"Are they really in a dogfight?"
Zhuge Weidao was dumbfounded. Because he found that the two airships in the sky rose for a while and then dropped rapidly. It didn't look like they were in an air battle, but more like they were playing on a trampoline.
What's even more exaggerated than jumping up and down is that most of the two airships have no ability to attack each other. The larger Feilong No. 3 boat had machine guns, but the two machine guns were often misaligned with the target, and there was no chance to fire.
As for the smaller Armstrong boat, although it does not fly as fast as the Flying Dragon No. 3 boat, it is obviously more flexible. You can seize a high position while circling the Feilong 3 boat, and make turns from time to time.
However, this airship seemed to have no firepower, so it ran up and down, and after going in circles with the flying dragon boat for a while, it did not fire a single shot at the flying dragon boat. I don’t know what it’s going about?
Seeing this, Zhuge Weidao lost his patience and ordered: "Weigh the anchor, let's drive over to help the officer!"
"Yes, sir!"
...
"Bang, bang, bang, bang..."
This is the sound of the train's wheels hitting the rails. Now Zhuge Weidao has boarded the train back to Beijing - his mission on the ship is not over, but he has received a short "holiday" and can return to Beijing to wait for him. The twin children were born, and at the same time, they had to report face to face to the Prime Minister's Office and the Navy Ministry in Beijing about the battle of Ji Yin and the battle of Jueying Island. Then he had to attend an important military division meeting.
Although the Ming Dynasty and the Zhuge family had already decided on the national policy of competing for hegemony with Great Britain and treating Japan as a dog... they were still very cautious when implementing it. Zhuge Weidao's little "push" only made the Zhuge family's hegemony route take a small step forward from the previous "waiting and testing period" and entered the "small bet and less win period".
That is to say, don't play big, just play small. While avoiding the final showdown, try to eat away at the interests of the British Empire as much as possible, while cautiously but resolutely expanding the sphere of influence of the Ming Empire.
Therefore, even if the Battle of Ji Yin and the Battle of Jueying Island occurred, and the Ming Dynasty could already determine that the Japanese rebels in Nagasaki were also the enemies of the Ming Empire, the Ming Dynasty soldiers still could not kill Japan without gaining the reputation of justice. Go home... This is the policy of "no aggression, no colonization, and no forcing other countries to become vassals" passed down by King Wu Zhong!
Of course, the standard of "no aggression, no colonization, and no forcing other countries to become vassals" is very clear. You can't rob Ming Dynasty without respecting the righteousness. People don't want to be dogs, but Ming Dynasty can't take them by force, and Ming Dynasty's dogs are not casual. Anyone is qualified.
As for the big labels of hidden colonization and economic colonization, the Great Tomorrow will not recognize it at all. Not only will it not admit it, but it will not accuse others of engaging in hidden colonization or economic colonization.
Therefore, the first big thing Zhuge Weidao had to do when he returned to Beijing this time was to work out a specific strategy on how to get the honor of defeating the Nagasaki rebels.
The second major thing he wants to accomplish in Beijing is to formulate a general strategy for the Ming Dynasty's navy's air defense operations and aviation operations - he is now a recognized expert in aviation operations and air defense operations in the Ming Dynasty's military circles.
Moreover, he is also the "Air Force Division" of the Zhuge Family... Of course, this identity is only known within the Military Division.
On the train to Beijing, Zhuge Weidao spent most of the time immersed in writing. He had to publish a report and recommendations before attending the aviation operations and air defense operations meeting of the Navy Department... And this report and The proposal is also the key to obtaining budgets for air defense modifications for the naval force and for the aviation force.
Naval Aviation Admiral Guan Tianpei also returned to Beijing with him and is now sitting in a box with Zhuge Weidao. Zhuge Weidao was writing a report, and he was reading the report written by Zhuge Weidao, and the more he read, the more he frowned.
"Daozi, what is the new aircraft you propose? Is it a new type of airship? Why is it listed as a top-secret project and requires a special budget of at least 5 million silver dollars in the eighth year of Taiping?"
"Of course the new aircraft is not an airship. Airships have no future..." Zhuge Weidao wrote something in a notebook with a pen and replied, "The name of the new aircraft is airplane."
"Flying chicken?" Guan Tianpei asked, "Rooster or hen's chicken?"
"A machine's machine." Zhuge Weidao laughed, "A machine that can fly is called a plane."
"A flying machine? How to fly?"
"this......"
When Zhuge Weidao was thinking about how to explain to Guan Tianpei, Guan Tianpei discovered something new from Zhuge Weidao's report, so he asked with a smile: "Daozi, didn't you say that airships have no future? Why did you propose the development of transportation?" Plans for airships, bombing airships, reconnaissance airships, and combat airships? Oh, and also developing airship carriers... Isn’t that very thoughtful?”
"Admiral, this is for the British!" Zhuge Weidao explained with a smile, "The airship has no future, so it is best for the enemy to develop... If there is only one kind of airship, it may cost The British don't have much money, so they first develop four major categories, and each major category is divided into two sub-categories: ship-shore-based and ship-based. In this way, the British need to develop at least eight types of airships, and also need to develop and build a Planting an airship mothership... With so many projects added together, tens of millions of pounds may be wasted. And if the British spend more on airships, they will naturally spend more on surface ships, underwater ships and aircraft. Reduce investment.
In fact, we also need to mislead the British in the development direction of surface ships, so that they regard speed as the ultimate performance indicator of surface ships, thereby reducing investment in armor and firepower. "
In terms of speed, armor, and firepower, it is best for a battleship to be strong and balanced, run fast, be durable, and have strong firepower... That is of course the most ideal! But this kind of ship costs too much and the technical requirements are too high. Not to mention Great Britain, even Daming would have a hard time fixing it. And when the speed, armor, and firepower of the battleship are all improved, it is time to be eliminated. Instead of wasting money on building battle cruisers, wouldn't it be nice to build a few more aircraft carriers?
Therefore, a truly excellent battleship should not pursue comprehensive capabilities, but must make trade-offs in the three aspects of armor, firepower, and speed. In Zhuge Weidao's view, speed can be discarded!
Because high-speed battleships often require high-power power systems, large heavy oil boilers and steam turbines, and large oil depots. These will occupy the limited tonnage, thus sacrificing firepower and armor. It is easy to build a battlecruiser or fast battleship with mediocre firepower and thin armor... Moreover, the tonnage of such ships is usually very large, and the cost is also high. Extremely high.
In comparison, the combat effectiveness of those slow ships with thick skin and thick guns is actually very guaranteed, and they are much cheaper. If the same cost is used to build battle cruisers or fast battleships, the number will be much less... ....
...
Japan, Nagasaki.
At the same time, George Eryu was recording carefully in a Japanese-style castle on the outskirts of Nagasaki while listening to the report of Japan's air combat ace Saigo Yoshihei Takamori.
It turned out that during the air battle on Jueying Island that day, the airship aboard Saigo Yoshibei Takamori was not shot down by Guan Tianpei's airship. Instead, it used its low-altitude maneuverability and relatively flexible lifting and lowering features to launch a collision with Guan Tianpei's airship. , although there was no collision, Xixiang still seized the opportunity to throw a shot at Guan Tianpei's airship... It is said that it hit the target!
If the Ming Navy's Lushun hadn't arrived to support the Flying Dragon No. 3 airship, Xixiang would have been confident to shoot it down with a flying knife!
The weapon used in the world's first air battle was actually a knife, and airships could also cooperate with surface ships. By the way, the Indomitable was sunk by the coordinated operations of the Ming Navy and airships... This is really What a valuable experience!
