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Text Chapter 292 The Last Effort

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    (Thanks to book friend Fuyun Ye 1 for the review vote!)

    At 15:20 in the afternoon, the U.S. Navy turned again. The remaining three Indiana-class battleships all accelerated eastward. At the same time, the remaining eleven cruisers with combat capabilities also moved closer to these three battleships.  10 destroyers were cruising outside.  Other damaged warships left the battlefield alone.  As for whether these warships can escape the pursuit of the Chinese navy, it depends on their own luck.  At least, when the Chinese Navy placed its main target on the US Navy's battleships, they had enough time to escape from the battlefield.

    The captain of the US Navy's second-class battleship USS Texas, which had lost power, had ordered the sea valve to be opened. More than 300 US sailors on the battleship boarded an injured US cruiser. The Chinese Navy also  No attack was launched against them.  A few minutes later, this second-class battleship of more than 6,000 tons sank into the sea.

    Although the remaining U.S. Navy still has three battleships, 11 cruisers and 10 destroyers, they have lost the courage to continue fighting.  What Mahan is thinking now is how to preserve the vitality of the US Navy to the greatest extent and bring as many US Navy soldiers back safely as possible.

    "Your Excellency Commander, the yellow-skinned monkeys are approaching again, they won't let us go like this!" Benson said.  So far, the U.S. Navy has lost 40% of its warships, and the Chinese Navy is obviously not ready to give up as soon as it is ready.

    "It will be dark in four hours. We can only pray for God's blessing to survive until dark. Then we will be able to escape in the night!" Mahan said, feeling a little bitter in his heart.  He concentrated all the elite warships of the U.S. Navy, but in the end, this was the result.  This was very difficult for him to accept.  However, before the war started, he seemed to have already expected such an outcome.

    "Damn it!" Benson cursed bitterly.  Obviously their number of battleships is twice that of the Chinese Navy's Pacific Fleet, but now, they have to suffer defeat.  This is not because they are greedy for life and fear of death, but because the performance of the warships and the quality of the soldiers on both sides are too different!  If we can return to the United States this time, we must redevelop the navy and build a fleet that can surpass the Chinese navy.  Benson thought secretly.  He knew that among the major shipyards in the United States, there were orders from the U.S. Navy.  However, it is estimated that it will take another year or two for these warships to be put into service.  Before that, they could only watch the Chinese navy show off its power in the Pacific.

    "Accept the reality, General Benson. Although we will lose this war, we will not be defeated. Next time, we will just defeat the Chinese Navy!" Mahan said.  He believes that after this naval battle, the U.S. government and people will realize the gap between the United States and China, and will inevitably increase investment in the navy.  And at that time, it was time for the U.S. Navy to rise from the ashes!  With the current industrial strength of the United States, it is not a big problem to surpass the Chinese Navy in the number of warships.  The key is the performance of the battleship and the quality of the soldiers.  These U.S. Navy soldiers who have experienced the baptism of war will all be treasures, and he needs to bring as many of them back to the United States as possible.

    "Commander, the Americans want to escape! Do we want to pursue them?" the captain of the Plateau asked with excitement.

    "Chase! Of course we have to chase. The Americans still have three battleships. They must be killed. Otherwise, they will pose a threat to us sooner or later!" Li Dingxin said.

    "Plateau" and "Qinghai" immediately pursued the U.S. Navy.  With a speed exceeding that of a U.S. Navy battleship by two knots, they were quickly able to close the distance between the two sides.  At the same time, the four heavy cruisers of the 'Chengdu class' also rushed over and lined up behind the two battleships, forming a battle line with two battleships in front and four heavy cruisers in the back.  The remaining light cruisers and destroyers guarded the surrounding area to guard against a lightning strike from the US Navy.

    "Shorten the distance between the two sides to 10,000 meters, and then attack the three battleships of the US Navy in groups. The 'Plateau' and 'Qinghai' attack the 'Indiana', and the 'Chengdu' and 'Chongqing' attack the 'Massachusetts'  ', 'Kangding' and 'Lhasa' attack 'Oregon'. Be sure to ensure that the combat distance cannot be shortened to less than six thousand meters, and at the same time, try to sink the enemy before dark!" Li Dingxin gave the order.

    The main gun of the 'Chengdu-class' heavy cruiser is two twin-mounted 280 mm 40-caliber naval guns, which also poses a strong threat to the US Navy's 'Indiana-class' battleships.  The side armor of the Indiana-class battleships ranges from 203 mm to 456 mm, the turret armor is only 128 mm, the deck is only 70 mm, and the bridge is only 255 mm.  Unless the main gun of the 'Chengdu-class' heavy cruiser hits the thickest section of the side, it will be enough to hit the '??Diana-class battleships suffered severe damage.  Of course, the biggest weakness of the 'Chengdu-class' heavy cruiser is that its own armor is not thick. If it is hit by the 330mm main gun of the 'Indiana-class' battleship, it will be disabled or killed.

