Pearl Harbor. February 25th is the 1832nd birthday of our heavenly brother Jesus Christ.
When the red sun sets in the west and is about to disappear on the western skyline, Pearl Harbor on Oahu is already a bustling scene. Countless trucks are rushing between the warehouse and the dock. A large group of Army soldiers have long been waiting on the dock. , whenever the truck stops, it will drive up under the command of the officers to help unload the goods. Large and small packages of supplies, ammunition, fuel, tents, uniforms, flags, and all kinds of other imaginable things related to marching, fighting, and camping were all unloaded from these trucks and then neatly stacked in sections. .
The crane on the dock swung back and forth, lifting the materials unloaded from the truck one by one onto the landing ship that had long been docked at the dock. There were also some six-wheeled armored vehicles with weird shapes that looked a bit like "coffins" and rumbled over.
This kind of armored car is called the A-11 assault vehicle. As early as when the car began to appear on the streets of Beijing, Shanghai and other metropolitan cities, the Army Equipment Bureau of the Ministry of War of the Ming Dynasty gave it to major companies that were still in their infancy at the time. Oh, It should be that various small car companies have issued R&D bidding tasks and funds, requiring them to trial-produce a four-wheel drive and six-wheel vehicle with a total weight of no more than 7.5 tons. It has strong highway driving capabilities and certain off-road capabilities, is easy to maneuver, and has certain capabilities. A wheeled armored vehicle with amphibious capabilities.
These requirements may not seem high, but for the Ming Automobile Industry, which is still in its infancy, it is not easy at all. So in the 10 years of peace, when the war had actually begun, Beijing's Chitu Automobile Company came up with a six-wheeled armored vehicle that barely met the army's requirements.
After the Army Equipment Department obtained the wheeled armored vehicles they wanted, they modified them. A total of "assault artillery vehicles" equipped with 30mm machine gun shells and "assault reconnaissance vehicles" equipped with 13mm high-level dual-purpose machine guns were modified. ", "Assault mortar vehicle" equipped with 120mm mortar, "Assault command vehicle" equipped with radio station, "Assault vehicle" used to transport infantry, "Assault recovery vehicle" equipped with various emergency repair equipment and towing equipment ", "Assault Life-saving Vehicle" equipped with first aid equipment, "Assault Engineering Vehicle" equipped with engineering equipment and other eight sub-series, thus forming a six-wheeled armored vehicle family.
Like the armored vehicles in another timeline, this A-11 vehicle family is also an "ancestor clan" that must be carefully guarded... And of course the Ming Army's "Armored Vehicle Corps" equipped with a large number of "ancestors" It's the "ancestral corps". It's really much more complicated to pull them up to fight than using "self-propelled fully intelligent riflemen". Therefore, the mixed brigade prepared for Australian land operations will take at least 72 hours from receiving the order to go out to completing the shipment!
This is despite the fact that these mixed brigades have been on high alert since arriving in Hawaii!
Standing on the top of the bridge of a Nanjing-class command ship that was upgraded from the Nandao-class cruise ship and equipped with oil-fired boilers, steam turbines and high-power long-wave radio stations, looking at the Army and Marine Corps who were boarding the ship, Zhuge Weidao He and Mu Zhongjun, the two great admirals responsible for liberating the Australian indigenous people, were all flushed with excitement. Ever since they learned this morning that the main fleet of the British Royal Navy had passed through the waters of the Solomon Islands and began to move towards the Marshall Islands, these two have been in a state of confusion. In excitement.
Because they both know...this is going to be a stud!
The British fleet suffered a big loss in the waters off Guadalcanal last night. According to Guo Xiaobao's report, he took the lead last night and braved the enemy's rain of shells, including the "Kong Ming" Five cruisers and destroyers, including the "Big Light Cruiser", launched a heroic and desperate charge against the British fleet that was twice their own size. In the end, one cruiser and one destroyer were slightly damaged, with 10 people killed and 8 injured. It achieved an astonishing record of sinking 4 British armored cruisers and 3 destroyers.
