While the Americans were busy preparing for war, the Spaniards were likewise not idle. The only goal of the Spanish Navy was to find enough experienced middle and junior officers to enrich the Spanish Navy and to step up the training of new warships and the formulation of combat plans, and in order to keep the two important colonies of Cuba and the Philippines, the Spanish government was also very well done, not only taking soft and hard preparations in Cuba to stabilize the regional situation, but also agreeing to let foreign naval personnel join the Spanish Navy as volunteers. Unexpectedly, the British and Germans also responded positively to this.

The purpose of the British is very simple, this country separated from Britain has become more and more restless, especially in the past 10 years, the naval construction has made the comparison of naval strength in the whole of the Americas out of balance, the rapid expansion of the United States Navy has made the British dissatisfied, and you expand the navy at the same time, and then open your teeth and claws everywhere, it will be even more unbearable! In particular, not long ago, the United States supported Japan's attempt to meddle in the affairs of the Far East, which made the British extremely unhappy, so under various factors, the British decided to use the Spaniards to beat the Americans. Something happened, and letting the little brother settle down is the boss's style, and it's the gangster who is doing the knife himself! Of course, if the opponent is too strong, this boss still has to take matters into his own hands.

The Germans, on the other hand, behaved somewhat unexpectedly, and it was said that Germany had always coveted the Spanish colonies in the Far East, and in such a situation the Germans would have preferred a lose-lose battle between the American and Spanish fleets so that Germany could benefit from it. But what I didn't expect was that the Germans were willing to help Spain against the United States, could it be that the Germans suddenly changed their sex? The Germans are transsexual. The reason for the change of nature is only known to a few people, and the naval faction represented by Tirpitz has agreed with Xu Jie's point of view: if we cannot obtain access to the Atlantic Ocean and build a fleet sufficient to threaten Britain, then all German colonies in the Far East will be floating clouds, and it is better to devote our energy to naval construction than this. Talk less, stuffy development. Until Germany had the strength to challenge the strongest sea power.

Germany does not lack industry, it does not lack capital, the only thing it lacks is practical experience. Although Xu Jie gave the Germans ideas for the development of the navy, the rigor of the Germans' nature made him have to verify what Xu Jie said! And the best aspect of verification is undoubtedly to try it in actual combat, and the conflict between the Spaniards and the Americans also gave the Germans such an opportunity, if it is said that during the Sino-Japanese War, the Germans were just spectators. Then in the upcoming Spanish-American War, the Germans don't mind getting involved themselves! And in order to be able to test the German warships, operational theory and personnel quality in real combat. The Germans not only agreed to Xu Jie to provide the Spaniards with a German version of Garibaldi, but also decided to complete the crew of almost one battleship! And among these people, there were two famous admirals in later generations, one named Scheer and the other named Sipel! And what is even more surprising is that in this Spanish-American war, Reinhardschel and his future opponent Jericho actually fought side by side!

And with a large number of British and German retired and active naval personnel joined. This fleet of British, Germans and Italians, plus a small number of Chinese instructors, is much more combat-literate than the original fleet composed of Spaniards! The Spaniards were holding on to the idea of defending their territory. Beiyang is holding the idea of containing the United States. And the British are here to beat this restless cowboy. The Germans, on the other hand, were there to put into practice a completely new naval theory. Four countries with different hearts have come together. This is also rare in the history of the navy in the world. …,

Compared with the huge size of the U.S. fleet, the Spanish expeditionary fleet has only 10 capital ships, including 2 Dante-class battleships, 3 Pisa-class armored cruisers, and 1 German version of the Garibaldi-class armored cruiser King. and 4 5000-ton class cruisers improved from the Reya class. Therefore, in the formulation of tactics, guerrilla warfare and breaking the engagement were directly taken as the main tasks in the early stage, and after the US fleet had dropped to a certain extent, a decisive battle would be waged with the US fleet. It's easy to say, but it's hard to do.

In order to ensure the implementation of the tapering tactic, the first point is to ensure the suddenness of the attack. This problem is relatively easy to solve. The Spanish fleet will not be resupplied in the Spanish possessions, but will be resupplied in the British possessions, which not only solves the supply problem, but also provides the Spanish fleet with a relatively safe anchorage. And as soon as the war officially broke out, the Spanish fleet would be divided into two parts, 4 faster cruisers would form the vanguard of the entire fleet, and 2 battleships and 4 would form the main fleet.

In the plan, the avant-garde fleet will be responsible for reconnaissance and breaking operations. In addition, it is necessary to keep in touch with the main fleet through radio equipment, and according to the estimates of Yang Yonglin and others, it is unlikely that the US imperialist transport fleet will be escorted with all the main forces at the beginning. This is a very big loss for the fleet. So it's taking advantage of the asymmetry of information. Spain could make a fortune at the first opportunity, that is, after the avant-garde fleet discovered the other side, it could decide whether to wait for the main fleet to enter the war based on the fundamental situation. Of course. It's impossible to say what kind of goods can be caught in this wave. After the attack was completed, the Spanish fleet needed to temporarily retreat in search of new fighters.

