I Became a Captain of the British Empire - I Became a Captain of the British Empire chapter 125

Pacific Fleet Battle (9)

February 26, 1931 at 6 o’clock in the morning.

The flagship of the Pacific Fleet’s Battleship Unit, ‘West Virginia’.

Admiral Luke McName, who oversees the main force of the Pacific Fleet and the battleship unit, climbed onto the half-destroyed bridge despite the staff’s dissuade.

“Admiral, go to the command tower! Damage repair is not over yet!”

“Be quiet, chief of staff! If the commander doesn’t look at the battlefield, how can he fight!”

Having hurriedly followed the chief of staff, the admiral looked around with binoculars. Then he groaned and groaned violently.

“Damn it… .”

It’s a catastrophe.

The U.S. battleship line, which had been majestically advancing until yesterday, was now smoking, leaving countless bullet marks.

Gritting his teeth, the admiral looked back and shouted.

“Tell each battleship squadron to report the damage!”

Shortly thereafter, the staff of the communications room hurriedly came up and started reporting.

“It is a battle from each flagship! The 5th Battleship Squadron, including this ship, is all in good health! The 4th Battleship Squadron, Colorado was sunk, and Maryland and West Virginia were on fire!”

Most of the battleship formations with 16-inch guns were heavily damaged by fire.

It was fortunate that, with the exception of Colorado, no ships had sunk yet.

However, many of the surviving ships were hit and were close to being unable to fight.

Even West Virginia, where Admiral McName was sitting, had its superstructure crumpled like the surface of the moon.

“The 3rd Battleship Squadron was sunk by Tennessee and Pennsylvania… California is okay.”

“The 2nd Battleship Squadron is all in good health. Nevada, Oklahoma, and Arizona can all fight!”

The 3rd Division, which was close to annihilation, and the 2nd Battleship Division, which were still intact.

The admiral found it ironic that the oldest battleships of the Pacific Fleet had survived.

Anyway, the fangs haven’t been pulled out yet. Admiral McName clenched his fists as he watched the ship approaching from across the horizon.

“Notify the flagship! Let’s fire again!”

However, as soon as he finished his words, a report came in as if he had been waiting.

“War in South Dakota! All maneuverable fleets must prepare for retreat!”

with unbelievable orders.

“… A retreat?”

Admiral McName, who opened his eyes, asked in a bewildered voice. The communication staff’s expression remained the same. The admiral swallowed dry saliva and immediately raised his voice.

“Of our battleship squadron, there are only 3 ships capable of retreating. It doesn’t mean anything if they just get out!”

bang-

The sound of kicking echoes across the bridge with the ceiling pierced. Cool clouds cast shadows.

In that ominous place, the admiral did not hide his excitement.

“On the other hand, the bombardment capability is alive with 8 ships. It hasn’t been proven that we’ve lost yet! Suggest the admiral to reconsider!”

no i couldn’t hide it

There are still 8 battles available. 8 ships!

Of course, only about half of them had engine parts, turrets, and fire control systems intact. But that didn’t matter.

A battleship is an existence that can fight until the brink of sinking if its main gun is alive.

It was blasphemy to give up the battle like this when the numbers were not so bad. Because of this, Admiral McNamee could not admit it.

“What is the current fleet speed?”

“Yes, it can still maneuver up to 14 knots.”

“Yes, the minimum conditions have been met. As long as you can form a battle line, you can fight. In a firefight, we won’t be pushed back!”

Although it may have a high accuracy rate, it is a Japanese battleship with poor shells and poor defense. There is absolutely no reason to be pushed back in a head-to-head match.

Looking at the mast protruding near the horizon, the admiral was convinced.

“Enemy fleet, distance 30,000!”

“Send an engagement request to the flagship! in a hurry!”

Like lightning, a light signal is sent towards South Dakota. A reply that comes soon after.

“Permission to engage! The entire fleet, freedom to use firearms!”

“Battleship row, all ships open fire!”

Eight sea monsters spewed fire with unhesitating instructions. Soon after, the sea was again covered with the water column.

“West Virginia, wontan! South Dakota and Indiana are equally original!”

“Maryland, the carpet is out of order! Only the rear turret can fire!”

“Enemy ships in California! Oh no… It’s wontan!”

Officers take their binoculars with nervous faces.

All the while, Admiral McName thought to himself.

‘Even now, the fleet can be saved if we gain the upper hand in the artillery battle. There’s no way the auxiliary fleet could fight such intense night battles twice.’

