The disastrous defeat in the Far East led to the rapid collapse of the Macdonald government, and the "moderate" Chamberlain became the British Prime Minister. However, under the pressure of the hardliners, the British Navy reorganized a Far East fleet and set sail for the Indian Ocean in the summer of 1938.
area.
Force Z, commanded by the former Commander of the Mediterranean Fleet, Admiral John Tovey, includes the British's latest two Nelson-class battleships, the Revenge-class HMS Resolution and HMS Sovereign, and the Queen-class HMS Warspite and five battleships, Repulse.
Three aircraft carriers: battlecruiser, HMS Brave, HMS Arenas and HMS Glorious, as well as eight cruisers and ten destroyers.
The British spent almost all of their last capital. Except for the Queen Elizabeth, which was undergoing repairs, the British mainland now only has two battleships and two battle cruisers left to maintain their appearance. Their strength is even compared to that of the Italians.
Not gaining the upper hand.
After leading this mighty fleet through the British-controlled Suez Canal and Red Sea and into the Gulf of Aden, Admiral Tovey became cautious in his actions.
The late summer noon sun shines on the sea. In the command room of the elegantly decorated flagship Sovereign, Admiral Tovey, who has turned gray at the temples and whose skin has become rough and red due to years of living at sea and the sun and wind, is a little agitated.
Pacing back and forth in the cabin restlessly, the leather shoes on his feet made a rhythmic clicking sound on the beige high-grade oak floor. This may be the first time since the British Empire became the maritime hegemon that the Royal Navy has to
Facing an enemy more powerful than himself, even in the Battle of Trafalgar, Admiral Nelson's Armada was actually much stronger than Napoleon's fleet. An unknown enemy, who will pass in a battle?
There were also new methods of naval warfare that he had never experienced before. These unknown factors made the experienced admiral feel uneasy.
"This is perhaps the most difficult moment the Royal Navy has encountered since Falgar. Their battleships are superior to ours in both quantity and quality, and they only have a few years of service. An aircraft on an enemy aircraft carrier
There are even more aircraft than all the planes on our three aircraft carriers combined." Tovey looked at the sea through the porthole, as if talking to himself. God has favored the Anglo-Saxons for more than two hundred years, and now he seems a little bored.
Already.
"General, the instruction given to us by the Admiralty is to first ensure the safety of the entire fleet, and secondly to consider control of the Indian Ocean. The Royal Navy will not receive any supplements until the latest Lion-class battleships are commissioned." Wearing a white suit,
The handsome Lord Mountbatten was subdued by the major general and said: "We can no longer withstand any blow, otherwise the entire colonial imperial system of the British Empire will collapse as a result."
"It would be difficult for us to secure the East Indian Ocean under such circumstances, wouldn't it? We were afraid of being hit, so we had to be more careful and hesitant. I remember that I once discussed the course of the Battle of Jutland with Admiral Beatty
Regarding the definition between recklessness and bravery in combat operations, General Betty said a very interesting thing at the time: When there is someone behind you who can make up for the mistakes you made, recklessness also becomes bravery. When no one supports you,
Bravery sometimes means recklessness. Fortunately, I have a powerful Royal Navy behind me." Admiral Tovey said here, paused slightly, and his tone became lower. "Now unfortunately, we will not have any support behind us.
"
At Changi Naval Base, Deputy Deputy Chief of the Naval Equipment Department Tang Dexin and Director of the Naval Gunnery Bureau Shen Jinchen were inspecting the modification status of three battleships captured by the Republic of China Navy at the Sing Tao Naval Shipyard.
The Republic Navy still spent a lot of effort on the repair and transformation of these captured old battleships built before or during World War I. Due to their backward performance, these old battleships had a speed of less than 22 knots and could no longer be used. To adapt to the current requirements of ocean warfare, at best it can only perform some auxiliary tasks such as escort or offshore defense.
