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Text Chapter 289: Trampling the Rookie

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    The battleships were advancing at high speed, and the fleets on both sides were approaching each other at high speed.  The gun jacket of the naval gun has long been taken off, and the ferocious huge muzzle points diagonally towards the sky, adjusting its angle due to the constant changes in distance.

    "Boom!" A loud noise sounded on the sea, and a huge splash exploded on the calm sea.  The high-speed cruiser detachment of the Chinese Navy's Pacific Fleet began to exchange fire with the cruisers of the U.S. Fleet.

    The four heavy cruisers of the Chinese Navy¡¯s Pacific Fleet all have twin 280mm main guns, which are extremely powerful.  The cruisers of the U.S. Navy are mostly small battleships of two to three thousand tons. If they are hit by a shell of this caliber, there is absolutely no chance of survival.  It's just that the distance is too far now, making it difficult to hit the target accurately.

    While the battleships from both sides continued to approach, the cruiser squadron had already begun a fierce fight.  Although the Chinese Navy's Pacific Fleet only has eight cruisers, they have to face eighteen US Navy cruisers.  With a numerical disadvantage of more than twice, the Chinese Navy's cruiser fleet has always maintained the engagement distance at more than six thousand meters. No matter how the US Navy turns, it will maintain this engagement distance that is beneficial to the Chinese Navy and gain with minimal losses.  The biggest result.

    At 12:40 noon, the distance between the battleship squadrons on both sides shortened to 12,000 meters. The current course has become due north, and it has begun to continuously deflect to the west.  The Chinese fleet must maintain a fighting distance, but the U.S. fleet must shorten the distance in order to take full advantage of their numerical advantage.  The two "Plateau-class" battleships of the Chinese Navy all maintained a speed of 17 knots. Only the second-class battleship "Iowa" and the "Texas" of the U.S. Navy could keep up with this speed. The other three  An 'Indiana-class' battleship is two knots slower, and they will be slowly pushed away.  This is very beneficial to the Chinese Navy.  They can use this time to sink or severely damage the two US Navy warships that came out first.

    At 13 o'clock, the distance between the two sides shortened to 10,000 meters. At this time, the gunnery officer on the battleship "Plateau" issued an order for shelling.  The two twin 305mm mounts on the "Plateau" were already aimed at the second-class battleship "Texas" of the US Navy.

    "Boom!" Orange-red flames flashed at the muzzle, and a shell weighing more than 300 kilograms hit the "Texas" with huge kinetic energy.

    "Firing from such a distance? Do they think they can hit it?" Lieutenant General Benson said disdainfully on the Indiana.  Obviously, he thinks this is a waste of ammunition by the Chinese navy.

    "They actually put the Texas as the first target of the bombardment. It seems that the Texas is in danger!" Mahan's face looked a little ugly.  The USS Texas is nothing more than a second-class battleship. Although it has two 305mm naval guns, its rate of fire is low and its range is far inferior to that of the Chinese Navy.  At the same time, although the armor is thick, it is old-fashioned armor, and its defensive power is far inferior to that of Chinese warships.

    "Boom!" Four shells fell into the sea more than 500 meters away from the "Texas", causing a large amount of water splash.

    "Haha! I knew they were wasting ammunition!" Lieutenant General Benson laughed.  However, Mahan's face was very serious.  There is no doubt that the Chinese Navy is preparing to use precise artillery fire to defeat the US Navy to make up for its numerical disadvantage.

    "500 meters to the left, increase the angle by two degrees!" After obtaining the bombardment data, the gunnery officer on the battleship "Plateau" issued the order.  At 13:05, the "Plateau" began its second bombardment.

    This time, the impact point of the four shells was much closer. The nearest shell was less than 200 meters away from the Texas.

    Subsequently, the "Plateau" and the "Qinghai" began a violent bombardment of the "Texas".  During this period, the fighting distance between the two sides has been reduced from 10,000 meters to 8,000 meters.  The Chinese warships began to continue turning to maintain this combat distance.

    The officers and soldiers of the U.S. Navy no longer had smiles on their faces. At first, they were still laughing at the Chinese Navy for wasting artillery shells.  However, as the impact point got closer and closer, even at 13:30, the 'Plateau' had already formed a cross-fire, which was tantamount to a fatal blow to the 'Texas'  .  The Texas was hit, and it was just a matter of time.

    "Order the Iowa and Texas to start a counterattack! If it continues any longer, morale will collapse!" Mahan said helplessly.  Compared with the Chinese Navy, the U.S. Navy is nothing more than a rookie.  It is difficult to compare with the Chinese Navy in all aspects.

