The first thousand and forty-four chapters death battle
Under the clear moonlight, although the figures of the eight battleships looked a little blurry, the outlines of the bodies could still be distinguished. The sudden appearance of the eight battleships shocked the retreating German fleet, and everyone's minds were even more confused.
Full of doubts. The German Navy also knows its old rivals the British Navy very well. As for the main force of the British Navy
Ships are the focus of the German Navy and intelligence agencies. This time the British Navy has hidden five Queen Elizabeth class battleships, which has caused the German Navy enough suffering. If the British Navy also hides eight advanced battleships
As for battleships, either the British navy is too cunning, or the people in the German navy and intelligence agencies are idiots.
"General, the light cruiser Regensburg reported that the fleet in front is the U.S. Navy, and every battleship is flying the American flag!" the communications officer told Reinhardt.
Admiral Scheer reported.
"Americans? Damn it! These Americans dare to intervene in the war in Europe!" Reinhardt.
Admiral Scheer suddenly realized that these battleships belonged to the United States Navy, so everything became clear. The British Navy, which had always been arrogant and considered itself the best in the world, did not hesitate to defeat the German Navy in this naval battle.
Put down your dignity and cooperate with the US Navy, thus
This shows that they attach great importance to the German Navy. However, this is not a good thing for the German Navy. There was an interception by the U.S. Navy and a pursuit by the British Navy. The German fleet in the middle was in a worrying situation. They wanted to destroy Germany.
It would be even more difficult to bring the main force of the navy back to Germany.
Reinhardt.
Admiral Scheer frowned. Although the American fleet in front of him only had eight battleships, all of them were extremely advanced battleships. The four largest battleships were almost exactly the same as the British Navy's Queen Elizabeth-class battleships. Rhine
Hart.
Admiral Scheer knew that this was a Pennsylvania-class battleship of the U.S. Navy. However, the U.S. Navy’s
‘The Pennsylvania-class battleships actually entered service ahead of schedule. It seems that the American shipbuilding capabilities are also very strong. The other four slightly smaller battleships are imitations of the British Navy.
The Iron Duke class, the Nevada class of battleships, is also a world-class battleship. In order to cooperate with the British navy this time, the Americans seem to have spent all their capital.
"General, what should we do now?" Rear Admiral Schmidt, the commander of the First Battleship Division of the German Navy's High Seas Fleet, asked. If there was no British navy chasing behind him, the current strength of the German navy would be enough to make these Americans pay.
A heavy price. But not now
OK. Once entangled by the American fleet and caught up by the British fleet behind it, the main force of the German Navy's High Seas Fleet is likely to be lost here. This is for those who already know that this naval battle is destined to lose and want to preserve their naval strength.
For the German fleet, it was undoubtedly worse.
"How long will it take for the British fleet to catch up?" Reinhardt.
Admiral Scheer asked.
"The British fleet is catching up at a speed of 20 knots. If we are entangled by the Americans, it will only take them twenty minutes at most to join the battlefield." Rear Admiral Schmidt said worriedly. The British Navy still has twenty
With multiple battleships, if they were to attack the German Navy with the American fleet, they would have almost twice the advantage in the number of battleships.
"Damn it! Order all ships to prepare for battle! Turn left 35 degrees and head northeast! Since these Americans are looking for death, let them have a taste of our power. Let them know that the navy is not something that these upstarts can play.
!" Reinhardt.
Admiral Scheer said through gritted teeth. The U.S. fleet is standing directly in front of the German fleet. If you want to get around it, it is almost impossible. At the same time, you will be fiercely attacked by eight powerful battleships from the U.S. fleet.
Reinhardt.
Admiral Scheer hoped to engage in an exchange of fire with the American fleet after turning around, and let the American fleet know the strength of the German navy, so that they could retreat despite the difficulties. In this case, there might be a glimmer of hope.
"Yes, General!" Rear Admiral Schmidt nodded. Now the German Navy has no choice. With interception in front and pursuit behind, it can only fight hard.
The battle line composed of 19 German battleships began to turn as a whole and readjust its position. The four powerful Bavaria-class battleships were at the forefront. They would be the ones fighting against the four Pennsylvania-class battleships of the U.S. Navy.
The main force. Then came the two Königs-class battleships, the König and the Grosser Kurf. Immediately following, there were
‘Caesar,’ ‘Frederick the Great,’ and ‘King Albert,’ followed by
'Helgoland', 'Osterfriesland', 'Oldenburg', 'Rhein' and 'Bayer', and finally several Nassau class battleships
Battleships Nassau, Rhineland, Posen, Hannover and Hesse.
