The fifty-knot torpedo hit the Prince of Wales's mine protection net, and then used the sharp cutting knife at the front to easily cut through the fragile protection, and hit it hard six meters below the waterline, weighing half a ton.
The mixed charge of passivated RDX and thermite was detonated instantly.
The battleships at this time did not have many mature designs in terms of preventing the explosion impact of torpedoes. In addition, during the construction of this battleship, in order to reduce the weight, the British also used a large number of welding technology, but their welding technology was different from that of China.
It is difficult for people to compare, which also resulted in the low structural strength of this cutting-edge battleship. The huge power of the explosion tore its body apart in an instant, broke its keel, and was thrown more than one meter out of the water.
As the tall Prince of Wales fell, its bow also began to tilt up at a strange angle.
The battleship was broken.
This terrible scene frightened everyone at sea.
"What's going on? The ammunition depot exploded?" Admiral Simon said with a pale face, holding up the telescope with trembling hands and looking at the rapidly sinking Prince of Wales behind him. Of course, he understood what the sinking of this battleship meant to him.
.
Until now, the commander has not realized that this was a torpedo attack, or he has realized it, but just doesn't want to believe it.
"Impossible, this is an external explosion, a torpedo, or a mine. Yes, it is most likely a mine. The Austrians released a floating mine." The captain of the London next to him said confidently. It should be said that this is a very reasonable explanation.
, after all, no one has seen the eye-catching track of the torpedo, and it is impossible for the torpedo to have such a huge power, but the mine is the most likely, and the current seawater flow direction is indeed more suitable, although it is not unlucky to hit the battleship with a floating mine.
It's a bit outrageous, but in things like naval battles, sometimes the battle is all about character.
"Order all ships to pay attention and be wary of mines on the sea surface, and also order the cruiser fleet to launch an attack." Admiral Simon accepted this explanation and immediately ordered. He always felt that the Austro-Hungarian light fleet hiding behind the four Combined Forces-class battleships was a little bit...
It makes people worry, so let’s just lure them to the battlefield.
After receiving the order, the British and French cruisers and destroyers that had been hiding in the distance immediately rushed to the left flank of the Austro-Hungarian battleship like hungry wolves. At the same time, the Austro-Hungarian cruisers and destroyers also rushed up to protect their battleships, but the four
The cruiser equipped with spear torpedo tubes did not join the battle, but changed its position and aimed at the five Guba-class battleships.
The torpedo aimed at the Queen did not hit the target. This was not too surprising. At such a long distance, it would be lucky for one of the two torpedoes to hit the target. However, the terrifying power of this torpedo really made those
The Austro-Hungarian sailors were stunned.
The next target was changed to the Lombard, the French flagship.
This time, the four cruisers launched at the same time, and moved the distance further forward, closing the distance to fifteen kilometers. This distance was already very dangerous, and even the high-pitched stray bullets from the French battleships occasionally exploded nearby, in order to ensure a hit.
Successfully, two torpedoes attacked the Guba. The other two torpedoes aimed at the Jean Bart.
The strange behavior of these four cruisers has attracted the attention of the British and French fleets. Although they do not know their intentions, if they release floating mines as speculated, their current behavior can be easily explained. The five solitary cruisers
The French class immediately allocated part of their main gun firepower to attack these small cruisers. Of course, the French, who did not have a centralized fire control system at such a distance, would have difficulty hitting them with their main guns.
"Fire!" After determining various parameters, Lin Jiasheng calmly issued the launch order amidst the loud explosion of the 305mm shell. The torpedo he had just loaded flew out again, and then the other three ships also fired torpedoes one after another.
But at this moment an accident happened. Almost immediately after the last cruiser fired a torpedo, a huge explosion sounded not far from its bow. The impact of the explosion caused the cruiser to suddenly retreat, and some sailors were even caught off guard.
Falling into the sea.
The torpedo exploded when it was ignited.
Although he had been mentally prepared, Lin Jiasheng still watched this scene with some pain. He knew that a ton of gold was gone, and according to the agreement, the torpedo that self-destructed during the launch process could not be charged. After all, the Austrians were not fools.
This accident further confirmed the suspicion of floating mines by the French on the opposite side. Although they lamented the luck of the Austrians, they breathed a sigh of relief after understanding that it was floating mines. Being able to sink a battleship with floating mines was already considered incredible.
, if it can continue to explode and sink, it will not be against the sky. It can only be said that God is wearing a pair of trousers with the Austrians, and this thing is very easy to prevent, just keep an eye on the sea. The British
Being unlucky does not mean that the French are also unlucky. The real opponent is the battleship in front.
