"Boom! Boom!" Bullets flew across the sea, and the entire surface of the sea had turned into a pot of porridge. The French Navy and the US Navy fought a life-and-death battle in the western navy of Martinique. The capital ships of the two sides were divided into two battlefields, and a fierce confrontation was launched. The other cruisers and destroyers are not idle and are also fighting.

The deep roar of the naval guns and the crisp sound of the rapid-fire cannon resounded throughout the sea. Large and small water columns were continuously blasted on the sea surface, making many destroyers feel like they were traveling through a storm.

"Marshal! The 'Flores' requests to withdraw from the battle. In addition, the captain of the 'Adur' has given the order to abandon the ship." A staff officer reported to Kirkbride. It is already three o'clock in the afternoon. The naval battle between the two sides has already started for more than an hour. Both parties paid a huge price. Many capital ships of the French Navy were damaged, and the Adour was severely damaged. It was on the verge of sinking, and the captain could only order the ship to be abandoned. In addition, the "Flores" also requested to withdraw from the battlefield because both the front and rear main guns were destroyed, and the power system was also greatly damaged. [bsp;"The requests of the 'Flores' and the 'Adur' are granted." Kirkbride said with a serious face. In this naval battle, the two sides fought extremely fiercely. It can be said that it directly entered a white-hot stage from the very beginning. The French navy has a slight advantage in numbers and firepower. However, the US fleet put the main target of the first round on the "Tiger Shark" class warships, which put several "Tiger Shark" class warships of the French Navy in a very dangerous situation.

Of course, the losses of the French Navy are great, and the losses of the US Navy will not be small. Up to now, the US Navy's "Baltimore" and "Pennsylvania" have also been beaten by the French Navy and sank directly. In addition, the "Alabama", one of the four capital ships of the 8th Fleet, also withdrew from the battlefield early because of serious damage.

Throughout the battlefield, the French navy still occupies a favorable position. Whether it is a direct battle between a capital ship or a direct battle between a cruiser and a destroyer, it completely suppresses the U.S. Navy. If it continues, the final winner of the naval battle must be the French Navy.

"General, General Archibald called. He said that the fleet is under a lot of pressure and has lost two capital ships. He hopes to retreat and wait for the first and second fleets to meet before fighting!" A staff officer, quickly Reported to Aldridge.

Now, the loss of capital ships of both sides is 2 to 3, France leads by 1 ship, and the comparison of capital ships between the two sides has changed from the previous 15 to 18 to the current 12 to 16.

"No! Tell him that no one is allowed to retreat without my order. Although the French have a slight advantage, it is not irreparable. As long as we hit more accurately, this advantage can be made up. Besides, even if we cannot To defeat the French fleet, we must try our best to injure them, laying the foundation for the success of the subsequent fleet." Aldrich ordered with a stern face.

In this battle, Davis gave the order to die. Their four fleets do not ask them to defeat the French fleet, but only hope that they can sink or severely damage French warships as much as possible, so as to weaken the strength of the French navy. According to Davis' prediction, if all the previous four fleets are sunk in exchange for the sinking of more than 70% of the French Navy's warships, the U.S. Navy will be able to win the war steadily.

According to the plan of the U.S. Department of the Navy, the U.S. 1st and 2nd Fleets will arrive on the battlefield in the early morning of the 30th to clean up the mess. Just in case, the Canadian fleet following them was also strictly ordered to increase their speed and must arrive at the battlefield on the afternoon of the 31st. Coping with changes that may arise. Davis believes that in this case, the U.S. Navy is already in a position to win.

Naval battles are usually accompanied by a lot of variables. Perhaps, under the blessing of God, this round of salvo can hit the target, and it can hit the vital point of the target, thus sinking a warship of tens of thousands of tons. These are all very likely to happen. Although the probability is relatively small.

The two sides are fighting fiercely in this sea area. Desperately smashing steel at the opponent, destroying the opponent, and taking away fresh lives.

"Order all ships to concentrate their firepower on attacking the opponent's 'Tiger Shark'-class battleship!" Aldrich issued an order. The 'Tiger Shark'-class warship has powerful firepower, but compared with the 'Giant Whale'-class armor, one is in the sky and the other is underground. If the US fleet wants to turn the tide of the battle, it is undoubtedly a very good way to target the "Tiger Shark" class warships in the French fleet. Among the 16 capital ships of the French fleet, there are still 4 "Tiger Shark" class warships. It is much easier to sink these warships than those thick-skinned "Giant Whale" class warships. This is also the only way for the US fleet to narrow the gap between the two sides.

