On the evening of December 31, 3637 AD, a seaplane flew to Melbourne. Pen, fun, pavilion www. biquge。 infoTwo servicemen in U.S. Navy uniforms stepped off the seaplane, one middle-aged and the other young. That middle-aged man was none other than Rear Admiral Halsey, commander of the U.S. Navy's 1st Aircraft Carrier Task Force.

Although, in the Battle of Hawaii, the fleet led by Rear Admiral Halsey failed to launch a surprise attack on the Chinese Navy, but was defeated, resulting in the sinking of its own flagship, the USS Saratoga. However, he is the only general in the U.S. Navy who has experience in fighting the Chinese Navy. Therefore, although he lost the battle, he was not punished. After the re-establishment of the U.S. Navy's Pacific Fleet, he was appointed commander of the enemy 1 aircraft carrier task force, with full command of the operation.

The U.S. Navy's Pacific Fleet's 1st Aircraft Carrier Task Force now includes two aircraft carriers, the USS Wasp under the personal command of Rear Admiral Halsey, and the USS Hornet under the command of Commodore Spruance. In addition to these two aircraft carriers, two detachments of battleships were included. Battleship Detachment 1 had four 'Montana-class' battleships, while Battleship Detachment 2 had one 'Montana-class' battleship and three 'Iowa-class' battleships.

With such strength, the 1st Aircraft Carrier Task Force undoubtedly has extremely strong combat effectiveness. Before, it would have been almost unthinkable. But now, even with so many powerful warships in his hands, Rear Admiral Halsey, as the commander, has no confidence at all. As a U.S. naval officer who has fought with the Chinese Navy, Rear Admiral Halsey knows the strength of the Chinese Navy better than any other U.S. general. He was well aware of the danger of this plan, and if it didn't work out, the entire 1st Aircraft Carrier Task Force would have to be lost here.

However, Halsey is called 'The Brute', and that's his character. Even in the face of great difficulties, he will not retreat from the difficulties, but will choose to rise to the difficulties. He believes that if the plan is good and luck is on their side, they may not have a chance to win.

In order to improve their own odds of victory, but also to ensure the safety of the fleet. On the way from the United States to Australia, Halsey had the fleet take the most remote shipping lanes to avoid detection by the Chinese navy. Even, after entering the Indian Ocean, they chose a shipping route close to Antarctica. Despite the strong winds and rough weather conditions, the whereabouts of the fleet were kept secret.

After arriving in Australia, he ordered the fleet not to dock in Australia, but to continue to stay at sea. Only those transport ships and merchant ships were allowed to dock in Melbourne. Halsey knew that in various cities in Australia, there would inevitably be Chinese intelligence officers. If you want to defeat the Chinese Navy, you must do a good job of secrecy in these aspects.

An American officer was already waiting here, and after receiving Major General Halsey and his adjutant, he immediately took them to a car waiting outside the harbor. Inside the car, Lieutenant General Christie, chief of staff of the Allied South Pacific Theater Command, was waiting inside.

"General Halsey, welcome to Australia." Lieutenant General Christie said with a smile on her face.

"Hello, Your Excellency Chief of Staff. Next, it's time for our Liang army to cooperate with each other. Major General Halsey said.

"Your Excellency the Commander is waiting for you in the barracks, so let's go over now." Lieutenant General Christie said.

Major General Halsey nodded, having no objection to this.

The car, protected by two jeeps, left the city of Melbourne and arrived at the US military barracks in the suburbs. In an office in the barracks, Admiral MacArthur, commander of the Allied South Pacific Theater, was already waiting here.

"Your Excellency, Commander, good evening." After meeting Admiral MacArthur, Major General Halsey took the initiative to salute and greet him. Although, they belong to different systems. However, Admiral MacArthur is now the commander of the theater of operations, and he is also his nominal commander.

"General Halsey, no need to be polite, please take a seat." Admiral MacArthur said with a smile.

After the two exchanged a few words, the conversation quickly got to the point.

"General Halsey, this time the redeployment of the Pacific Fleet to the South Pacific is what I requested. I know that this puts the Pacific Fleet in danger. However, the situation is too critical now. Without the support of the navy, it would be difficult for us to resist the attack of the Chinese. In the battle that just ended in northern Australia, we have already lost eight infantry divisions. Admiral MacArthur said.

