With the rapid sound of battle sirens, the four British MK28 twin 50 times diameter 203 mm naval guns on the large cruiser "Kirov" of the Soviet Russian Navy turned one after another, and the muzzles of the black holes were finally pointed to the southeast. It is difficult for www.biquge.info normal line of sight to penetrate the rain curtain to observe the scenery of the distant sea, but the pulsed radar waves of the MC-IIA detection radar can detect surface ships more than 20 kilometers away in time, and experienced radar operators can estimate the size of the target according to the echo pattern, and the closer the distance, the higher the accuracy.

In the bridge fighting room, the chief of staff, Major Yuri Vasilev, analyzed the latest enemy situation report: "The enemy ship No. 1 continues to sail towards us, and the No. 2 ship changes course and sails north, it seems that it is trying to flank us!" ”

Colonel Cherov nodded, shook his head again, and turned to the former British admiral who was employed by the Soviet Russian government for advice: "The enemy only has two warships, and he dares to divide his forces, presumably because he is very confident in his own strength, so he has nothing to fear." Admiral Kane, in your judgment, will those two battleships be the sub-capital ships of the Japanese Navy? ”

Rear Admiral Kane replied slowly: "If your so-called sub-capital ship is a strong heavy cruiser, then I can almost tell you with a certain degree that since the Japanese commander on the opposite side dares to divide his forces and attack, it is at least a combination of a heavy cruiser and a light cruiser, and it is likely that it will be the enemy's light cruiser that intercepts our way back to the north, and it is a heavy cruiser that is heading directly at us." Another possibility, both heavy cruisers, or...... One of them was a battle cruiser. ”

"The only one of the four Kongo-class ships left?" Colonel Cherov raised his eyebrows and said, "That's an old ship that has been in service for nearly 30 years." ”

Rear Admiral Kane sneered: "Don't look down on it, it's a pure British battlecruiser, the caliber of the main gun is 14 inches, the barrel of the main gun is 45 times the diameter, the effective range is much longer than ours, the penetration of long-range shooting is much stronger than ours, the technical parameters of the modernization and modification are unknown, but it is basically certain that our main gun can only threaten its vital parts at a close range, or even destroy its main gun." ”

Colonel Cherov replied unhurriedly: "I have no intention of slandering the shipbuilding technology of the British Navy, twenty years ago, it was still a relatively advanced warship, but now it is the 40s, and the speed of 278 knots is too slow for a secondary capital ship." We can go east at full speed and crush the interception of the enemy's No. 2 ship, and then it can only swing a big stick in vain, like a clumsy giant, can't we? ”

Rear Admiral Kane accepted the Soviet Russian captain's explanation with his softening expression, but he immediately reminded: "If it is not a King Kong, but a heavy cruiser that the Japanese Navy has served in recent years, then we have no advantage in speed, and we do not know whether they have practical radar equipment, the current situation is very delicate, and we should be cautious." ”

Although this may sound a bit harsh, Colonel Cherov, as a proud Russian, humbly accepted it, and the "Kirov" continued to sail east-northward at its current speed. After about ten minutes, a report came from the radio cabin: Radar detector alarm!

Really worried about what was coming, Colonel Cherov and Major General Kane looked at each other. Originally, it was hoped that the Japanese Navy would take advantage of the rain curtain to maneuver around the enemy ships, but since the Japanese Navy also used shipborne radar, regardless of its performance, it would be difficult to conceal the movements of the "Kirov".

After a conversation with the radar room, the chief of staff, Rear Admiral Vasilev, reported to the captain: "The target is less than 20 kilometers away and has come within the range of the ship's guns." ”

Colonel Cherov and Rear Admiral Kane both raised their binoculars and tried to find the enemy ship in the southeastern sea. It wasn't long before the lookout reported the discovery of the enemy ship, and Colonel Cherov's brow furrowed again, for the enemy ship No. 1 was smaller than the Kongo-class battlecruiser that had once dominated the oceans, judging from the vague outline at the end of the line of sight. Although the tonnage and firepower of heavy cruisers are not as good as those of early battle cruisers, their speed and rate of fire are better, and if they are newly built ships in recent years, their sighting and fire control technology should also be better.

After thinking for a moment, Colonel Cherov said loudly: "Order...... The half-rudder turned 10 degrees to the right, and when the range was effective, the target battleship was fired alternately with ordinary shells. ”

Major General Kane habitually touched his nose: "This is an intention to test the enemy's firepower?" ”

"If I say I'm going to kill it, at least lose some of its momentum, do you think I'm being too reckless?" Colonel Cherov asked rhetorically.

The "British" thought for a moment: "No, this is perhaps the most direct and effective way to resolve the trouble." Hopefully, the Kirov will be blessed by Lady Luck in this battle. ”

The Russian captain obviously didn't hear what the other party said, and he quickly turned his attention to the sea to the northeast.

Operational orders were quickly transmitted, and in the four main turrets of the "Kirov", the gunners were busy under the command of their respective non-commissioned officers.

