Operation Vengeance over Finland

[Dimlee]

My guess is the Generals immediately arrest and/or top all the top Nazis. With no military experience, Himmler and Goebbels will be dead men within moments, a necessary step to keep the Gestapo and SS under control.

In June 1942 the Germans have the appearance of a position of strength, with strong holdings in North Africa and thr USSR, and with Mussolini, Romania and Finland still on side. The US has just won at Midway and much of their focus will be in the Pacific, and Germany should realize that Japan is going to lose. So, the German general staff quickly kills the top Nazis and assumes power. Here's what I would do…

Call up Churchill and FDR and tell them Hitler and the Nazis are toast and that the Generals have taken over and wish to end the war. Simultaneously, declare and execute an immediate and unilateral withdrawal from France, Norway and the Low Countries. Signing neutrality agreements with each on the way out. Bring home all the U-Boats, arrest Donitz if he resists. Leave the forces in North Africa (there's no way to bring them home anyway) but have them take no further offensive action. In Europe, move all forces to the USSR but take no offensive action. Then, from a position of strength, suggest terms with Stalin. If played well, FDR will be pushing both Churchill and Stalin to accept, at the threat of ending lend lease and financing. The big winner is Mussolini, who can escape his execution.

I think it coincides with what actually the conspirators in 1943 have planned.
There is another interesting possibility - using anti-Soviet sentiments of millions of people in occupied territories, including those POWs that survived the winter (when Germans failed to supply the camps and hundreds of thousands died). Hitler and some other top Nazis were against arming those Untermensch. Once Nazis leaders are removed, Wehrmacht can act more rationally.

 

[GrauGeist]

Tu-2 is not available yet.

Hitler's trip was in June '42, factory 166 started manufacturing them in September '41 with aircraft reaching operational units in March '42.

So it seems that there would be some available for the mission.

 

[Dimlee]

Hitler's trip was in June '42, factory 166 started manufacturing them in September '41 with aircraft reaching operational units in March '42.

So it seems that there would be some available for the mission.

Yes, they began the manufacturing of some parts in September 1941. But this production was never given priority.
Trials began only in May 1942, according to this source: Туполев Ту-2
Serial production in September according to Khazanov:

http://nebo.histrf.ru/tu-2.html

And combat trials of 3 aircraft in the same month:

Ту-2. Боевое применение

airpages.ru

Full-scale operations, probably, not before November 1942.

 

[GreenKnight121]

There was a whole cabal of dangerous people in the wings:
Himmler
Goebbels
Heydrich

The proposed date of interception is 3 June 1942.

On 27 May 1942 Heydrich was wounded by Czech resistance fighters in Prague.
Heydrich fell into a coma on 3 June and never regained consciousness.
He died on 4 June 1942.

 

[GrauGeist]

The proposed date of interception is 3 June 1942.

On 27 May 1942 Heydrich was wounded by Czech resistance fighters in Prague.
Heydrich fell into a coma on 3 June and never regained consciousness.
He died on 4 June 1942.

Just going by memory, the timeline was close.
Heydrich's assination launched terrible reprisals, too.