    "But, at this distance, only God knows our hit rate!" Benson said hesitantly.

    ¡°Let ¡®IowaThe USS ? and USS Texas faced the Chinese battleships, and we went around them from the side.  Now the Chinese warships began to turn northwest in order to maintain a fighting distance.  Our "Indiana", "Massachusetts" and "Oregon" should turn immediately and go around from the west!  " Mahan said. In this case, even if the two battleships of the Chinese Navy cannot be attacked, it will make the Chinese Navy stop turning, which will help the US Navy shorten the combat distance.

    "Okay, Commander!" Benson nodded.  This is creating opportunities, so that the battleships of the Chinese Navy have to shorten the combat distance with the American battleships.  However, in this case, it is not an opportunity for the US Navy.  The shorter the combat distance, the higher the Chinese Navy's hit rate will be.

    "Boom!" At 13:45, a shell fired from the main gun in front of the 'Qinghai' exploded less than fifty meters away from the 'Texas'. The huge pressure caused by the explosion of the shell had a huge impact on the '  The Texas' left hull caused a powerful squeeze.  However, the "Texas"'s side armor reached 305 mm, and despite the great pressure, it still managed to hold on.

    Subsequently, the USS Iowa and USS Texas also began to counterattack.  The two twin-mounted 330mm naval guns on the 'Iowa' and the two 305mm naval guns on the 'Texas' also launched a fierce bombardment.  However, at a combat distance of 8 kilometers, their artillery level was really unflattering.  After two consecutive rounds of shelling, not a single shell fell within 500 meters of the Chinese battleship.

    At 14:00 in the afternoon, the Texas' good luck ended.  A cannonball fired from the "Plateau" accurately hit the stern of the "Texas".  The 300-kilogram shell easily penetrated the less than 50 mm armor on the rear deck of the Texas.  The shell exploded, directly cutting off a small piece of the stern of the 'Texas', and even the steering gear was knocked off, causing the 'Texas' not only to slow down, but also to turn.  Can't turn anymore.

    "Okay! Well done! Seize the opportunity, carry out three rounds of designs on the 'Texas', and then put the bombardment target on the 'Iowa'!" In the bridge of the 'Plateau', Li  Ding Xin ordered excitedly.

    "Damn it! The Texas is in danger!" Mahan cursed with a livid face.

    Soon, taking advantage of the fact that the Texas was unable to turn and its speed dropped, the Chinese Navy's Plateau and Qinghai launched three consecutive rounds of bombardment on the Texas.  During these three rounds of shelling, a total of two shells hit the "Texas", one of which hit the middle of the battleship, blowing up a chimney, causing the "Texas" to lose power rapidly.  loss.  Another shot hit the front main gun of the "Texas" and overturned the front main gun into the sea.  Such damage caused the "Texas" to lose the ability to continue fighting and had to stop.  At the same time, two U.S. Navy destroyers were protecting the USS Texas to prevent the Chinese Navy destroyers from fishing in troubled waters and attacking the USS Texas with torpedoes.

    It has only been an hour since the war began, and the Chinese navy has already severely damaged the USS Texas.  Next, the 'Plateau' and the 'Qinghai' set their main targets on the 'Iowa'.  A fierce attack was launched on the most powerful battleship in active service in the U.S. Navy.

    "Commander, the Americans are trying to outflank us!" the staff officer on the Plateau reported to Li Dingxin.

    "Order the fleet to stop turning and sail north at full speed." Li Dingxin ordered.

    "Yes, commander!" the staff officer immediately took the order.

    "Hmph! Is it that easy for you Americans to outflank me? Let me see what happened to your Iowa!" Li Dingxin said.  Although after stopping the turning, the combat distance between the Chinese battleship and the "Iowa" will be drastically reduced.  But because the USS Texas has been severely damaged, the Chinese Navy can briefly form a two-to-one advantage. If the USS Iowa can be severely damaged or even sunk during this period, the strength comparison between the two sides will be great.  Once again, fundamental changes will occur.

    "Boom! Boom!" Shells flew across the sky. The "Plateau" and the "Qinghai" launched a fierce attack on the USS "Iowa" of the US Navy, and the "Iowa" launched a fierce counterattack.

    It¡¯s just that the Chinese navy has huge advantages.  Moreover, as the combat distance shortened sharply, the accuracy of artillery fire also increased rapidly.

    At 14:20 in the afternoon, the fighting distance between the two sides had shortened to 6 kilometers. During a salvo fired by the 'Qinghai', a shell hit the port side of the 'Iowa'.

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