The Queen Elizabeth-class battleship is definitely a battleship that ushered in an era, as the first class of fast battleships equipped with 15-inch guns, this battleship has proven its worth in previous naval battles, and it is not an exaggeration to say that it is the backbone of the Royal Navy, because their existence has allowed the Royal Navy to survive the darkest period. But even a strong presence such as the Queen Elizabeth-class battleship was in the same condition as it had been at the beginning after three major wars, the first of which was the Battle of Jutland, and in the final stage, the Queen-class battleship was attacked by the German High Seas Fleet. The second time was that Thomas hit Hipper, this time it was not bad, and the queens did not suffer much damage, but the third time, in the process of confronting the Bismarck-class super battleships, 5 queens were scarred by the attack of German 15-inch naval guns. One of them was also sunk. Even if it is repaired, all kinds of hidden diseases and dark injuries make this class of battleship not reach the initial performance at all, and the biggest impact is the speed, the slowest of the 4 queens is only 24 knots! As for the solution? There are also ...... But it's too late in a short time!

On the other hand, the three overseas collar-class fast battleships of the Chinese Navy owned by the Allies have only fought one tough battle. The damage received is not heavy, so the speed is okay, which means that it is still difficult for Thomas to catch up with the other party. And because of the large number of camouflaged raiders and submarines of the Allies in the Atlantic, it is difficult to avoid detection, and the escort warships that accompany the actions of this fast fleet can also buy time for Count Spee. So overall, it's a bit difficult to catch the other party! …。

After meeting with Thomas, Magifin did not directly discuss the question of command, but instead engaged in a precise war game on the sandbox, on the condition that Vice Admiral Spee commanded the fast fleet into the Atlantic, and then the British fleet encircled it. In the exercise, the British fleet was to depart from France after receiving information about the entry of the other side. The enemy fast fleet would then be located according to the situation of surface warships and merchant fleets, while the U.S. fleet would go to the northern mouth of the Strait of Gibraltar to monitor other Allied warships remaining in the Mediterranean. But the result of the deduction is. The opponent can easily throw off Thomas's fast fleet, even if all the fleet is equipped with radios. However, because of the distance, Thomas's fleet has a 50% probability of not receiving a distress signal, and the distance between the two sides is too far at first, so even if it is found. When I rushed over, the daylilies were also cold.

And after Magiffen joined the camouflage fleet for his opponent, the difficulty of Thomas locking on the opponent has increased to a higher level. Moreover, in the current situation, neither Thomas nor the directly subordinate fleet in the hands of Majifen dare to divide their troops, and if the anti-encirclement and suppression are only pursued and there is not enough strength to block it, the efficiency will be too low! In the end, Thomas came up with a very humble solution, that is, when the other party was about to return, he would join up with Majifen and squat directly at the western entrance of the Mediterranean Sea and wait for the other party to go back, and then use the Portuguese base as the core as a support point for the blockade. (Historically, Portugal was on the side of the Entente.) But there's a problem. Portugal could not provide a safe base for such a large fleet. France had bases that could hold an entire fleet and had shore artillery, mine arrays and mine nets, but Portugal did not! And if you build a base, I'm afraid it will take a long time ..........

Spain is currently confronting the French army on the northern front, and at the same time concentrating its forces to eliminate the remnants of the enemy in North Africa, after all, Spain wants to expand in North Africa. And if the Allied navy is based in Portugal, or after the dust settles in the war in North Africa. The Confederate forces would immediately turn their heads on Portugal. Therefore, the Entente did not intend to provoke the Central Powers until Portugal had deployed sufficient troops. At the same time, in order to prevent the other side from taking advantage of the sweep of the Portuguese coastal area, the Entente also made as little use of the Portuguese base as possible, but it did not mean that there was no reinforcement, when the Portuguese military port could accommodate the entire Allied Atlantic Fleet and could provide a certain amount of protection. Naturally, the Allied fleet would be stationed here and blockade the Strait of Gibraltar. And if Portugal can be used as a base, the Allies' attack on the transportation lines will naturally be reduced a lot. …。

But the Entente could not afford to wait, they needed to immediately deliver a fatal blow to their opponents! "From the point of view of deduction, it is very difficult for our fleet to catch Spee's fast fleet, and the opponent may be 6 warships or 7 warships. If it is 7 ships, then it means that the other side has incorporated the Longxiang into the fast fleet, and in the last engagement, your fleet suffered his loss. At this, Magiffen paused. Peeking at Thomas's expression on the other side, the muscles of the other party's face twitched obviously, looking a little hideous. However, it was soon back to normal. Obviously, the giant beast from China not only terrified the US Navy, but also left a psychological shadow on Thomas. In the second battle in the Mediterranean, it was because of the outstanding performance of this battleship that the British and French fleets were ......... sunk.

