Chapter 1618： Recast Blockade Three

Chapter 1618 Recasting the blockade (3)

"Now that our mines have passed the test, the number of German submarines that broke through in the direction of the English Channel has been greatly reduced. At least 80% of German submarines enter the Atlantic through the North Sea. As long as we deploy enough aircraft in the Shetland Islands, we The lines of communication on the Atlantic will be much more stable. As long as we can deploy 400 to 500 various aircraft there, we can hope to reduce the frequency of German submarine attacks by at least 30%. It is very cost-effective." Sir Salmond said eagerly.

"However, this construction period may take several months, and we may not be able to get the required aircraft in a short time. Ocean patrols require large aircraft. Now, the French air force is no longer possible. We are on the Western Front and the Mediterranean battlefield at the same time. Support, the Empire is now ready to further reduce the number of production of V1500, because the production cycle of this bomber is too long. Lieutenant General Trenchard even suggested that production be stopped completely in order to produce tactical aircraft. The entire 5 wing twin engines are even Four-engine aircraft, this is too difficult." Churchill thought for a while and said.

Although the war is short and fast, some big projects still need to be done. For example, in World War I, the British deployed more than 70,000 mines in the Strait of Dover, and shipwreck obstacles. For another example, the Americans did the Manhattan Project in World War II...

Churchill quickly pondered in his mind that it seems that the construction of an airport in the Shetland Islands that can accommodate 400 to 500 twin-engine and 4-engine aircraft is relative to the anti-submarine system of hundreds of destroyers, anti-submarine ships, and thousands of auxiliary ships. It's nothing. (In history, the total number of auxiliary ships such as trawlers and sailing ships of the Allied Powers in cooperation with anti-submarine warships reached more than 4,000.)

"If it is difficult to deploy these aircraft, then I have a cheap idea. Now the Navy already has two aircraft carriers, the Hundred Eyes Giant and the Fury class. If possible, they will be incorporated into the blockade fleet and carried out by carrier-based aircraft. The investigation will surely get twice the result with half the effort." Sir Salmond said after taking a secret glance at Jericho.

"Huh?! This method seems to be good? Is it a use of existing equipment?" Churchill was a little moved, ready to ask the commander of the large fleet, Admiral Jericho.

"No, this is absolutely not possible! The two aircraft carriers of Fury and Hundred Eyes are comparable to two battleships. At a critical moment, they can reverse the situation of the battle. They should be with the large fleet." Jericho said loudly. , The firmness in the words tells everyone that he does not intend to compromise on this issue!

"Well, even taking the USS Fury as an example, the number of attack aircraft equipped on a warship is only 20. Even if they are equipped with torpedoes, the effect is not obvious when considering the interception of the German carrier aircraft. "Churchill thought for a while and said.

Although, the Wrath of this plane did not start to have a superstructure like in history, turning a good through flight deck into two sections. But after all, the British do not have any crossovers. They pay less attention to aircraft carriers than Prince Ruprecht. They still hold a skeptical attitude towards aircraft carriers, so there will not be many aircraft carriers. Take the Fury as an example. After it became an aircraft carrier, the aircraft carrier was equipped with 40 aircraft, including 16 camel fighters, 4 reconnaissance aircraft, and 20 Cuckoo MKB torpedo planes.

But even so, the officers and soldiers of the Royal Navy are still actively considering how to use this new type of warship to play a role in future naval battles. Moreover, with the efforts of the relevant personnel of the large fleet, the British have already had a general plan on how to use this aircraft carrier. Under this circumstance, Admiral Jericho naturally did not agree to hand over the two aircraft carriers to others.

"If it's just to detect and deal with submarines, ordinary seaplane carriers will be fine. We can provide 3 seaplane carriers and 12 seaplanes for the Royal Naval Air Force in the Shetland Islands." Jericho said .

"We need a real aircraft carrier. The execution efficiency of the seaplane is too poor, and the requirements for take-off and recovery of the aircraft are too harsh." Salmond said. Although seaplane carriers can also perform reconnaissance missions, their search capabilities are too limited due to the scarce amount of aircraft, and the number of available ships in the UK has been greatly reduced, and there are fewer and fewer ships that can be used to transform large seaplane carriers. , It’s not bad to give you a 5000-ton seaplane carrier, and the 5000-ton ship will perform long-term missions in the North Sea. This is not optimistic!

"If conditions permit, I think an aircraft carrier should be deployed on the North Sea Blockade." Churchill thought for a while and said. After all, he is not a professional naval officer, but from a balanced perspective, he still prefers Salmond. .

"Then at least wait until the Royal Navy has more than 4 aircraft carriers." Jericho thought for a while and said.

"Are you crazy? You still want 4 ships?" Salmond said in surprise.

"Of course not. There are two more ships under accelerated construction in our plan. One of them is modified with the hull of the Cavendish-class light cruiser, which will be completed by the end of this year, and the other one is The cruise ship modification was completed at the beginning of next year After all the plans are completed, the newly built aircraft carrier can be allocated to the North Sea Blockade.” Jericho said.

"This plan is a bit too ambitious." Churchill now wants to use his power to force Jericho to lower his head, but unfortunately, Jericho is very resolute, and even threatens to resign to force the Admiralty to make concessions. This kind of thing has happened many times in history. For example, when the British government requested the establishment of an **** system, a large number of destroyers were required. Jericho believed that this approach would greatly weaken the large fleet and refused. Therefore, this buddy was opened. .... At that time, he was the first minister of the navy. but now. Haha, the Great Fleet has no successors, so the Great Fleet cannot afford Jericho's resignation.

"I hope that Admiral Jericho can come up with sufficient reasons. Otherwise, I will forcibly allocate new warships in the name of the First Minister of the Sea. And your resignation will not be allowed." Don't choke. At the end of the meeting, Churchill, who couldn't help it, said angrily to Jericho.

"You will see a perfect plan. In the next battle, the Royal Navy will completely overwhelm the opponent with its new advantages." Jericho said calmly.

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(End of this chapter)