"Reload a normal grenade...... Unlock ...... Chambering...... Shut down...... Gun No. 1 is in place! ”

"Reload a normal grenade...... Unlock ...... Chambering...... Shut down...... Gun No. 2 in place! ”

“…… Turret No. 1 is ready! ”

“…… Turret No. 2 is ready! ”

“…… Turret No. 3 is ready! ”

“…… Turret No. 4 is ready! ”

In the firing command room at the upper part of the bridge, the technical non-commissioned officers use traditional optical ranging equipment to determine the direction of the target, calculate the shooting elements in the most primitive manual way, and then transmit them to the main turrets.

"Firing azimuth 49°22′55", firing elevation angle 21°5′36", turret No. 1 adjusted and ready to fire!"

“…… The second turret is adjusted, and the fire is ready to fire! ”

“…… The third turret is adjusted and ready to fire! ”

“…… Turret No. 4 is adjusted and ready to shoot! ”

After the four main turrets had all completed their preparations for firing, the shooting commander immediately used the Russian version of the ship's unified firing command system to check the aiming status of all the main guns, and after confirming that they were correct, he gave the order to fire without hesitation.

A roar like thunder quickly swept through the rain curtain, and a number of dark red cannonballs flew into the distance with a trajectory that was recognizable to the naked eye.

The most senior non-commissioned officer on the ship used an optical rangefinder to observe the impact point, and before those water columns had completely dissipated, he said loudly: "The landing point is close, in view of the relative speed of the warships on both sides, it is recommended to keep the elevation angle of the fire unchanged, reduce the horizontal angle of fire by 25′, and fire after 30 seconds!" ”

The slender firing commander corrected it through a spare rangefinder, and then ordered: "Firing azimuth 48°57:55", firing elevation angle 21°5′36", adjust each gun, time limit 30 seconds! ”

In the case of pure manual reloading, the 30-second salvo interval is too tight, but the reload time is not taken into account when shooting alternately, only the firing parameters need to be adjusted, then 30 seconds is more than enough for a well-trained gunner.

After two rounds of shelling of the Russian battleship, the hazy shadow of the ship in the distance began to change its silhouette, which meant that it adjusted its course, whether it turned left or right, and the rear-facing main gun gradually gained a firing angle, but it did not seem to be in a hurry to fire. By the time the Soviet and Russian warships fired two and a half salvos, some of the impact points were already very close to the Japanese ships, and the sea in the distance finally flashed with flames.

In the bridge of the battle ship "Kirov", the chief of staff, Major Yuri Vasilev, exclaimed softly: "The Japanese ship has opened fire!" ”

Rear Admiral Kane frowned, the Kirov-class large cruiser of the Soviet Russian Navy is an improved version of the British Brave class, although the performance has been improved, but the essence of heavy cruiser firepower and light cruiser protection has not changed, if it is against an older Japanese heavy cruiser, such as the early construction of the Furutaka class, the probability of victory is more than fifty percent, but if it is the Kaohsiung-class or even the most senior class built in the later period, then it is a more rational choice to adjust the mentality as soon as possible and find ways to get rid of the enemy ship.

Of course, in surface artillery battles, the two sides are not only fighting for tonnage, speed, and firepower, but also the commander's on-the-spot command is also very important. When an enemy shell falls close enough to hit the ship, commanders need to change course to avoid the next attack of the enemy, while at the same time trying to find a way to make their shells hit the enemy.

After about half a minute of waiting, the Japanese ship's artillery fire roared, and five medium-caliber shells landed near the starboard side of the "Kirov", which could almost cause close damage to the hull. The first round of artillery fire of the Japanese ship was so accurate, not only Rear Admiral Kane, but also many Soviet and Russian officers and soldiers on the ship exclaimed in their hearts: If you go on like this, you will still play with a sickle and hammer?

A dozen seconds later, the main gun of the "Kirov" once again roared. Although the results of this round of alternating fire were still not satisfactory, Colonel Cherov eagerly ordered a salvo of fire at the enemy ships, and the distance between the two ships was reduced to 15,000 meters.

In the first round of salvo firing, the performance of the Soviet and Russian warships was still unsatisfactory, which may be related to the poor effect of the shooting stabilization system of the Soviet and Russian warships. In the second round of salvo firing, the "Kirov" ushered in a big explosion of ship products, and the cross-firing and direct hit arrived at the same time, and seeing a fireball rising from the Japanese ship's amidships, the Soviet and Russian crews on this side suddenly jumped for joy.

The bombardment of the 8-inch ordinary grenade almost destroyed the optical rangefinder of the "Sanjia" and the sophisticated firing control and command system, and the flames and smoke dissipated, leaving behind the port side battle position, which was riddled with dead and wounded. Prior to this, this Japanese heavy cruiser had been shooting at an unhurried pace, and the accuracy of the artillery fire was obviously much higher than that of the Soviet and Russian battleships, and it seemed that it was like a strategy of boiling a frog in warm water to win a heads-up victory, but in the end, it was a cold slap in the face, how could the conceited Japanese invaders swallow their anger. From this point on, the "Sanjia" bombarded targets with a high rate of fire of 2-3 rounds per minute, plus it originally had 5 twin 203-mm guns (there were no restrictions from the Washington Naval Treaty, and from the beginning it was a twin 203-mm gun, instead of a triple 155-mm main gun and then a twin 203-mm gun, as in history). The ferocious artillery fire quickly paid off, and the Japanese ship made the first hit in the fourth salvo, and a minute later scored the second hit, and the Soviet and Russian battleships suddenly smoked out!

(End of chapter)