"Your country's fast fleet consists of two parts. A New Zealand ...... One Tiger, 2 Amsterdam-class battleships, and the other part 4 Queen Elizabeth-class battleships. Your Excellency once suggested that you bite your opponent with 4 faster ships and then force one or two of them to slow down, even if you have more losses. Then, with the main force of 4 Queen Elizabeth-class battleships, the slowing enemy ships will be eliminated. ”

"It's a bit like a hunt, with the hounds going up and wounding the opponent's old and weak target first, and then the hunter with the shotgun will deliver the final blow. But if the opponent is 7 warships, including one Longxiang, then this plan will be completely bankrupt, and if 4 to 6 can barely support it, then if such a first-class capital ship is added, your hounds may have died before the Queen Elizabeth-class battleship can bring the target into range. If you can't put it off, then the whole plan will not be able to proceed. Am I right? Magiffen looked at Thomas, whose face turned cloudy, and said.

Thomas proposed that the foothold of this strategy was that the four fast battleships could block the opponent's heavy artillery after some improvements. And the British battleships with artillery can at least damage the Spanish class fast battleships in the case of strong charges, the purpose of this fleet is not to defeat the opponent, but to slow down the opponent, if the opponent is 6, then with the help of superior auxiliary warships, the British 4 fast battleships will suffer, but will not be sunk. Even if 3 seriously injured ships are exchanged for 2 left behind, when the Queen Elizabeth-class battleships are in place, the two enemy ships that have fallen behind will definitely die, and the injured battleships can still be driven back to repair ......... slowly.

But if the Dragon Xiang is also inside, it will be different. The power of the 15-inch gun is too powerful. Maybe a single shell will make these crispy skins in seconds. Even if the New Zealand, which has the best defense among the 4 battleships, its ships of the same class have been destroyed by the Longxiang, coupled with the numerical advantage of 7 to 4, the ending of the 4 British fast battleships must be quite tragic, maybe the queen has not yet arrived, and his first detachment has been killed! This is the fatal flaw of this plan. Of course, the Longxiang, as the flagship of the Italian fleet, may not be involved in the battles of the fast fleet, but what if? Not afraid of 10,000, just in case. Thomas can't afford to bet!

"You are vetoing the entire plan, and even the naval strategy of the Entente countries, which is not in line with the opinion of the Supreme Military Command." Thomas said with a complicated expression. It is true that as Majifen said, as long as the other party is a little prepared, then the entire hunting plan will come to naught, 7 fast battleships under the command of an experienced commander can definitely resolve most of the crisis, after a detailed comparison of the strength of the two sides, Thomas also had to accept this desperate result, if the other party wants to run, he can't catch them! …………。

"We have to implement the above, but it is difficult to say whether we can achieve the expected goal. The commander of the fleet should have the right to make arbitrary decisions on the spot. It is true that we must set the above command as the first goal, but if we cannot achieve it, we need to settle for the second goal and choose the second goal or the third goal. With the Portuguese base not yet available, it was too difficult to achieve the first goal, so we needed to change the plan. Magiffen said calmly.

"Our task at this stage can actually be set as hindering the other side's efforts to break diplomatic relations...... With seaplane carriers and auxiliary warships, we can't catch up with our opponents, but we can keep the pressure on them at all times, keep them in a high-speed state at all times, and take out all the camouflage supply ships that supply them. You and I both know that a high-speed battleship will consume about three times as much fuel as a low-speed battleship. This will inevitably affect their endurance. That way, even if we can't wreck them. We can still reduce the blow of the Spee fleet to the sea transport lines of our army. Magiffen said seriously.

"And then? This is definitely not the whole plan, what will the main force of the Atlantic Fleet led by Your Excellency do? I always feel like you're using me and my fleet as a decoy to force them to jump into your trap. You are a master of strategy, in other words a cunning person. What are you doing this for? "For Majifen's practice of changing the battle plan without authorization. Thomas doesn't care, capable commanders have to decide what to do next, after all, those old men are far away from the battlefield! …。

"If we're lucky enough, I think we can create a new era of the Battle of Gibraltar! The other side will not dare to fight a decisive battle with us, but it doesn't matter, we can force them to fight a decisive battle with us in an extremely unfavorable situation, my first target is the main team of the Allied Mediterranean Fleet, and the second target is the slippery Spey fleet! Magiffen said.

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