Rear Admiral Halsey nodded, and the U.S. Navy was actually very dissatisfied with Admiral MacArthur's request that the Pacific Fleet repeat the Pacific Ocean at this time. Many people think that this is sending the Pacific Fleet to death. They prefer to wait until the subsequent Essex-class aircraft carriers enter service before heading to the Pacific to fight the Chinese Navy. At least then they will be much stronger. However, from Admiral MacArthur's point of view, there is no way to do it. Both the U.S. Army and Navy are U.S. military forces, and both should be prepared to sacrifice for the sake of U.S. interests. This is also their duty.

"Your Excellency, I understand this. As a member of the US Navy, after the US Navy was attacked by the Chinese, we have the obligation and responsibility to defeat the Chinese and be ashamed of the US Navy. This is also my mission to lead the fleet to the South Pacific this time. Major General Halsey said. Now that he has reached the South Pacific, what he can do is to try to defeat the Chinese navy as much as possible, so that they can survive.

"So, General Halsey, do you have a plan?" Admiral MacArthur asked.

"Your Excellency, Commander, according to the information we have received, the fleet of the Chinese Navy currently operating in Australia consists mainly of six aircraft carriers and nineteen battleships. I have to admit that they have three times as many capital ships as ours. Of course, we had a relatively large advantage in battleships. Our eight battleships are all the latest cutting-edge warships in service, which undoubtedly have a great advantage over the old warships that the Chinese have won and have been in service for twenty or thirty years. But even so, if you confront the Chinese head-on, you won't have much chance of winning. Therefore, we need an opportunity to raid the Chinese. Even if you can't defeat the Chinese Navy in one fell swoop, you have to hit them hard. In that case, we will have a much larger range of activities in the South Pacific. Major General Halsey said.

Admiral MacArthur nodded, he also knew that if he wanted to fight hard with the Chinese Navy, it would not work. The superiority of the Chinese Navy is too obvious, and if you fight hard, you are simply looking for death.

"To ensure our security, we plan to fight the Chinese Navy in the waters of the South Pacific. For example, the Tasman Sea or the southern Coral Sea. At present, the Chinese army is only operating in northern Australia. However, it is not excluded that they will soon go on the offensive like the eastern part of Australia. If the Chinese Navy continues to provide support to the Chinese Army, we will be able to take advantage of this opportunity to launch a surprise attack on the Chinese Navy. If we can sink three or four aircraft carriers and several battleships of the Chinese Navy in one fell swoop, we will be able to have a certain initiative in the next naval battle. Of course, the precondition is that the Chinese Navy will not continue to increase its forces in the waters of the South Pacific. After all, the Chinese Navy still has six to eight aircraft carriers in the country, as well as seven powerful battleships. Major General Halsey said.

If all the main forces of the Chinese Navy are concentrated in the South Pacific, the US Navy will not have the strength to confront it. The U.S. Navy can only adopt the method of sneak attack, first take out some of the warships of the Chinese Navy, find a way to narrow the gap in strength between the two sides, and then flee away immediately after succeeding, and then look for new opportunities. In this way, through naval battles again and again, the strength of the Chinese Navy is constantly consumed. As a result, the gap between the naval strength of China and the United States has been narrowing. When the US Navy's 12 'Essex-class' aircraft carriers are completed and put into service next year, the United States will have the strength to launch a strategic counterattack against China. At that time, the US Navy will switch to a full-scale counteroffensive.

"General Halsey, I don't know about naval warfare, so let's just follow your plan. However, if the navy can succeed, it will be of great help in containing the Chinese navy. At that time, the army can also take the opportunity to launch a counterattack in Australia and defeat the Chinese in one fell swoop. Our US-Australian coalition forces are now also accumulating strength, waiting for the best opportunity for a decisive battle with the Chinese. I'm sure our chances will be very good this time. As long as the Chinese can be defeated in one fell swoop, the tide of war in the whole of Australia or the South Pacific will be reversed. Admiral MacArthur said.

"Your Excellency, the Navy will do its best to defeat the Chinese. Even if the Chinese cannot be defeated, they will drag down as much of the Chinese navy as possible and create favorable conditions for His Excellency the Commander's counterattack. Major General Halsey said.

It's just that although Major General Halsey has a good plan, his ideals are always plump, but the reality is very skinny. The 1st Aircraft Carrier Task Force of the US Navy's Pacific Fleet was chased and killed by the Chinese Navy before the decisive battle between the US-Australian coalition led by MacArthur and the Chinese Army, and finally all the capital ships were killed in one fell swoop, and only a very small number of destroyers successfully escaped. It can be described as a fiasco of the annihilation of the whole army. (To be continued.) )