On March 10, 1929, at the dock of the Mississippi River port area in New Orleans, USA, hundreds of people rushed to see the main warships of the United States Navy. Pen, fun, pavilion www. biquge。 The two behemoths that sailed into the harbor were the flagship of the 3rd Battleship Detachment of the US Atlantic Fleet, the USS Mississippi, and the sister ship of the same class, the USS Ioda, which belonged to the New Mexico-class battleships built and commissioned in the late 10s, and were called the strongest battleships of that era along with the Bavaria-class of Germany, the Queen Elizabeth-class of the United Kingdom, and the Ise-class of Japan. Among these steel giants that dominate the seas, the New Mexico class is not known for its gun caliber and sailing speed, but has a defense capability that is second to none - the quality of American armor steel is basically not inferior to the quality of the same type of German products, and the New Mexico class has an 18-inch thick turret front, a 16-inch rear conning tower, and a 13.5-inch thick broadside waterline are all super-first-class designs, not only completely destroying the British Navy's Queen Elizabeth and the Japanese Ise, but also slightly better than the German Bavaria. As a result, it has been nicknamed "Big Turtle" in the international naval field.

After the German occupation of the Azores, the main forces of the US Navy were concentrated on the east coast for a long time, and the arrival of two New Mexico-class battleships and a number of wingmen was a topic of heated discussion. New Orleans is not a major U.S. Navy base, but because it is located on the northern shore of the Gulf of Mexico, it has a small patrol fleet stationed all year round. After the outbreak of the Christian War in Mexico, the fleet was busy, and it is said that in late 1928 the capture of a German cargo ship carrying contraband in the western Gulf of Mexico led to a bitter diplomatic dispute that was kept secret by the German and American governments, adding to the strange atmosphere.

In these turbulent and turbulent times, how could the bustling crowd at the docks of New Orleans be without the indifferent gaze of foreign spies? In the early 20s, German naval intelligence set up a small spy station here to monitor and listen to the US Navy's military movements in the Gulf of Mexico. However, the rigid Germans do not seem to be born to be spies, and specialized intelligence training does not help to change this situation, so the Germans' intelligence activities in the United States have not been very successful, and most spy stations have either been terminated by the US counterintelligence services just after they were established, or they have spent a lot of time and money without really gaining a foothold, and in the case of New Orleans, it is clear that the latter category is the case, and the spies who are lurking there do little but provide accurate weather information. Fortunately, this opportunity was directly under their noses, and the huge target appeared in the public eye in broad daylight, and the German spies were able to calmly take pictures, develop them, judge their ship type against the ship's data, and then send the information back home by coded telegram.

Since the Azores crisis, German naval intelligence in Wilhelmshaven has taken intelligence from the United States very seriously, and they quickly presented information on the arrival of two Mexican-class battleships in New Orleans to the navy's top brass, and then shared it with the Irish and Spanish navies as instructed by their superiors.

By the time Colonel Kingthera, Chief of Staff of the Irish Navy and a native officer, delivered this information to the King's office, it had only been a day since the two New Mexico-class battleships arrived in New Orleans.

Without waiting for the other party to express his judgment, Natsuki said lightly: "Their target is most likely Lapska Fortress!" ”

The 39-year-old is from a Gaelic aristocratic background, like O'Grady, who had previously served as secretary of state and now a cabinet minister, and was one of the best of the new generation of officers in the Irish Army. Irish military assistance to the MRA is handled by a three-member committee, of which Kincera is the naval representative, whose main task was to transport personnel and supplies, but now has the added task of assisting the MRA in defending itself against attacks from the water.

"Yes, Your Majesty, their main guns have a very long range, they only need to be close to the coast to attack the Lapska Fortress, and they have the ability to catapult water reconnaissance aircraft, capable of air calibration of long-range artillery strikes. The longest-range artillery of the Lapska Fortress was Krupp's 150-mm heavy cannon with a maximum range of 23 km, just enough to hit the sea. ”

With the strength of the Mexican Archelam Army, it was impossible to construct such a strong fortification as the Lapsca Fortress, which was designed by the Irish army, and the main materials and most of the artillery were provided by the Irish. The reason why Lapsca was chosen to build the fortress was mainly to take into account the people's base and shipping conditions of the place, and the designers did not consider the possibility of the US Navy interfering in Mexico's internal affairs, but had deeper considerations.

