At a distance of 6,000 meters, the Mediterranean Fleet has a great advantage. There are more warships that can participate in bombardment than the US and Canadian fleets, and the hit rate is much higher. The U.S. and Canadian fleets were at a disadvantage.

"Turn 60 degrees to the left and keep parallel with the US and Canadian fleet." Clarence was very satisfied with the current state, so he gave the order to turn. He knew that if the fight continued in this way, the American and Canadian fleets would be dragged down by the Mediterranean Fleet sooner or later.

"Damn! Despicable French." Seeing the Mediterranean Fleet start to turn, Davis understood the opponent's intention. He also knows the gap between the two navies, and knows that it will be very detrimental to the U.S. and Canadian navies if this continues. "Turn left, increase the speed, and close the distance between the two sides." Davis ordered.

Up to now, the battle has been going on for half an hour. Under the deliberate actions of both sides, the two fleets lined up in two long queues and headed northeast, and launched fierce shelling at a distance of about 6000 meters . In the past half an hour, the United States and Canada have lost two 'Pennsylvania' class battleships, one of which was hit by the 305mm main gun of the 'Thor', and the weak armor was immediately torn apart. The battleship was blown off its keel and broke in two. And the Mediterranean Fleet. Just 1 light cruiser was badly damaged and had to withdraw from the battle.

Seeing that the US and Canadian fleets also began to turn, they wanted to approach them. On the one hand, Clarence ordered the Mediterranean Fleet to follow suit, and at the same time, he was planning to give the United States and the Mediterranean Fleet an unexpected surprise.

"Order the destroyer fleet to prepare for a lightning strike on the American fleet." Clarence put down the binoculars and ordered.

The fleet carried out Clarence's orders well. Six 'Dolphin' class warships broke away from the formation and rushed towards the US fleet. According to the plan, they will launch torpedoes at a distance of 3,000 meters from the US fleet. Each "Dolphin" class battleship carries 3 torpedo launchers, and 6 destroyers can launch 18 torpedoes at a time. And the target of the attack, they have already chosen. It was the American "South Carolina" class battleship "Jefferson" and the "New York" class battleship "Washington" rushing to the forefront.

Seeing 6 small warships suddenly appearing in the Mediterranean Fleet rushing towards his fleet, Davis was very puzzled. In his opinion, this kind of small warship has no lethality against giant ships like the 'South Carolina' class. The 300mm thick armor on the "South Carolina" class battleship is not something that the 105mm naval guns on these small battleships can use.

Despite thinking so, based on years of combat experience, Davis still intuitively believes that if these warships are allowed to approach, it will definitely pose a very serious threat to the US fleet. "Are they trying to launch a suicide attack? Yes, that's right. It must be so. The despicable French must have loaded these warships with explosives, and they want to use these cheap warships to die with our expensive warships." ’” Davis thought. Therefore, he quickly issued a combat order: "The secondary guns of the 'New York' class warships and the 'South Carolina' class are all aimed at the six warships of the French fleet, and they must be intercepted. The 'Washington' class warships circled to the main force. Next to the battleship, protect the main battleship."

Although the "New York" class warships and "South Carolina" class warships of the US fleet use secondary guns to deal with the lightning strike formation. But this level of blow is still not what the lightning strike formation can bear. Even being hit by these secondary artillery is enough for these 1,000-ton destroyers to suffer. Therefore, they had to advance amidst the artillery fire, speeding up while avoiding the falling shells.

On the way forward, the "Dolphin" class destroyer "Hai 21" was hit by a 155mm artillery shell in the engine room. The entire battleship immediately ignited a fire, and all power was lost. The fire quickly reached the ammunition depot, and the shells inside exploded immediately. The strong explosive force instantly tore the entire battleship into pieces, and none of the more than 60 sailors on the battleship survived.

The loss of 'Hai 21' did not frighten the other fleets of the Thunderbolt formation, they still rushed forward with all their strength. The U.S. and Canadian fleets were encouraged, and the shelling became more intense.

'Hai 24' arrived at the predetermined position first, without any hesitation, and after adjusting its direction slightly, it fired 3 torpedoes at its target 'Washington', 'New York' class battleship, and then quickly changed its course, Started to flee. The torpedo dragged a long water trail on the sea and rushed towards the 'Washington' class at a speed of 20 knots. Subsequently, the "Hai 22" also launched 3 torpedoes, but this time his target was the "South Carolina" class battleship "Jefferson". In the next two minutes, 'Hai 23', 'Hai 25' and 'Hai 26' also launched torpedoes respectively. Among them, the target of the "Hai 23" is the USS "Washington", and the target of the other two ships is the USS "Jefferson".