    At 16:00 in the afternoon, the Chinese Navy¡¯s Pacific Fleet approached and was only 10,000 meters away from the U.S. Navy.  In an instant, two 'Plateau' class battleships and four 'Chengdu class' heavy cruisers opened fire.  Use a two-on-one approach to hit the three battleships of the U.S. Navy as much as possible.  As long as these three battleships are killed, the U.S. Navy will lose its main force.

    "Boom! Boom!" A large number of artillery shells flew towards the U.S. Navy battleship, exploding columns of water on the sea.

    "Order the fleet to counterattack!" Mahan ordered.  Although, at this distance, the U.S. Navy's main guns have no accuracy at all, if it does not fight back and allows the Chinese Navy to attack, the morale of the U.S. Navy will quickly drop, which will not be conducive to the next battle.  As for whether it can hit the Chinese Navy's warships, it only depends on God's blessing.

    "Boom! Boom!" The artillery battle was very fierce. Both sides came and went. Hundreds of kilograms of shells slammed into the other side's warship.  However, basically these shells fell into the sea, and other than killing some fish and shrimps, they achieved no other results.

    The USS Indiana, the flagship of the US Navy, which was besieged by two battleships of the Chinese Navy, is undoubtedly in the most dangerous situation.  Although after half an hour of fierce artillery battle, there was still no hit, but there were several shells less than 200 meters away from the Indiana.  Even Mahan, who was commanding the battleship, thought they were walking through a hail of bullets and could be hit at any time.

    At 16:45 in the afternoon, during a salvo fired by the "Plateau", a shell exploded 100 meters to the right of the "Indiana". The splashing water column rushed to the "Indiana" and knocked several  The American sailors rushed into the sea and disappeared immediately.  However, this is not the most important thing. The most important thing is that the "Plateau" has already formed a straddle shot in this salvo, and it is only a matter of time before it hits the "Indiana".

    "Hell! Turn left 20 degrees to shorten the combat distance between the two sides!" Mahan ordered.  At a distance of tens of thousands of meters, the U.S. Navy was completely passive and was unable to hit the Chinese Navy's warships with its own artillery fire. This was a real loss for them.

    "Boom!" A loud noise suddenly erupted. The heavy cruiser USS Lhasa, which was at the rear of the entire battle line, hit the rear deck of the US battleship USS Oregon in a salvo, destroying the USS Oregon.  The main gun at the stern of the ship reduced the Oregon's firepower by half.

    At 16:55, a salvo from the Kangding hit the bridge of the Oregon with a 280mm main gun shell.  The 255mm armor of the Oregon was penetrated instantly.  More than a dozen officers on the bridge, including the captain, were all killed, which caused the "Oregon" to lose its combat effectiveness because it lost command.  Although the chief engineer took over the command 5 minutes later, and the main gun on the bow of the ship was still firing, the fate of the "Oregon" was already doomed.

    At 17:15, two of the four 280mm main gun shells fired by the 'Kangding' hit the 'Oregon'.  One was on the port side of the Oregon. A two-meter hole was blown out near the stern and near the waterline.  The turbulent water poured into the Oregon from this large hole, causing the Oregon's speed to suddenly drop, and at the same time, the hull also tilted.  Another shell hit the main gun on the bow of the "Oregon" and completely destroyed the main gun, causing the "Oregon" to immediately lose its combat capability.  Although the Oregon's damage control personnel later blocked the gap, due to excessive water intrusion, the Oregon's speed dropped to 8 knots, and it was simply unable to keep up with the combat formation.  So much so that after the naval battle, he was captured by the Chinese Pacific Fleet.

    After the "Oregon" was severely damaged, the "Kangding" and "Lhasa" moved their firepower forward and aimed at the battleship "Massachusetts" in front.  Now, there are still two hours before dark. If you are lucky enough, it will be enough to keep the two remaining battleships of the US Navy.  However, at this time, the Chinese Navy's luck seemed to have run out.

    At 17:30, the battleship "Qinghai" was hit by a 330mm naval gun at the stern. Not only was the main gun at the stern destroyed, but the steering gear was also damaged.  The heavily damaged "Qinghai" had to withdraw from the battle and returned to Hawaii for repairs under the protection of two destroyers.

    At 17:40, the heavy cruiser "Chongqing" was severely damaged, lost most of its power, its speed dropped to 10 knots, and had to withdraw from the battle and return to Hawaii.

    PS: The fourth update is here!  Third update tomorrow, Ling???Not updated!  Please subscribe!  (To be continued. If you like this work, you are welcome to become a registered member of Piaotian Literature to recommend this work. Your support is my biggest motivation.)
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