At this time, the Americans had two options, the first option was to concentrate their forces on an unwavering escort, and the second option was to temporarily abandon sea transportation and look for a decisive battle with the Spanish fleet. For the latter, the Spanish fleet was not afraid, anyway there was enough speed to get out of pursuit, and the Americans could not have left their fleet ashore all the time. But for the former, the Spaniards are not easy to deal with. 6 battleships plus more than 10 cruisers, this scale is not something that the Spanish fleet dares to touch. Therefore, how to divide the US fleet has become a central issue.

In general, the U.S. fleet can be divided into two types, one is the formation of battleships with a speed of less than 17 knots. In the face of such an Iron Tortoise fleet, the Spanish fleet should try to avoid it, especially in the early stage of the war, and only when it comes to a decisive battle, the Spanish fleet will choose to engage it. The other is a slightly faster cruiser formation. Among them, five cruisers of more than 5,000 tons and a speed of 20 knots are the most elite. In the face of such a fleet, the main Spanish fleet could only guarantee defeat but not annihilation, unless some special circumstance occurred that slowed down the American cruiser formation. Otherwise, this naval battle will turn into a chase.

In the face of these two powerful fleets that are difficult to deal with at the same time, Yang Yonglin and others made a difficulty. Neither of the 2 fleets could be easily eaten by the Spaniards. But if one of them cannot be weakened first, then the Spanish navy will inevitably be at a disadvantage in the event of a decisive battle. So after weighing it, Yang Yonglin still decided to take the large cruiser formation of the United States!

Compared to the battleship formation, which was equipped with a large number of 13- and 12-inch guns, the Spanish fleet was at least guaranteed to win against the American cruiser formation, that is, once the two sides fought. Then the Spanish fleet was already invincible. Don't worry about serious battle damage. This was not necessarily the case against battleship formations, although 13-inch heavy guns could not penetrate 8 to 10-inch hardened armor. However, under the bombardment of powerful heavy artillery, the hull armor plates will still crack, and a certain range of water will enter. Although it is not known the rate of fire of the American heavy artillery, if the other side also achieves rapid-fire, it will be quite difficult for the Spanish fleet. …,

Since they have chosen to attack the high-speed cruiser fleet, they must be cautious in the formation of the fleet, if the Spaniards come out with their elites, the Americans will definitely pat themselves on the ass and leave. If the Spanish fleet was too weak, it could weaken the already inferior fleet. And in order to slow down the American fleet, the Spanish fleet had to have enough firepower. Therefore, how to create a bait with moderate strength and weakness has become an important issue at present.

"Actually, why do we have to divide the fleet according to the performance of the battleship? How do you feel about balancing the strength of the two detachments as much as possible if we were to do a mixed formation? That's when Scheer made his point.

"Is it evenly distributed?" Yang Yonglin said to himself, balanced distribution has not been favored by the Beiyang Fleet, balance means mediocrity, which means that it cannot hit his most elite strength to hit the opponent. However, the situation is constantly changing, and it is obviously quite difficult to attack the opponent using the decoy tactic. Even if the U.S. fleet does not bring auxiliary warships, the billowing smoke of the steam warships makes the opponent find his position from afar, so before the other side is dragged or even slowed down, the intervention of the main fleet will lead to the withdrawal of the other side. Then engage, if you can defeat the opponent is best, if not. It is still possible for the main fleet to come up and knock out one or two battleships that have reduced their speed.

"The transfer of the King and the Cologne to the avant-garde fleet would allow the formation of superiority over the American fleet. The remaining 4 battleships will join the battlefield after the American cruiser formation and the avant-garde fleet have been fighting for a while, attacking the slowed down battleships. How do you feel? Yang Yonglin asked.

"It's better to have some auxiliary warships on the perimeter to be on guard. If the situation is not good, we can retreat immediately. "Sevela still put the safety of the fleet first.

"Take those three protective cruisers first, if nothing else, they will soon be slowed down under the attack of large-caliber rapid-fire guns." Jericho, on the other hand, adheres to the Royal Navy's tradition of emphasizing attack, seeking to annihilate the enemy rather than just defeat it.

"In comparison, do you think it would be more advantageous if the remaining four warships could enter the battlefield from the rear of the opposing fleet? In this way, the chances of the opponent escaping will be reduced, and at the same time, if the American battlefleet enters from the rear to support, it will be detected in advance, so that our cruiser formation will be safer. Yang Yonglin's ambition is even more than Jericho's, he gave up the tactic of passively luring the enemy, and instead adopted the tactic of active detour.

"Then what if the other side is just fighting around the escort?" Siperl's words poured on everyone's heads like a basin of cold water.

"It doesn't matter, then we'll attack the east coast of the United States, or attack the anchorage of the landing site. Sometimes enemies are more than just each other. Jericho said with a smile. It is estimated that it is difficult for the Americans to agree with the shrinking of their fleet and the loss of their homeland, right? ”

"Mr. Jericho, you're better suited to be in politics than in the military." Yang Yonglin said with a smile.

Thanks to book friend Peibin, Dongguan Bald King, ~bb~ for their monthly ticket support~~. Anyway, a new war is about to begin, so let's give more support~~~. rq