Natsuki asked unhurriedly: "How many torpedo machines are there that can be put into service now?" ”

Colonel Kinesera replied: "According to Colonel Devoss's report on the 26th of last month, a total of 11 aircraft arrived in Lapska, 7 of which have been assembled, of which 3 are our 'Swordfish', while there are 12 aircraft torpedoes of MKIII type and 6 pieces of MKV type. At present, Mexican pilots are not capable of actual combat, while we have 6 volunteer pilots, 4 Spanish volunteer pilots, and 2 German volunteer pilots. ”

Natsuki leaned back on the seat and crossed his hands: "3 seems to be a little less." ”

Colonel Kinsera explained: "With the United States and Mexico blocking the shipping routes, we are no longer able to send any personnel and equipment directly to Lapska, and all cargo needs to be disembarked from other ports and transported to Lapska by land, which is much more difficult and costly." 3 Swordfish is a little less, better than none. ”

Natsuki nodded, acknowledging his last words. "Swordfish" is the main torpedo aircraft in service in the Irish Navy, divided into two types of land-based and carrier-based, in addition to equipping the Irish army, but also exported to Germany, Austria-Hungary and Spain, the total production has reached 700, its official number is IK-20T. The reason why Natsuki named this single-engine, two-wing, two-seat torpedo attack aircraft "Swordfish" is because the "Swordfish" equipped by the British Navy in the old time and space had surprisingly good luck and results, and he hoped that the torpedo plane he participated in the design and development of could also become a generation of famous aircraft that surprised Haijiang and Weizhen Huanyu.

Although Natsuki's "Swordfish" was highly praised by users, it was a product of the early 20s after all, and was restricted by aviation technology, and its main performance was inferior to the British "Swordfish" of the old time and space, but the MKIII aviation torpedo it was equipped with was an out-and-out "efficient killing weapon". In live-fire tests, the reliability of the trigger fuse reached more than 80 percent, which alone was enough to outperform a few foreign products of its time, and during a military exercise of the Irish Navy, the MKIII set an astonishing record for sinking a moving target ship from 1,500 meters away. The only slight deficiency is that this kind of aviation torpedo, which weighs only 700 kilograms, has only two-thirds of the attack power of ordinary ship-based torpedoes, and it is difficult to cause fatal damage to large capital ships with complete anti-mine armor and anti-mine compartments.

The MKV aviation torpedo is a powerful version of the MKIII type, the warhead is equipped with 100 kg of ********, the total weight is increased to 850 kg, and the effective range is only 800 meters, and after hanging this aviation torpedo, the "Swordfish" was originally pitiful The speed was reduced to 160 kilometers per hour, almost to the extent that it was slaughtered by fighters, and its ability to adapt to bad weather was also greatly affected.

Then Colonel Kinsela asked cautiously: "Your Majesty, if possible, I hope that you will make these questions clear, so that our volunteers can respond appropriately to all situations: Should our torpedo planes take the initiative if the American warships reach the mouth of the Almagre River?" Can our volunteers participate in the attack? After damaging an American warship, is it necessary to continue the attack until it is sunk? ”

These problems are simple to say, not complicated to implement, and the situation may not become a reality, but in the position of the king of a country, it is not easy to make a decision. The world is now under the shadow of an economic crisis, and the chances of a large-scale war have increased dramatically compared to the previous period. Diplomatic frictions can still be remedied through diplomatic means, and some military conflicts ignite the fuse of war once they occur. Although the Allied camp had a slight advantage over the US-British alliance, the Allies were by no means monolithic internally, and there were two military forces that could not be ignored externally, Soviet Russia and Japan, and the cause of the war was likely to determine the final outcome of the war.

At this time, Natsuki remembered Tirpitz's reminder that it was not easy for Ireland to achieve what it is today, and if it was reduced to ruins in the war, even if the Allies won the final victory, he and Ireland would still be losers. Returning to the current question, he carefully thought about it for a long time and replied: "It is necessary after the American warship has taken a substantive attack action before the torpedo aircraft can be dispatched to counterattack." Our pilots were not allowed to fight, and Spanish and German volunteers were advised not to venture as well, preferably by the Mexicans themselves. If the US ship can be damaged by chance, the expulsion will be a victory. ”

Kinsera was a clever man, and instead of taking a written note, he carefully pondered the meaning of every word and every word, and then replied: "Understood, Your Majesty, I will pass on the instructions to our volunteers in Mexico as soon as possible." ”

In order to protect the interests of his country, Natsuki made a conservative decision, he knew that Koncella would definitely convey the truth, but the variable was the group of bloody young men on the other side of the ocean. He would not have been utterly surprised if the young Allied pilots were presumptuous or irritated by certain circumstances, but from the moment he approved the delivery of Irish soldiers and war materiel to Mexico, the situation was beyond his control.

(End of chapter)