Chapter 1073: The dream of a strong country is broken
Two hours after the war broke out, the Italian Navy had lost two main ships.
‘Leonardo.
Da.
Finch, the battleship and the Earl of Cafur, were sunk one after another, which left the Italian Navy with only four battleships, and they were all trapped in the siege of the Chinese Navy. The Chinese Navy made efforts to do so.
The price is that two battleships were injured, and it still did not affect the minor injuries that continued to fight.
While the main battleships of both sides were fighting fiercely, the battle between cruisers and destroyers was also very fierce. The six "jianghe-class" heavy cruisers of the Chinese Navy's Indian Ocean Fleet, led by the battle cruiser Wang Ben, were facing Italy
The navy's old-fashioned armored cruisers launched a fierce attack. Before the era of battleships, armored cruisers were the main force of naval battles. Navy of various countries believed that the firepower of armored cruisers on the side was the key to defeating the enemy. However, in the later period, the British navy began to make large-scale
The construction of the "fair-nothing battleship" was built, but the number of secondary guns of this kind of battleship was also quite large. After the Chinese Navy's "Chinese-class, battleships emerged, the large-caliber secondary guns were abolished and the large-caliber main guns were unified.
Cannons are the main weapon of battleships.
The Italian Navy's armored cruisers are old-fashioned armored cruisers that have been in service for more than ten years. Under the attack of the new heavy cruisers of the Chinese Navy, they have no power to fight back. The situation in the naval battle is completely one-sided.
The Italian Navy did not take any advantage of whether it was a battle between the main battleships or between cruisers, and it was possible to lose everything.
"General! The Chinese are so powerful. We are no match for them. Let's retreat!"
‘Andrea.
Doria, the captain of the battleship of the USS Merrio, mustered up the courage and put forward his own suggestions. Anyone with discerning eyes knows that with the remaining four battleships of the Italian Navy, there is no chance of winning. If the battle continues,
, I'm afraid there will be a danger of being wiped out.
"Retreat? Can we still retreat now? The Chinese will not let us go!" Admiral Boshini said helplessly. Now he understood that this naval battle was a complete mistake. He originally thought that
He could lead the Italian Navy to create glory and dominate the Mediterranean. But unexpectedly, what awaited him was the tragic ending of annihilation.
"General, we still have a chance. The current combat waters are only about 180 kilometers away from the Taranto Naval Base. If we retreat at a speed of 20 knots, it will only take 5 hours to return to the tower.
Lanto Naval Base, as long as we can persist there, we can fight against the Chinese Navy with the shore defense fortifications!"'Andrea.
Doria, the captain of the battleship, suggested.
Admiral Bosini hesitated. He knew that this was the last chance for the Italian Navy, although such a chance was very slim. Perhaps on the way back, the Italian Navy's main battleship would be sunk all. But if you are lucky,
If it's OK, maybe I can hold on until I return to Taranto Naval Base. This is better than continuing to fight and watching the battleships sink one by one.
"Order the fleet to turn and return to the Taranto Naval Base! Speed up to 20 knots!" After a little hesitation, General Boshini made a choice. After all, if you continue to fight, there will be no hope at all. If you retreat at high speed, you will be able to retreat at all.
, and there is still a glimmer of hope.
Under the order of Admiral Boshini, the remaining four battleships of the Italian Navy began to accelerate their steering. Dante, the slowest.
The maximum speed of the battleship Aligycheri is above 21 knots. Although sailing at a speed of 20 knots will cause great damage to the boiler and steam turbine, it should be no problem if it lasts for 5 hours.
The abnormality of the Italian Navy attracted the attention of the Chinese Navy. The battle lines of the Chinese Navy's Indian Ocean Fleet also began to turn and accelerate to ensure that the attack on the Italian Navy can continue.
"The commander seems that the Italians are afraid, want to escape, or accelerate their escape! What should we do now?" asked Lieutenant General Wu Zhiyuan, chief of staff of the Chinese Navy's Indian Ocean Fleet. After the Italian Navy accelerated, the Chinese Navy's shelling hit the target.
The rate has dropped again. Even if the Chinese Navy's battleships accelerate to 20 knots, the battleships will be very bumpy. It is very difficult to hit the target under such conditions!
"Dog dad, these Italians actually want to escape at this time!" Lieutenant General Lie Haitao cursed inwardly. Isn't this just watching the cooked ducks fly? If the Italians continue to fight, he can guarantee that Indian Ocean
The fleet will annihilate all the main forces of the Italian Navy at a very small cost. But now the Italians are retreating, which adds a lot of variables to this naval battle.
