The Germans began to prepare for battle, which was a chain reaction after the British dispatched four battleships.
Of course, at this moment, it is the consensus of the alliance camp that the Mediterranean fleet and the fleet of reinforcements cannot be allowed.
There was some mist in the winter Mediterranean in the early morning. At this time, a fleet of tall battleships loomed in the fog. The Union Jack flag flying on the battleships declared that they belonged to the British Empire.
Yes, this fleet is the Mediterranean Fleet led by Admiral Cardon, and they are rushing towards the sea off Sirte at this moment.
Although fog shrouded the sea, the speed of the Mediterranean fleet did not slow down and remained at a high speed of 18 knots. (Although the maximum speed of the battleship is higher, this speed cannot be sustained forever. Generally speaking, 18 knots is what the battleship can do.
Maintained top speed
, any higher will cause continuous pressure on the power system. Moreover, the higher the top speed of a battleship, the shorter its sustainable time. For example, a battleship can guarantee a top speed of more than 20 knots for more than ten hours, but a destroyer can maintain a top speed of more than 30 knots for more than 30 hours.
The festival can only last about an hour.)
Everyone in the Mediterranean fleet was very happy about the early fog, which at least made it more difficult for annoying airships in the sky to find themselves.
"Your Excellency, Commander, we have just received a telegram from the reinforcement fleet reporting their position. They are only over 340 nautical miles away from us."
At this time, the communications officer took a telegram and reported to Admiral Cardon the location of the reinforcement fleet.
In view of the current situation and the dangers they face, the two Allied naval fleets decided to report their positions every two hours so that the other party can clearly find them.
Of course, the secret message from the sending location is also of the highest level. In the Mediterranean Fleet, only Admiral Cardon, Chief of Staff Lieutenant General Roback and the Confidential Communications Staff Officer know about it. Others cannot decipher it at all. Of course, on the reinforcement fleet, there is no way.
It can't be taller than three people.
This was to prevent the telegram from being cracked by the Italians and causing their location to be known to them.
Although it is unknown how effective this can be, it still has some effect, at least at night and in complex weather.
As for now, the officers and soldiers of the Mediterranean Fleet hope that this fog will last as long as possible.
Unfortunately, their prayers were not heard by God. At nine o'clock, the fog gradually dissipated, and the annoying airship overhead came again.
And there was more than one. In the sky above the Mediterranean Fleet, three airships followed them closely in a U-shaped formation.
Faced with this situation, the Mediterranean Fleet has no choice. The airship looks very large, and it is not far away and seems easy to fight, but the reality is very different. First of all, it is in the sky, and its speed is faster than that of the battleship.
Much faster.
It’s not like the Mediterranean fleet has never tried to lure them over and shoot them down before, but these airships are very sophisticated and only hang far away, not within five kilometers of the fleet. This is very uncomfortable.
"Now our position is completely exposed to the eyes of the Italians. This is really not good news."
Outside the command tower of the flagship Orion, Admiral Cardon put down the telescope in his hand and sighed.
"I don't know where the Italian fleet has arrived. This is really unsettling. Especially as the reinforcement formation is getting closer and closer, this kind of worry makes people unable to calm down."
Admiral Cardon certainly knew what his chief of staff was talking about. He was also worried about the Italian fleet, especially after it was reinforced by three Austro-Hungarian battleships.
"Our opponent cannot be underestimated. Just a sudden move to the sea will make us uneasy."
Admiral Cardon was definitely praised. In fact, not only him, but also the British Admiralty was full of praise for Leifer's sudden departure from Taranto with his fleet.
Maybe some people are not convinced, so what does it matter? I can do it instead.
Please tell me, when you don't know the enemy's location or movement, you can make the most uncomfortable move for the enemy based on only clues. What a terrible sense of war this is.
If it's early, Carden can coordinate the time for the reinforcement fleet to re-enter; if it's too late, he will face the Allied fleet after the two fleets have merged (if the combined fleet received news of the reinforcement fleet's appearance in Taranto, it will definitely not be able to catch up)
come).
It was just the day before the reinforcement fleet was discovered that they went to sea. Cardon and Sturdy, who were stuck, had no way to turn back. At this time, they could only bite the bullet and rendezvous quickly.
"Yes, the enemy will definitely prevent us from joining together now, but we just don't know which side the enemy is on and how far away from us."
Lieutenant General Roback's worries about the enemy are actually not far away from them.
In the waters more than 170 nautical miles northwest of the Mediterranean Fleet, one of the largest fleets in the Mediterranean is sailing rapidly.
The flags flying on the battleships indicate that they are the combined fleet that the Allied navies are currently most worried about.
"Report, the airship reconnaissance force sent news that the Mediterranean Fleet is still 170 nautical miles away from us."
"knew."
On the flagship Cavour, the communications staff reported to Leifer the news they had just received about the Mediterranean fleet.
On the side of the command tower, several staff officers quickly marked their positions on the chart. The chart also marked the positions of each formation. Of course, the most important thing was the positions of the two British and French navies, which were specially marked with red flags.
Obvious mark.
At this moment, Leifer looked at the chart, but his heart was not as calm as it seemed.
In his heart, it might be a fluke at this time. Out of prudent considerations, he let the combined fleet leave the port in advance, and then headed south into the Mediterranean to wait.
His original idea was to go to sea first so as to more conveniently support Malta or intercept the Mediterranean fleet.
As for the three French battleships, he did not think they would succeed.
Even if the opponent goes to Malta to harass, the strength of the reserve fleet can still stop the opponent.
As for reinforcing the Mediterranean fleet, he did not think that the French would do so, because if the French had this idea, they would have done it long ago. How could they wait until now.
Little did he know that the British had given him a big surprise, and that the French navy had also given up its wealth.
This time there were seven battleships, including two super-dreadnoughts, which shattered his estimate of the battlefield.
The enemy's strength has surpassed that of the combined fleet, so the enemy must be prevented from joining together.
As for the issue of choosing which fleet to intercept first, he also defied all opinions and resolutely focused on the Mediterranean fleet. On the one hand, this is the opponent's strongest formation and its main force. As long as they are defeated, the reinforcement formation will not be enough.
Therefore, the combined fleet's route direction has always been staring at the Mediterranean Fleet.
"Report, the Second Battleship Squadron is generating electricity. Each ship has been inspected and can enter combat status at any time."
"Report, the third battleship squadron is generating electricity, and its formation battleships have also been inspected and can enter combat status at any time."
"A telegram was sent from the forward reconnaissance formation. Each ship in the reconnaissance formation has completed the inspection and can enter combat status immediately."
"The cruiser formation sent a telegram..."
"The deportation formation sent a telegram..."
As the reports were compiled, Leifer also suppressed other thoughts.
"Now I order each formation to increase its speed to twenty knots, and we will meet the British Mediterranean Fleet."
Following Leifer's order, the combined fleet, which was not slow at first, increased its speed by two knots and headed towards the Mediterranean Fleet.
A great sea battle is about to take place in the Mediterranean Sea.