Therefore, the most important task right now is to destroy every single Japanese fleet on the horizon.

That alone is the only way the Pacific Fleet can survive.

However, is even that faint hope too much?

“I was narrowed down!”

Seeing the South Dakota-class ahead of him being engulfed in a column of water one after another, the admiral fell silent.

* * *

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Pacific Fleet flagship ‘South Dakota’.

“Narrow gap! It’s a close shot!”

“Admiral! Dangerous!”

thud-

On the shaking bridge, Admiral Scofield staggered helplessly. Even as the waves wet the deck, the gunfire did not stop.

With a huge column of water blocking the view, the watchman barely held on and continued his report.

“Enemy fleet! 30,000 streets!”

“We need to close the distance… Our guns can’t hit at this distance!”

“The enemy fleet is maintaining eastward course. I don’t see any sign of getting closer.”

The chief of staff lowered his head and told him. The admiral let out a sigh of relief.

“Is it an intention to knock one-sidedly at a distance… .”

The fleet, with only the mast on the distant horizon, launched a series of fireworks. Admiral Schofield swallowed dry saliva as he watched the flashing battle lines.

“Chief of Staff, we are moving the flagship from now on.”

He turned his head with a hard face.

“We must retreat.”

However, the admiral’s words were not realized due to the disaster that followed.

The battleship Nevada in the rear row was covered by Japanese naval volley fire.

Four 14-inch naval shells fell in a catastrophic fall.

Two of them detonated precisely through the deck near Nevada’s forward gun turret.

Nevada, where the ammo depot exploded in an instant.

Countless flashes of light bloomed over the holes in the deck that bloomed like flowers.

The US Navy’s first standard battleship disappeared as if it were being dragged to the seabed, leaving behind such a heavy roar.

“yes… Nevada, sunk!”

South Dakota’s dog shouted in disbelief. But this was just the beginning.

Maryland, which until now had barely maintained its combat capability despite being hit by all sorts of fire, was engulfed in countless 16-inch salvos.

Sparks ricocheted from all over the place, and steel shards flew out in all directions like flesh that had been shot.

During the short treaty period, the battleship, which was in charge of a part of the ‘Big Five’, the most powerful battleship in the US Navy, was brutally dismantled by merciless hands.

Maryland’s aft, standard battleship line.

Battleship Oklahoma was also hit by multiple 14-inch anti-falling shells and was losing speed.

thud-

“Red bullets hit!”

“my… Admiral!”

And finally, the flagship South Dakota.

The most unlucky bullet eventually hit the bridge.

A smoky bridge.

In a room where fragments that once formed part of a person were intertwined with steel, the chief of staff found the admiral covered in blood.

“in a hurry! Call the medic! medic… .”

“I am already late… Don’t call me!”

Cool.

Spitting out blood mixed with phlegm, the admiral struggled to open his eyes. Blood flowed from his torn eyebrows, staining his vision red.

“Luke… tell Luke. Lead the retreat! All the guys with feet left tell them to retreat!”

I heard the chief of staff say something, but the voice was lost in the continuous artillery fire of the combined fleet.

Feeling as if he was sinking with the Pacific Fleet, Admiral Scofield thought quietly.

Where did I go wrong?

Could it be because of his arrogance that he could destroy a fleet of savage jabs on the home ground?

Or, was it because he lacked the courageous determination to rectify the wrongs of his home country, albeit belatedly?

He didn’t know what the answer was, but in the admiral’s fading mind, it didn’t matter.

“Including this ship… A battleship that has lost maneuverability takes over the cover of the retreating fleet. Come on tell me!”

Leaving the last order as if in agony, Admiral Frank H. Scofield, commander of the Pacific Fleet, closed his eyes.

* * *

same time,

Combined Fleet flagship ‘Kei’.

“Distance of 20,000, Enemy ships start firing!”

Despite having an advantageous position, Kii’s bridge was not in a bright mood.

Because of the shocking report that just came up on the bridge.

on the verge of running out of ammunition.

No more time could be wasted with long-range firefights. For this reason, Admiral Eisuke ordered the engagement distance to be shortened to within 20,000.

As a result… .

“Owari, you’ve been narrowed down!”

A myriad of iron curtains fell on them.

Two South Dakota-class ships survived the US Navy.

A total of 24 16-inch guns were not so low compared to the number of guns of the same class remaining in the Japanese Combined Fleet.

