Chapter 1468 Combined Fleet (3rd update, please subscribe)

In war, every country will try its best to utilize the power of its allies. This is why the Ming Dynasty was able to soar so high in the past twenty years. At that time, the Ming Dynasty was flying the flag of France and Russia, making Britain and the United States hesitant.

However, after the outbreak of the war, they did not raise the flag, but fought with real swords and guns. In this regard, the British were undoubtedly quite straightforward. Although the British had a tradition of betraying their allies, they also had a good tradition of supporting their allies - in order to defeat the common enemy, they would spare no effort. Even if it meant being with the devil, they were willing to do so.

Immediately after the declaration of war, an expeditionary force was sent to the European continent, cleanly and without delay. Although the quick battle turned into trench warfare and the two sides reached a stalemate on the German-French border, Britain still sent a large number of troops to the European continent.

Of course, such support was not free, and the allies also needed to repay Britain's efforts. At the beginning of the New Year of 1996, Britain proposed their long-planned "Combined Fleet" plan to Germany and the United States.

"It is certainly our wish to form a joint fleet, Mr. President."

In the Oval Office, Secretary of the Navy Roosevelt spoke bluntly.

"Now, through emergency repairs, we have repaired the four dreadnought-class battleships that were severely damaged in Hampton Roads. We currently have ten battleships, but in terms of strength, we are still far weaker than the Imperial Army. Now if Britain and Germany are willing to invest in the same warships, then we will have an absolute advantage over the Ming Empire. We have 30 dreadnought-class battleships, while the Ming Empire has 19. We will have an absolute advantage at sea in naval battles, but..."

After a pause, Roosevelt looked at President Cleveland and said.

"Aircraft carriers, this is a threat we must consider. According to our intelligence, the Ming Empire's aircraft carrier fleet is converted from "Shenzhou-class immigration ships". As long as the internal immigration cabins are removed, it will have a large hangar and a ready-made take-off and landing deck. In the past few months, the Imperial Navy has requisitioned all "Shenzhou-class immigration ships". Currently, they have as many as 15 aircraft carriers. In naval battles, they can release more than 600 aircraft at a time, Mr. President!"

“600!”

Cleveland couldn't help but feel his scalp tingling and said with some palpitations.

"Oh my God!"

"You know, last time, they only had three aircraft carriers and more than a hundred aircraft, but they had already achieved such brilliant results. Now...if we are intercepted by the Imperial Air Force when we go south for a decisive battle at sea, then the losses can be imagined."

"So what about our aircraft carriers?"

the Secretary of State asked.

"Haven't we already built six aircraft carriers? The Imperial Navy has aircraft carriers, and so do we."

"Our aircraft carriers are all converted from ordinary cargo ships. Compared with the high-speed immigration ships of the Imperial Navy, their speed is very slow, only 11 knots, and their tonnage is only about 15,000 tons. They can only carry 32 aircraft."

These days, everyone's aircraft carriers are similar. They are all converted from merchant ships, and the modification process is also similar. The only difference is that the chimney, deck house, etc. are removed, and a flat wooden platform is installed from the bow to the stern as a full-through flight deck. An open hangar is set up under the deck, and arresting equipment, catapults, artillery, etc. are added.

Such a transformation process is not too simple. In fact, as long as they are willing, countries can burst out a bunch of aircraft carriers at any time, of course, they are all merchant ship-grade. However, in the shipyards of Britain and the United States, there are already specially designed aircraft carriers, and the Ming Dynasty is also the same, but this takes time.

"But the British also have aircraft carriers, as do the Germans. If we concentrate all our forces, we should still be able to fight!"

Secretary of War Lamont reminded and added.

"Mr. President, if the British plan can be realized, we will have a chance to severely damage the Ming Empire Navy and force them to retreat back to the South Atlantic Ocean. In this way, we can regain control of the sea."

What was the British plan?

That is to form a joint fleet, and through a decisive battle at sea, severely damage the Ming Empire's naval fleet, thereby seizing control of the sea.

"What do you think, Theodore?"

In response to the president's question, Roosevelt thought for a moment and then spoke.

"We do have a chance, but my suggestion is that before the decisive battle, we must strengthen the air defense capabilities of the battleships as much as possible and increase the number of anti-aircraft machine guns and anti-aircraft cannons as much as possible. After all, our pilots are far behind their counterparts in the Empire in terms of technology..."

Roosevelt was undoubtedly competent as the Secretary of the Navy. Three months ago, he replaced Whitney as Secretary of the Navy because of his outstanding performance in the early war armaments and reconstruction of the navy. After becoming the Secretary of the Navy, his focus was to strengthen the fleet's air defense. In addition to aircraft carriers, anti-aircraft machine guns and anti-aircraft guns were also the focus of his work. It was even with his support that American weapons companies had successfully developed anti-aircraft guns.

However, as soon as he finished speaking, Lamont spoke excitedly.

"My God, how many more anti-aircraft guns does the Navy need? God can testify that the West needs anti-aircraft guns more now. We don't just need anti-aircraft guns to defend the sky, we also need anti-aircraft guns to protect the railways. Mr. President, if there are no anti-aircraft guns, the Pacific Railway will be like a virgin stripped of her skirt, naked, and will be ravaged by the Empire's airships!"

The reason why Lamont, the Secretary of War, was so excited was that the production of anti-aircraft guns was relatively limited, and the Navy had already used up too many of them. What about the Army? The Army also needed anti-aircraft guns. A Navy battleship needed dozens of anti-aircraft guns, but a fortress defended by the Army could have less than a dozen anti-aircraft guns. The difference was too great.

"And we are facing airships that fly at a higher altitude, but what about the navy? They are facing airplanes, Theodore. I think you can add as many machine guns as possible, machine guns, the kind with four-barreled machine guns. You know, it can completely block airplanes. It once shot down an airplane in Hampton..."

After Lamont made his well-intentioned request directly, he turned his eyes to the president and said.

"Mr. President, didn't you say, 'Everything for the West!' If the United States loses the West, what will be waiting for us? The West needs more weapons..."

(End of this chapter)