At this time, the coalition fleet actually had the advantage. Although the coalition fleet was powerful, it was too small in number and could not move. Under the intensive bombardment of 305 shells, the four warships looked miserable from the outside, even Eugen
The Prince's waterline was penetrated at one point, the United Forces took in hundreds of tons of water, and the other two ships also had thick smoke billowing from them.
Although they also riddled their opponents with holes, and the British and French fleets had actually suffered heavy losses, after all, after closing the distance, the hit rate of those 356mm cannons soared. Among them, the British HMS Fortress even suffered heavy losses due to the attack.
There was too much water and I had to withdraw from the battle. The French ship Ocean had also caught fire. All two front main guns were destroyed and the whole body was crooked. It would not take long for me to withdraw from the battlefield. However, due to the numerical advantage, it was difficult to fight again.
The winner will definitely be the British and French forces. After all, even if they don't have these, there will still be six remaining battleships. And as the Austro-Hungarian battleships become more and more injured, those old battleships also begin to join the battlefield.
But just when the British and French allied forces had seen the dawn of victory, the nightmare suddenly came. The first torpedo hit was the Guba, and both of them were hit. After all, the hit rate will definitely increase as the distance is shortened. More importantly, the
At this time, because the Combined Force class was parked on the sea, the British and French warships attacking them had to stop as well. Although such a position was very beneficial for naval battles, it was a tragedy for torpedo defense.
Two lance torpedoes hit the bow and stern of the Guba almost simultaneously. With two huge explosions like thunder from the blue, the flagship of the French Navy's Mediterranean Fleet, together with the fleet commander on it, sank in just three minutes.
Entered the sea.
"A torpedo, it's a torpedo, an ultra-long-range torpedo. Immediately order the fleet to turn around and regain the distance." Admiral Simon on the London roared at the top of his lungs. At this time, even the dullest person should understand that it cannot be a drifting mine.
, but just as he finished speaking, he saw a flash of fire on the bow of the Jean Bart, which was turning to avoid the whirlpool of the sinking of the Guba, and then jumped upward, and then half of the bow was blown up
It flew and soon followed in the footsteps of the flagship.
The entire battlefield was reversed in this instant. Three of the nine British and French battleships were sunk, two were seriously damaged, and the remaining four were all injured. Although the four Austro-Hungarian battleships were also scarred, their combat effectiveness basically did not suffer much loss. More importantly, they still had mysterious
Ultra-long-range torpedoes, that's nothing. After seeing the four light cruisers begin to move again to find new targets, Admiral Simon ordered the entire fleet to withdraw from the battle without hesitation.
The Second Battle of the Strait of Otranto between the British and French forces ended like this, once again ending in a disastrous defeat. This was a real disastrous defeat, especially for the French. They had lost half of their capital ships in the two battles, although the slipway
There are still two ships on board that will be ready for service soon, but this kind of blow can be said to be extremely heavy on the morale of the French. Since the end of the Napoleonic era, this country has only been able to occasionally regain some of its former glory in bullying the weak.
Having never won a real war, countless French people lamented what had happened to their great republic.
The mysterious ultra-long-range torpedo of the Austro-Hungarian Navy shocked the world. Although the Austro-Hungarian official did not respond to the news of the existence of this torpedo, intelligence agents from various European countries still flocked to Austria like flies on the spot, trying to find out this kind of torpedo.
The secrets of torpedoes, of course, these are things for the future.
The victory in this battle is of great significance to Yang Feng, because at least in the short term, he no longer has to worry about his trade lines.
Because they have to use precious resources on land battlefields, the French have stopped building subsequent battleships. Therefore, at least until the end of the war, France can continue to have up to four battleships. In this way, the French are determined not to continue to give up any more battleships.
Their precious battleships took risks in the Strait of Otranto. The British must retain their main maritime power to deal with the German fleet. The sinking of the Prince of Wales has made them feel distressed. The Mediterranean was originally the work of the French, and now France
If people don’t want to do it, they naturally don’t have much enthusiasm.
And even if the Strait of Otranto is opened, they can't really stop Yang Feng from selling arms to Germany and Austria. After all, this is just one of his trade channels, and he has several such channels.
For a time, Britain and France lost the courage to attack again. Although they still controlled the sea in the Mediterranean, they could only watch the Ottoman Empire's merchant ships send ship after ship of supplies to Trieste. They could not even
Any dissatisfaction is expressed because they really can't find any reason to be dissatisfied.
In this case, lobbying Italy has become their most important task. (To be continued, please search Piaotian Literature, the novel is better and updated faster!