On the USS Pennsylvania, the flagship of the US warship, William.
After Admiral Benson noticed that the fleet began to turn, he immediately understood the intention of the German fleet. William.
While Admiral Benson ordered the fleet to prepare for battle, he ordered someone to send a telegram to the British fleet, asking them to come quickly. Otherwise, the eight battleships of the United States would not be able to withstand the dozen battleships of the German fleet.
Eight of the U.S. Expeditionary Fleet
The battleships also formed a battle line, with four Pennsylvania-class battleships in front, including the Pennsylvania, Missouri, New Jersey, Iowa, and four Nevada-class battleships.
,'Nevada,
‘Oklahoma,’ ‘Kentucky,’ ‘Illinois.
At 8:55 pm, the distance between the German fleet and the American fleet shortened to 10,000 meters, and the two sides began to exchange fire. Although the visibility on the sea was not as good as at night, under the moonlight, even if they were 10,000 meters apart, they could still
You can see a blurry shadow. Although it will affect the accuracy of the hit, it will not cause much trouble to the artillery attack.
"Boom! Boom! Boom!" The German navy first started a salvo. The four 'Bavaria-class battleships aimed at the two 'Pennsylvania-class' battleships at the front, the 'Pennsylvania' and 'Missouri'.
Behind, the 'King' and 'Electron' joined forces to deal with 'New Jersey.' 'Caesar,' 'Frederick the Great'
The King Albert teamed up to deal with the Iowa. The four Nevada-class battleships of the U.S. Navy were left to the 12 battleships behind to deal with them. Basically, three ships dealt with one. The German fleet occupied
This gave them a huge numerical advantage. However, this advantage was time-limited. Once the British fleet arrived, their advantage would disappear instantly.
The towering water column rose from the sea on the left side of the battleship Pennsylvania. Although it was the first salvo, the nearest impact point was only more than 300 meters away from the battleship Pennsylvania. This was still under the moonlight, so it was not very
The obvious reason is that if it were during the day, the German fleet's bombardment would be more accurate.
On board the battleship Pennsylvania, William.
Admiral Benson was also shocked. At least, the U.S. Navy would never be able to achieve such results. After the German Navy first started the attack command, the U.S. fleet also began to counterattack. However, their artillery level was somewhat unsatisfactory.
Fortunately, this was at night, and the level of German naval bombardment had dropped a lot. If it had been during the day, the American fleet would have been in crisis long ago.
At 8:58 p.m., the U.S. Navy's battleship Kentucky was hit by the battleship Nassau. Although the battleship Nassau's main gun was only 280 mm, it was not able to penetrate the front of the Kentucky with one shot.
The main gun was armored, but the front deck of the Kentucky was ignited with fire. This undoubtedly became the best guide under the night sky. The German Navy's bombardment level was instantly improved by one level under the guidance of the fire.
Although the captain of the battleship "Kentucky" also realized that something was wrong, he immediately ordered damage control personnel to put out the fire. But during this period, the "Kentucky" completely became a magnet for shells. Even though
‘The battleship Kentucky’s armor is relatively thick and difficult to withstand.
At 9 o'clock in the evening, the Kentucky was hit again. The Bayer and the Rhineland hit the battleship one after another. Although the Kentucky was not sunk, it set the battleship on fire.
Fire.
"Kentucky," the ship had to report to William.
Admiral Benson asked for instructions to withdraw from the battle immediately. Otherwise, it is likely to be sunk.
William.
Admiral Benson was unwilling to start a battle. Within a few minutes of commanding the U.S. fleet, a battleship was sunk, and he agreed to the evacuation of the Kentucky. Although the Kentucky evacuated, it put the remaining warships of the U.S. fleet into a more dangerous situation.
among.
Groups of orange-red flames shone in the thick muzzles, and the German Navy and the American Expeditionary Fleet fought desperately on the sea. The German Navy, which had this numerical advantage, fought very smoothly, even though the accuracy of the bombardment was reduced due to the influence of night.
A lot, but they hit the American fleet equally frequently.
At 9:02, the USS Missouri of the U.S. Fleet was hit by a bomb and caught fire. Then it was severely damaged during the siege and had to flee wildly.
Five minutes later, the battleships 'Iowa' and 'Nevada' were also severely damaged one after another, almost losing their combat effectiveness. The German Navy's losses were minimal. However, the German Navy's good luck also came to an end, and the British fleet caught up.
When they arrived at the battlefield, they appeared in the northeast and blocked the way of the German Navy. The German Navy seemed to have no other choice but to fight to the death!