How to make these old battleships capable of the high speed required to accompany high-speed aircraft carriers in escort missions is the biggest headache for the naval ship design department. After removing the useless underwater torpedo launch tubes on these old battleships, A slight change to the bow line type can increase the speed of these old warships by 2 knots. After replacing the old heavy oil boilers with 6 new heavy oil high-temperature boilers and replacing the latest steam turbines, the power systems of these warships The power has been increased three times. However, the widened hull due to the enhanced underwater protection of the hull has hindered the increase in speed. In the end, the naval design department predicts that after modernization and modification, the speed of these old warships can be increased to 28 knots. It can barely meet the performance requirements to accompany the aviation fleet in combat.
After more than nine months of intense construction, the Republic Navy's repair and transformation project for these old warships has been basically completed. At the outfitting dock of Sing Tao Naval Shipyard, Miaoling (formerly the British Revenge-class Warrior), Yunling The three battleships HMS (formerly Royal Oak) and HMS Laoshan (formerly French HMS Brittany) are undergoing the installation of fire control systems. Miaoling and Yunling have replaced their original 381mm main guns with onions. The Ling-class battleships have the same eight 350mm/L48 main guns. The bigger change is that the secondary guns are replaced with 10 105mm high-level dual-purpose guns and 4 twin-mounted 75mm anti-aircraft guns, and 8 four-guns are added. Mounted 40mm Bofors anti-aircraft guns, 12 twin mounted 20mm anti-aircraft guns and 20 single mounted 20mm anti-aircraft guns.
"Minister Tang, when will our new warships be assigned to the fleet?" Wei Zihao personally accompanied the Vice Admiral of the Naval Equipment Department to the Yunling for inspection. At least from the appearance, these old battleships from the European War period Now it has a new look and seems to have regained its vitality.
"Why are you in a hurry? When there is a combat mission, the General Staff will naturally arrange it." Tang Dexin looked at Wei Zihao and smiled.
"Don't be anxious, the British fleet is now arriving at your doorstep." Wei Zihao said, the British Navy's Z Fleet has actually just entered the Arabian Sea and is still far away from Malacca.
"The Strait Fleet has two aircraft ships, as well as 350 land-based combat aircraft from three wings of the Hainan Airlines, plus 286 combat aircraft from a land aviation division of the 5th Group Army stationed in the Nanyang region, and more than 800 fighter aircraft are generally used by the enemy. The fleet does not dare to approach you." Tang Dexin said, "The focus of operations planned by the General Staff is in the northwest. When allocating equipment, the General Armament Department must first ensure the needs of the northwest theater. In the next few months, the navy can obtain The number of aircraft will be limited. However, I heard good news. The Naval Command is preparing to assign the two Guangdong-class aircraft carriers that are almost completed to the Strait Fleet, and may also include a Wuyue-class battleship to serve as the Strait Fleet. flagship."
This was unexpected good news. Wei Zihao suddenly became very excited, "Have you heard any news about the Indian war?" Although he had just been promoted to admiral, his combat plan for the General Staff was definitely not as good as that of Tang who was in Beijing.
The lieutenant general is well informed.
"It probably hasn't been decided yet. Between western Burma and Imphal, which is heavily defended by the British army, there is nearly a thousand kilometers of mountainous and forested areas. The transportation is very inconvenient. The General Staff may adopt the sea route proposed by the Naval Operations Department to the British and Indian roads.
"A landing plan to launch an attack in the area." Tang Dexin said, "If a sea attack plan is adopted, the General Staff will definitely send someone to seek your opinion beforehand."
"I hope so. I'm almost going to have trouble staying in Singapore."
"You will still make mistakes?" Tang Dexin said with a smile, "Fujian Fleet Commander Sa Shijun hasn't had his turn to fire a shot yet. The operation to land in Taiwan with full confidence seems to have been cancelled. Admiral Sa is almost anxious.
Eye."
"The Taiwan operation has been cancelled?" Wei Zihao asked.
"It seems like this. The president may mean to prepare to directly attack the Japanese mainland."
This news surprised Wei Zihao. It seems that for a while, there will be no more major military operations in the entire Nanyang region.
What kind of decision will the military commission make?