Except for the Tosa, each of the three Kiy-class ships had one or two main gun turrets destroyed.

Therefore, the actual amount of firepower thrown is not so different.

“Tosa, narrow gap! A lot of close-up bullets! Nagato, you’ve been hit!”

In addition, Maryland, where only one main gun turret survived, fired fire at the Japanese fleet. Although it was only a close-range shot, a fairly close shot was enough to chill the opponent’s heart.

“Don’t back down! Only three battleships! Aren’t you ashamed that you can’t even deal with that!”

Although Admiral Eisuke is commanding such a command, even he felt a chill at first glance as he watched the battleships of the enemy fighting without retreating.

And something happened to drive a wedge into that fear.

“Enemy South Dakota-class second ship! 8th shot!”

Indiana’s salvo drew a straight parabola and rushed toward the stopped Owari. Owari, whose engine part had already been hit, did not have the ability to avoid the 12 bullets.Make sure to read from noble mtl dot com

Papabak-

Sparks flashing in succession.

Shattered armor plates danced across the deck, and then a roaring roar broke through the chimney.

The boiler exploded and additional fires entered the ammunition depot. A naval officer is said to have muttered, looking at a battleship caught in a series of lethal explosions.

‘The battleship was cut into seven pieces.’

It was exactly three-quarters.

In any case, everyone at the scene felt that way, including the head of the Combined Fleet at the time.

“Owari… Awesome!”

“sh*t! How long are you going to give them criminal records! Go get them!”

As things turned out, fear became the fuse of anger. Fire from the 7 surviving Japanese battleships and 3 battlecruisers was simultaneously focused on Indiana.

The Indiana’s armor was shattered and dented by dozens of large-caliber shells. Hulls that were tested to the limit of strength collapsed one after another.

After a few storms swept through, Indiana, torn to shreds, slowly slid from the top.

Maryland, rendered incapacitated, is sinking due to accelerated flooding. South Dakota was now left of the U.S. battleship line.

She was praised as the best battleship in the US Navy and the world’s strongest battleship. As if launching the end of glory, the last salvo that was launched attacked the Japanese fleet.

The 16-inch bullet, which penetrated the barbet of Mutsu’s No. 2 turret, exploded, crushing the carpet. With that, the 30,000-ton body was engulfed in a series of explosions that continued all the way to the ammunition depot.

The huge turret fired up and erupted with a roar. Mutsu’s No. 2 turret, which soared high into the sky, soon fell in a parabolic arc and sank creating a column of water much larger than a salvo of 16-inch guns.

South Dakota, which renewed its heavy kill mark, immediately turned its guns toward the leading flagship. However, right after that, the torpedo strikes of the 1st Torpedo Squadron, which had approached to a distance of 8,000 m, struck the hull one after another.

In the place where the water column had subsided, the appearance of the dwelling ship was no longer visible.

“Enemy fleet, annihilate!”

Sea of heavy oil and debris, fire smoke.

Admiral Eisuke Yamamoto, Commander-in-Chief of the Combined Fleet, looked back at the fleet with a depressed face.

Both capital ships with 16-inch guns were scuttled almost simultaneously.

The girls, who were called the pride of the combined fleet, evaporated in vain with a single blow from the dying US Navy.

And the damage wasn’t the only thing. Kii and Sagami are medium wave. Tosa and Nagato were also damaged, and Ise, Hyuga, and Yamashiro suffered significant damage.

One of the four Gonggo-class ships was sunk and three ships suffered large and small damage, respectively, and the heavy cruiser squadron is still exchanging fire with the enemy auxiliary fleet.

Neither ship was intact. The fleet staggered forward, each bearing a fatal wound.

“… It’s finally over.”

However, it can be said that once the important work is over. The enemy capital ship has been destroyed, and the auxiliary fleet is only attempting to escape under a smoke screen.

The Combined Fleet Battleship Squadron completed their duty.

With a face weighed down by fatigue, the admiral quietly left the bridge.

* * *

At the same time, 30 nautical miles west of the main force of the Combined Fleet.

Task Force Z’s flagship ‘Repulse’.

While chasing the remaining enemy fleet with the 2nd Torpedo Squadron, we stopped for a moment when we saw an enemy battleship appearing on the horizon.

“oh my god… .”

The torpedo squadrons in front of the task force slowly approached the enemy ships while dispersing on both sides.

It was approaching quickly without even evasive maneuvers, but no counterattack came.

“Battleship… Are you sinking?”

Because the enemy ship was already sinking.