Admiral Li Haitao thought in his mind and wanted to come up with a way to deal with the current situation. No matter what, the remaining battleships of the Italian Navy cannot be dropped, otherwise, the powerful battleships will be given to the Chinese Navy in the Mediterranean.
The interests of the Indian Ocean Fleet pose a great threat. After all, the defense zone of the Indian Ocean Fleet is too large. When the main force of the Chinese Navy gathers in the Eastern Pacific, the entire Indian Ocean and the Mediterranean have to rely on the Indian Ocean Fleet to defend.
"Order the battleship of Han Ming, the battleship of the USS Ming, the battleship of the USS Qin Shihuang, the battleship of the USS Fusu, the battleship of the USS Ming, and the Prince Fusu, the battleship of the USS Ming, preparing to seize the T-head, hit the firepower and intercept the Italians. The other battleships maintained a speed of 20 knots.
, launch an attack on the main battleships of the Italian Navy!" Admiral Li Haitao ordered. 'The speed of the battleships of the Han-class battleships is as high as 26 knots, and the speed of the battleships of the Qin-class battleships is also as high as 24 knots. Accelerating the interception of the Italian Navy is not a difficult task.
Two ships down
‘The Chinese-class battleships and three battleships captive British and French naval battleships have a maximum speed of less than 22 knots. It is already very rare to be able to attack the Italian Navy at a speed of 20 knots.
Under the order of Admiral Li Haitao, the eight battleships of the Indian Ocean Fleet were divided into two parts, "Emperor Ming of Han," "Qin Shihuang," and "Prince Fusu," began to accelerate, preparing to surpass the Italian Navy's battle line, and then
Turn and cut diagonally from the Italian Navy's battle line. At this time, you can hit the firepower of three battleships to strike the Italian Navy's battle line. The other five battleships maintain the same speed as the Italian Navy.
, launch an attack on the Italian Navy. However, with a speed of up to 20 knots, if you want to hit the target, you can only rely on God's blessing.
The combat intention of the Chinese Navy's Indian Ocean Fleet was not concealed from the Italian Navy. However, the 20th day is their limit. If it continues to accelerate, it is very likely to cause damage to the boiler or steam turbine. If you want to leave, you can leave even if you want to.
No more.
At 1:36 pm, the Chinese Navy's Emperor Ming, the number, Qin Shihuang, and the number, the number, Fusu, the number, surpassed the Italian Navy's battle line and passed through the left front of the Italian Navy. Although the Italian Navy also began
He turned, but he still couldn't escape when his speed was not as fast as that of the Chinese Navy's Indian Ocean Fleet.
The three battleships of the Chinese Navy, with a total of 27 main guns, were all aimed at Andrea.
Doria, battleship.
"Boom! Boom! Boom!" As the orange-red flames shone in the muzzle, the shells roared at Andrea.
The Doria battleship, although the battleship was too bumpy, greatly affected the shooting accuracy, but the dense firepower made up for this.
The sky-summit is in Andrea.
Doria, the battleship exploded around, and the splashes almost made the entire battleship wet. This huge battleship is like a small boat on the sea under a storm, and it is possible to overturn at any time.
.
The Italian Navy's battle lines kept turning, trying to escape the cover of the Chinese fleet's artillery fire, but the Chinese fleet tightly bit the Italian fleet, making them unable to escape.
"Boom!" At 1:58 pm, a loud bang was in Andrea.
Doria, the stern of the battleship, sounded. A 305mm shell hit the stern of the battleship, and the shell easily penetrated the deck of the battleship and exploded inside. The violent explosion caused the two transmission shafts to be damaged.
That makes Andrea.
Doria, the speed of the battleship of the USS Doria suddenly decreased.
‘Andrea.
The Doria battleship uses four-axis propulsion, and the two transmission shafts are damaged, which makes the warship lose half of its speed. At this time, this means that the warship has no escape.
There is hope.
When General Boshini learned that ‘Andrea.
When Doria was damaged, her face suddenly turned pale. Once the speed slowed down, it would definitely be besieged by the Chinese Navy.
Then, ‘Andrea.
Doria, the battleship, has absolutely no chance of escaping.
"General, please transfer to the 'Kayo Duillio immediately, continue to command the battleship, and I will command the 'Andrea Doria, continue to fight!"'Andrea.
Doria, Captain of the USS Merrio, said firmly.
Admiral Boshini did not postpone it and boarded the traffic boat.
Duillio, the battleship, raised the flagship flag. However, the three battleships of the Chinese Navy let go of Andrea.
Doria, number, put his target on Kayo.
Duillio, up, until
‘Kayo.
After the Duilio was also severely damaged, he then took action against the next target. Under such a blow, none of the Italian Navy's main ships could escape. Italy's dream of a strong country was completely shattered because of this battle.