Volume XXIII Springboard to Progress Section 31 Objectives

The voyage across the Atlantic was not difficult. Along the way, Tan Renhao has been responsible for the interception of the I submarine. Those US submarines that are unable to operate in the Pacific Ocean are all gathered in the Atlantic, and they will never easily miss any opportunity to sneak attack the First Fleet. At the same time, in order to reach the battlefield as soon as possible, the fleet has been moving at a maximum cruising speed of 24 knots since departure, and along the way only ~ let the destroyers get more fuel from the aircraft carriers and battleships.

During the eight-day voyage, the destroyers in the fleet spotted only a few "passing by" German submarines. By that time, relations between the Reich and Germany had improved in general, and the hostility between the two sides had diminished. As they staggered, the German submarines sent greeting signals, and of course, the First Fleet also sent greeting signals. On 25 May, a destroyer of Task Force 3 also received several seriously ill officers and men from a German submarine. The German submarine officers and men who had suffered from the disease were well cared for, and one of the officers, who had suffered from acute enteritis, also underwent emergency surgery on the battleship "Canton" of the Third Task Force, and finally saved his life.

Apart from these "friendly" exchanges, which could deepen the feelings between the Tang Empire and Germany, nothing happened along the way that Tan Renhao feared. It was probably the dozens of destroyers in the First Fleet that scared off the US submarines along the way, and when Tan Renhao and the others saw the breakwater in Limon Bay on the afternoon of 28 May, there were still no US submarines around the fleet. That night, all three task forces of the First Fleet entered the Gulf of Limón. In anticipation of the arrival of the First Fleet. The landing fleet and convoy originally deployed in the Limon Bay were all transferred to the port in the southern part of the canal, and only the three task forces of the Third Fleet remained here, and the expanded Limon Bay was just enough to accommodate the hundreds of warships of the two main fleets. It can be said that at that time, the Gulf of Limon was definitely the place with the highest density of warships in the world!

"It's up to you to arrange these things, as long as it doesn't affect the combat readiness of the fleet, I won't object." Tan Renhao patted Zhu Rongzhe on the shoulder, "In the past few months, you have mastered many abilities necessary to command the fleet. I can now confidently and boldly hand over the First Task Force to your command. Of course, you were the chief of staff of the fleet until the official personnel appointment letter was issued by the command of the Navy. ”

Zhu Rongzhe smiled and nodded, this was the first time in several months that Tan Renhao had affirmed his ability.

"Since you're the chief of staff of the fleet, don't let these trivial things trouble me." Tan Renhao's words changed. said the original intention, "These social activities, you don't need to ask my opinion at all, you have to grasp the balance yourself in the future, don't come to me for small things, you can just make your own decisions, understand?" ”

"Okay, then I'll arrange it now, and then I'll look for you on the shore."

Tan Renhao patted Zhu Rongzhe on the shoulder, and then walked out of the command cabin. After the fleet entered port. Huang Xiaotian called him and told him. Han Shaofeng organized a friendship activity between the fleet and the Marine Corps, hoping that the First Fleet would send officers and men to participate. As a matter of fact. This is also a ceremony to welcome the First Fleet back to the Caribbean Theater, but Han Shaofeng didn't know if it made sense to engage in other activities, so he came up with this idea, maybe it was just a proposal from a staff officer under Han Shaofeng. As a result, Zhu Rongzhe came to ask for Renhao's opinion on this matter. In Tan Renhao's opinion, how can he make decisions about such innocuous things, otherwise why would he want a fleet chief of staff to do?

By the time Tan Renhao came to the dock, Huang Xiaotian was already waiting for him with two people wearing Marine Corps uniforms. Soon. Chang Jianxin and Dongjue also came to the dock, after greeting each other. Huang Xiaotian introduced the two Marine Corps officers, who were sent by Han Shaofeng to meet the First Fleet, and at this time, Han Shaofeng was still in Panama City to deal with some specific affairs before the departure of the Marine Corps.

"Is the time for the battle set?" On the way to Limeng City, Tan Renhao asked.

"The time frame for the launch of the campaign has been determined, and from the end of May to the beginning of June, it can only be postponed to June 15 at most. The specific time will be determined by us and Han Shaofeng. Huang Xiaotian took out a cigarette as he spoke, "Now, the biggest problem is that the US Atlantic Fleet may enter the Caribbean Sea at any time, and it is unlikely that we will grasp its specific whereabouts in the first place." Before the Marines land, we must first seize sea and air supremacy, and the most effective way is to take out the US Atlantic Fleet, and then destroy the US airfields on the nearby islands one by one. Therefore, the specific start time of the campaign has not yet been determined. ”

"So, does Han Shaofeng have a battle plan?" Tan Renhao understood the meaning of Huang Xiaotian's words, and the Navy Command delegated the decision-making power of the campaign to the commander of the Sanming front, hoping to destroy the US Atlantic Fleet before the landing campaign began.

"I talked to Han Shaofeng a few days ago, and this time we will first establish a forward base." Huang Xiaotian paused slightly, "The Marines will arrive in the Cayman Islands first, and before attacking Cuba, they will try to seize a more advantageous forward base." Judging from Han Shaofeng's meaning, the preferred target is the island of Jamaica, or to occupy part of the island of Jamaica, and then use it as a base to deploy air forces, assemble a landing fleet, and finally attack Cuba. ”

"Where are the Marines going to land in Cuba?" When Huang Xiaotian was talking, Tan Renhao was also thinking quickly.