Under Aldrich's order, the remaining 12 capital ships of the US fleet all targeted the 'Tiger Shark' class warships of the French fleet. danger.

"Marshal, Marshal Hercules proposed that the remaining four 'Tiger Shark' class warships temporarily withdraw from the battle line to hunt down the opponent's cruisers and destroyers." The staff officer reported to Kirkbride.

After a little hesitation, Kirkbride agreed to Hercules' suggestion. No one knows how long this battle will last, and it is impossible to use one's own weaknesses to attack the enemy's strengths. The purpose of the US fleet to concentrate on attacking the 'Tiger Shark' class warships is already obvious. Then, letting the 'Tiger Shark' class battleship withdraw from the battle line, leaving the 'Giant Whale' class warship to fight recklessly with the opponent is also a good way. At least it is not so easy for American warships to sink the "Giant Whale" class warship.

"Order all the 'Tiger Shark' class warships to withdraw from the battle line and freely hunt and kill American cruisers and destroyers!" Kirkbride gave the order.

Under his command, the four "Tiger Shark" class warships in the two squadrons of the French fleet accelerated their turns, broke away from the battle line, and rushed towards the fiery battlefield of cruisers and destroyers. The purpose of the 'Tiger Shark' class warships was to carry out the task of penetrating and destroying the enemy at high speed. The main opponents were also cruisers, not battleships. It's just because the French Navy has always been short of battleships, so in many cases, it has to use the "Tiger Shark" class battleships as battleships. In fact, it is quite disadvantageous to do so.

In the battle between cruisers and destroyers, the French Navy has already had an absolute advantage. Originally, the number of cruisers and destroyers in the US fleet was inferior to that of the French Navy, and the quality and firepower of battleships were also slightly inferior. In addition, in order to protect the capital ship, they also left nearly 30 destroyers, which gave the French fleet an overwhelming advantage. The addition of four "Tiger Shark" class battlecruisers became the last straw that crushed the cruisers and destroyers of the US fleet.

"Damn it! They actually used capital ships to deal with cruisers and destroyers! It's so shameless!" Aldrich was very angry, and almost the entire US fleet was like this. It felt like they punched their opponent hard, but it ended up hitting an empty space.

"Well then, since we are going to fight battleships recklessly, we are not afraid of them. Order all the ships to fight off the French. As long as most of their battleships are wiped out, we will be considered victorious in this naval battle!" Aldridge With red eyes, he gave the order.

The withdrawal of the four "Tiger Shark" class warships of the French fleet completely balanced the capital ships of both sides. Even the US fleet has a slight advantage.

The first battleship squadron of the French fleet still has 7 warships, but the 'Metz' and 'Le Havre' each lack a mén 305mm main gun, and their combat effectiveness is somewhat weak. The U.S. Fleet facing them, consisting of the 3rd and 8th Fleets, has 6 capital ships and 12mén 305mm naval guns. The number of naval guns on both sides is equal.

The second battleship squadron of the French fleet. There are only 5 capital ships with 10mén 305mm naval guns, which is one less capital ship and two 305mm naval guns than the opponent. But in general, the two sides can be said to be evenly matched.

The battleships on both sides, like knights in heavy armor in the Middle Ages, held their spears flat and launched a violent impact.

Both sides continued to smash shells at each other~lightnovelpub.net~ The distance of the battle has also been shortened from the initial 10,000 meters to about 7 kilometers. At this distance, the firepower of both sides can be maximized.

"Boom!" The 'Mace' was hit by a shot at the watertight cabin, and an armor-piercing projectile fired by the 'Philadelphia' directly pierced a large hole in the watertight cabin of the 'Mace' and destroyed the 'Mace' No. power. The 'Metz', which had lost its power, had to stay on the sea surface, watching the battle line go away, and at the same time trying its best to restore the balance of the battleship. In the end, the entire battleship was flooded with hundreds of tons of sea water, floating on the sea without any combat power.

Similarly, the French fleet's counterattack was also very effective. Both the 'Chicago' and the 'Texas' were hit by consecutive main guns. The bridge of the former was hit, commanding a hunluàn. The latter was even more unlucky, being hit in the ammunition magazine, causing the ammunition to explode, directly destroying the entire battleship.

Time passed by like this. When the sun fell to the sea level, the warships of both sides had already fought very badly. In France, there are only 4 battleships left in the first battleship squadron, and only 3 battleships in the second battleship squadron, and all of them are still injured. In a short period of time, 5 warships were sunk. As for the American fleet, the loss was no less than that of the French fleet. With the addition of the two squadrons, there were only 6 capital ships left. It can be said that both sides have been completely desperate.