Seeing Guo Xiaobao's performance, Zhuge Weidao and the new chief of staff of the Pacific Fleet Zhuge Yangyang thought that the British were going to withdraw to Port Moresby... So last night they gave Ma Xuchen a flight Zhan issued an order to enter the Papua Sea through the Java Sea, Banda Sea, Arafu Sea, and Torres Strait, and then launch air strikes from the Papua Sea to bomb Port Moresby.
But this morning, Zhuge Weidao once again received a report that the British fleet did not return, but rushed across the Solomon Sea without hesitation and began to head for the Marshall Islands.
This shows that the British have made up their mind to gamble on the fate of the country!
In the eyes of Zhuge Weidao, Zhuge Yangyang, Mu Zhongjun, and Zheng Guoxian, although the British behavior was a bit crazy, it was a very correct decision. Because their position has been exposed now, if they don't attack immediately, the main force of the Ming Dynasty's Western Fleet will rendezvous with part of the Nanyang Fleet, enter the waters north of Australia, and attack Port Moresby from the southeast (that is, Zhuge Dao made a voyage The route of the battle), and after the Ming Dynasty Pacific Fleet completes its assembly, it will press towards Australia from the north and northeast... Under attack from both sides, although the British Australian Fleet will not suffer too much in terms of total strength A big loss, but compared to the quality of surface ships, the quantity and quality of aviation, and the quantity and quality of underwater fleets, the British were at an absolute disadvantage.
Instead of waiting for failure, it is better to take advantage of the fact that the Ming Navy has not yet completed its assembly, and have an all-out stud, seeking a decisive battle with the Ming Navy's Pacific Fleet!
Although Zhuge Weidao knew that his total military strength was inferior to the British, he still would not give up the opportunity to defeat them in one fell swoop!
The reason is simple. If you defeat the main force of the British Royal Navy, you will be sure to win the battle to land in Australia! Although Britain has deployed heavy troops on land in Australia, Australia is not an industrial country and cannot support an industrialized war at all. As long as Australia's sea transportation channels are cut off, the people (indigenous) on this wild continent will soon usher in the day of liberation.
As for the losses that the Ming Navy's Pacific Fleet may suffer... they are nothing compared to the liberation of the Australian people!
Therefore, Zhuge Weidao and Mu Zhongjun immediately issued orders to various troops to implement the "Southern Plan"!
The so-called "Southern Plan" is the big plan to concentrate the navy and army to attack the southern continent.
According to the plan, the Pacific Fleet will be divided into two parts. One part is the decisive battle fleet, including the First Air Force, the Second Battleship Group, the Third Cruiser Group, the Fourth Submarine Group, etc. The other part is the landing fleet, including the fifth escort team and the sixth command and support team.
Now the first, second, third, and fourth teams have all launched their attack. Among them, the first team has changed its course and is going all out to rush back to the middle of the Pacific Ocean. The second team has been operating around the Trik Lagoon. After receiving Zhuge Weidao's order, it has already rushed to the Marshall Islands at full speed under the command of the team's admiral Li Kezhi. The third team, under the command of Guo Xiaobao, fought and retreated...to Kwajalein Atoll. They will conduct an emergency supply there, reload themselves with torpedoes, and then engage in a decisive battle with the British fleet. The mission of the fourth team is the same as that of the third team, which is to find ways to ambush the British fleet, weaken their strength, and slow down their speed.
The Fifth Escort Group is responsible for covering all landing ships and transport ships landing on the Australian mainland, so it is impossible for them to participate in the fleet decisive battle, and the boarding of the Army and Marine Corps cannot be completed quickly.
As for the Sixth Command Support Team... they will rush to the Marshall Islands under the personal leadership of Zhuge Weidao! This battle group is composed of some old ships left in Hawaii, some fast cruisers, destroyers and the latest Nanjing-class command ship.
Among them, the Nanjing class will become the flagship of the Pacific Fleet, unified command of the upcoming decisive battle at sea!
