!).

A tiny bit of background; I am working on a manuscript for an AH novel centering around British and German air operations in 1940, exploring possible events if Operation Sealion takes place in September of that year.

Second caveat; everyone knows that Sealion in 1940 would have been impossible (hence it did not happen!), therefore I am working on revising numerous key events during the preceding months that imo would have tipped the balance towards the Germans.

I would be very interested and grateful to hear the view of AH SMEs on my air force / naval related assumptions. I think that for the Op to stand a chance, the following would need to occur. These are obviously POD ideas rather than an actual TL (If I understand those terms correctly!):

1. At the conference held by Göring at the Hague (3 Sep 40) with Sperrle and Kesselring, both of the latter would need to win the argument that London should not be made the target of strategic bombing and that pressure against the RAF's 11 Gp should continue.

2. Subsequently, air attack against 11 Gp airfields is successful in forcing a withdrawal of Fighter Command units to the airfields of 10 and 12 Gp, i.e. north and west of London. 11 Gp airfields are deliberately sabotaged in the retreat to make them unsuitable for German use; this also denies them for future RAF use.

3. With air superiority achieved in the south-east (Hell's Corner), the Germans are able to be much more successful in their attacks against the Royal Navy.

4. (Turning to naval matters) With the threat of invasion very real, the RN is unable to divert great numbers of vessels from convoy escort duties since the supply lines are more essential than ever.

5. Prior to the date of the landings (26 Sep 40), the Luftwaffe are able to mount significant air attacks against dockyards that cause significant damage to Destroyer flotillas. Portsmouth is rendered inaccessible by the 'lucky' sinking of a large warship at the harbour mouth (most likely a cruiser, TBD from RN records).

6. During the landings themselves (waves over several days), the RN come in for heavy punishment with the lack of RAF air cover and are unable to prevent in excess of 12 German armoured and infantry divisions being landed on a narrow front (per actual German plans) between Dover and Bexhill.

Thanks very much in advance for any feedback!

If anyone gets interested, I have devised OOBs for naval and air forces depicted graphically for 'S-Day' (26 Sep 40).
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