After all, there were women on board, and the Royal Clipper was a cruise ship with no armor. Although it was made of steel, the glass was not bulletproof. Therefore, Yang Fan decided to break through the interception of the Anzhai ship and rush out of the strait. Then let a supply ship
, two troopships and the Royal Clipper remained outside the channel.
The three cruisers went back to show these dwarfs how powerful they were. Yang Fan mobilized six cruisers this time, which was equivalent to half of the main battleships. It was just a good time to practice with them.
Yang Fan's navy, officers and soldiers have only fought against pirates and never against regular troops. It is the first time to fight against a country's naval fleet. It is not advisable to choose an opponent that is too strong. It is best to choose a weaker opponent to fight.
If you win, you will gradually find stronger opponents to fight. In this way, every victory can build up the confidence and morale of the entire army.
The most important thing for a newly formed army is to accumulate enough military spirit and morale, as well as a sense of honor among soldiers. Only with a spiritual core can such an army have a soul.
Under Yang Fan's order, three cruisers formed a triangular formation, protecting the Royal Clipper in the middle. The remaining three ships lined up and followed behind. They rushed towards the Anzha fleet at the east entrance of the strait.
After the Date Maru was discovered, all the ships began to light steam engines. In order to save fuel, the steam engines did not light fires. But once the battle started, the steam engines needed to be started.
Because combat requires seizing the upwind direction, seizing the T-head, and seizing advantageous gun positions. Therefore, maneuverability is very important. At this time, the advantages and disadvantages of sails and steam power can be seen.
A pure sailboat that relies on wind power is subject to the size and direction of the wind. You can't turn if you want to, and you can't definitely accelerate if you want to accelerate. This has many limitations of physical principles. But steam power is different.
Steam power fully realizes freedom of maneuver. How you want to maneuver depends entirely on the captain's will. Therefore, a sailboat cannot beat a steamship. You can't get around it by going in circles. As soon as the wind direction and wind force are wrong, the steamship will
Instantly bites the weak spot of the sailboat.
In the Battle of Trafalgar, Vice Admiral Nelson moved around behind the French sailing battleship flagship. He turned the Victory sideways and focused fire on the enemy's stern with broadside artillery.
The stern is filled with several floors of the most luxuriously decorated rooms and walking corridors. It is the most vulnerable place on the entire ship.
It immediately set the French flagship on fire. After the flagship was destroyed, the French army lost its unified command and the whole army was in chaos. Britain finally won the naval battle.
It is now two hours' sailing from the interception point of the local fleet. Because the fixed telescope is in the observation cabin on the top of the mast, the maximum distance that can be seen is actually very far.
Yang Fan uses a professional large-scale navigation telescope and can see a distance of more than fifteen kilometers.
It is said that this distance can be reached in less than two hours. But now we are passing through the strait, the ocean current is countercurrent, and the wind direction is wrong. So it takes longer.
The Anzha fleet was parked there and waiting, ready to attack these huge ships of unknown origin. Ever since they retreated from Korea after being defeated, they had actually been worried about the invasion of the Ming Dynasty. Such a large ship had already shocked them. No.
May not be intercepted.
Yang Fan didn't plan to drive too fast. He wanted to leave enough time for the steam engine to ignite. In this kind of encounter, according to naval regulations, fuel oil should be poured on the coal in the boiler and then ignited. In this way, the flame will quickly reach the highest temperature.
Boil the water within an hour and steam pressure begins to build.
Two hours are enough for the air pressure to reach a level that can drive the steam engine.
The Royal Clipper does not need it, because it is equipped with a diesel engine. The diesel engine starts quickly and can reach the maximum speed very quickly. In an era without steam turbines (turbines) and gas turbines, the diesel engine started and accelerated very well.
.
Therefore, even if the situation is not optimistic, there is still no problem for Yang Fan to escape on the Royal Clipper. Just be careful to keep everyone away from the glass windows to avoid being killed by the enemy's matchlock guns and small artillery. As for the hull, don't worry, the hull is six centimeters thick
Steel plates are not afraid of any guns and artillery of this era.
In modern shipbuilding, large-tonnage ships generally use 60mm steel plates for pressure-bearing hulls.
In Yang Fan's fleet, the supply ships and troop carriers all use the same hulls and steam engines as the cruisers. They just have different uses. The reason why these three ships are like this is to keep up with the cruisers. When sailing in the open sea, the entire formation must be as fast as
The endurance is the same, otherwise it will slow down the formation speed.
Yang Fan's order has been issued, and with the signalman on the main mast of the ship, the order is conveyed by semaphore. Six 1,500-ton warships immediately formed a triangular array, surrounding Yang Fan's ship, the Royal Clipper, in the middle, heading into the distance
Drive away.
The Hengshan took the lead and drove at the front, forming the sharp corner of the triangular array.
In the bottom warehouse, Boss Hu, as the chief stoker, was directing his soldiers, constantly filling the boilers with coal. The two large boilers were already burning with an overwhelming heat wave.
Boss Hu looked inside the observation port for a while with his sunglassed eyes. He turned around and yelled: "Inject more fuel oil into it. The temperature is not enough."
A seventeen-year-old sailor behind him immediately dropped the wrench, and a large stream of viscous fuel oil was sprayed into the burning furnace. There was a sudden boom, and the flames suddenly burst into flames.
The effect of fuel injection was very good, much more powerful than burning coal, and the temperature increased visibly to the naked eye. Everyone retreated again due to the heat wave.
At this time, a loud roar came from the steam group, "The air pressure is enough, prepare to start the transmission system."
As the steam valve is opened, high-pressure steam enters the pipeline. Then it enters the steam engine. The three-expansion steam engine slowly moves. The three-person-high connecting rod and crankshaft reciprocate up and down, turning faster and faster, making a chirping sound.
A chirping sound.
Woohoo! The whistles also sounded on each ship one after another. This indicated that the steam engine had started to work. Hearing this sound, Yang Fan was completely relieved.
Even with the same firepower, ships with steam engines are sure to win.
If you want to hit him, you can catch up with him, but he can't run away. When he wants to hit you, he can't catch you. So this kind of naval battle is one-sided.
In the distance, there are more than a hundred Anzhai ships densely packed, and they can be seen clearly.
The Japanese navy set up an interception formation with three clusters on the left, center and right. Each had five rows of boats. They were quietly waiting for the approach of these huge white sailing ships.
Now, the persecution of Catholics in Japan is in full swing. They look at this ship, which looks more like a Western ship, and are very worried that the Spaniards are coming to help those who have embraced foreign religions.