Davis didn't expect the situation to be like this. He didn't know what the long big guy with water marks on the sea was rushing towards his fleet at high speed. But he knew that it was definitely not a good thing, or the French fleet would not have taken such a big risk to launch these things to his own fleet. Therefore, while ordering the ships to evade, Davis ordered the ships to concentrate their firepower to eliminate these threats.

However, it was too late. First of all, the three torpedoes launched by the 'Hai 24' have already hit the 'Washington'. Except for one that went under the 'Washington' due to a mistake, one of the other two torpedoes hit the 'Washington'. Washington's bow, and one hit the middle of the battleship. Suddenly, a huge explosion resounded throughout the sea area. The 'Washington' was blown into three pieces and sank quickly. None of the 465 officers and soldiers on board survived.

The 'Fried Fish' class torpedo is the first torpedo developed by the French Navy Arsenal after 3 years of research. The entire torpedo has a caliber of 426 mm, a length of 1980 mm, and a weight of 523 kg, of which the warhead weighs 175 kg and is filled with high explosives. The power of one such torpedo is equivalent to that of a 305mm caliber shell, which is astonishingly powerful.

Everyone on the battlefield was stunned by this sudden change. The French Mediterranean Fleet did not expect torpedoes to be so powerful. On the other hand, the United States and Canada are terrified and pale. They were so surprised that the huge "Washington" sank like this.

Subsequently, the three torpedoes launched by the "Hai 22" all deviated from the target and did not cause any damage to the "Jefferson". However, a "Pennsylvania" class battleship became a scapegoat and was blown into the sky. But at this time, the lightning strike did not end, and there were still 9 torpedoes still sailing at high speed. The torpedo launched by the "Hai 23" did not achieve any results because the target no longer existed. But the torpedoes launched by 'Hai 25' and 'Hai 26' fiercely rushed towards the 'Jefferson'.

"Quick, stop them. Damn it, turn to the left to avoid those horrible guys." Davis gave the order, and the entire battleship was in a mess. Under the intensive firepower of the US fleet, two torpedoes were hit and exploded. There were 4 more torpedoes, two of which were dodged by the Jefferson. However, one of the other two hit the port side of the 'Jefferson'. Fortunately, the 'Jefferson' was rough and thick, and only a big hole was blown out, causing the hull to tilt to the left, and the speed of the ship was affected. Just a little bit of influence. But the target of the other torpedo is still him. If it is hit again, the situation of the "Jefferson" will be worrying. In this critical situation, a "Washington" class warship blocked the front of the "Jefferson". With a violent explosion, the 'Washington' class battleship was blown into the sky, and the crisis on the 'Jefferson' was temporarily lifted.

"This battle can't be fought!" Davis murmured. He knew that it was impossible to win today.

While the U.S. and Canadian fleets were dodging torpedoes ~lightnovelpub.net~ the combat pairings were in chaos. The Mediterranean Fleet seized this opportunity and launched a fierce attack, and immediately sent several U.S. and Canadian warships into the seabed.

The effect of the first wave of lightning strikes in the morning was greater than Clarence expected. Although one destroyer was lost, they sank one of the opponent's "New York" class warships, one "Pennsylvania" class warship and one "Washington" class warship. 'class battleship, and even the flagship 'Jefferson' was also damaged, it can be said that the results of the battle are brilliant.

Clarence, who had tasted the sweetness, then launched the second wave of lightning strikes. The effect of this wave of lightning strikes is less than that of the first wave, because the US and Canadian fleets are already prepared. At the expense of one destroyer, the second wave of lightning sank one American 'Pennsylvania' class battleship, one Canadian 'Canada' class battleship and two American 'Washington' class battleships.

Subsequently, the third wave of lightning strikes, the fourth wave of lightning strikes, and the fifth wave of lightning strikes also started immediately. Under the blow of this tactic of the French Mediterranean Fleet, the US and Canadian fleets suffered heavy losses, and the combat pairs were also in chaos. In the confrontation with the Mediterranean Fleet, it is at an absolute disadvantage.

Seeing that this disadvantage is still expanding, Davis has no choice but to give an order to retreat in order to preserve his strength.