"The most likely location is near Santiago, and if the attack on Jamaica is thwarted, then we will have to choose to build more airfields in the northeastern corner of the Yucatan Peninsula, and from here we will attack the western part of Cuba. This is a backup plan, after all, we all know that the Yucatan Peninsula is too close to the mainland of the United States, and its terrain is not suitable for military airfields, and there are no good ports in the area, so it is quite difficult to transport supplies. Han Shaofeng will do his best to ensure that the island of Jamaica is captured and that he will not get too close to the US mainland and thus be attacked by the US air force. But the question is, whether or not Jamaica can be defeated is not only a matter for the Marines, but also for our actions. ”

"That's for sure, and it's even fair to say that we're playing a bigger role than the Marines, and that's not too much, isn't it?"

Huang Xiaotian smiled and nodded, he still wanted to ask something, at this time, the jeep had already stopped outside the temporary headquarters. In the past, the main fleet was only in the mother

A symbolic command, when the fleet returns to port, the fleet commander orders the headquarters to be transferred to the shore, and when the fleet departs, only a few junior officers are left to maintain the normal operation of the shore headquarters. This time, the Third Fleet set a precedent for the establishment of an shore command on the front line.

After calling Hao Dongjue and Chang Jianxin, who were riding in the jeep behind, Huang Xiaotian did not let the two officers of the Marine Corps follow, but asked them to go back to report to General Han Shaofeng that the First Fleet had arrived smoothly, so let Han Shaofeng take the time to come over. Subsequently, the four of them entered the fleet headquarters, and Yan Yulong and Zheng Guanhua had been waiting here for a long time. After the six generals met, there was naturally a chill, but the atmosphere soon became serious, and the topic was quickly brought into this combat operation.

After Huang Xiaotian gave a general introduction to the situation in the Caribbean battlefield, Tan Renhao stood up. "This time, our operational focus is not to support the Marine offensive, but to take out the last U.S. fleet before then, the Atlantic Fleet, which is under the direct command of Spruance. As long as we can take out the US Atlantic Fleet before the Marines launch a landing campaign, then the battle that follows will not be too difficult. I think that's what you think too, right? ”

Zheng Guanhua and Yan Yulong's expressions told Tan Renhao that his words were not entirely correct. Just when Tan Renhao was about to ask directly, Huang Xiaotian said: "Indeed, our biggest opponent is not the shore-based bombers of the US military, although these US bombers have posed a great threat to us. It has also caused us a lot of trouble, but relatively speaking, the threat of the American fleet is greater, and we should not ignore that the Atlantic Fleet is our most formidable opponent, and the only opponent who has defeated us in a regular naval battle! ”

"It seems that Spruance is now in our way." Hao Dongjue made a joke, and the atmosphere relaxed a lot.

"Anyway. This time, our two main fleets will meet in one place, even if Spruance has great ability, he will not be able to change the balance of forces, as long as he dares to come to challenge, and we have seized the opportunity, then we have a great chance of defeating the US Atlantic Fleet. Of course. We must not let this lead us to underestimate the enemy, let alone take wrong actions because of this. Chang Jianxin also followed along, emphasizing the insignificance of the enemy, while also emphasizing the danger of the enemy.

"There is nothing wrong with the usual words, in terms of strength, there is no need for us to be afraid of the enemy, but judging from past examples, we must not despise this opponent." Tan Renhao sat down, "For the past month, I've been thinking about how to defeat the Atlantic Fleet. Combined with previous examples and experience, this paper analyzes the possible coping strategies that Spruance may adopt. Fundamentally, Spruance is not going to blindly fight our two main fleets. He also knows very well how big the gap in strength is. That said, Spruance needs to wait for his chance. As long as we act separately, he will be on standby, capture one of our main fleets, and attack with all our might, while trying to entangle the other main fleet so that we cannot support each other or cover each other, creating every opportunity for him to break through. ”

"So. We should not be separated, as long as we act together. Spruance naturally did not dare to come to challenge, and there was no need for us to consider the threat of the Atlantic Fleet. Zheng Guanhua said a sentence, but he immediately realized that this sentence actually had no meaning and was definitely wrong.

"It's an option, but it's not the best choice." Tan Renhao picked up the teacup and didn't continue, and at the same time looked at Huang Xiaotian, after all, Huang Xiaotian was also the commander of the main fleet, so he couldn't keep him silent.

"There is nothing wrong with talking about the generals, if we had acted together, Spruance would not have taken the initiative, and we would not have had a chance to annihilate the Atlantic Fleet. When the Marines launch a landing campaign, we can only devote one main fleet to support the Marines at most, and keep the other main fleet hidden to prevent a sneak attack by the Atlantic Fleet. In order to stop our attack, he will not necessarily choose to attack our main fleet, and he can completely let the fleet stay in a safe sea area, and then send bombers to attack the landing fleet and the transport fleet, so that the difficulty of the landing operation will be much higher, and the losses will also increase a lot, and it is more likely to suffer defeat, which is an unacceptable defeat for us. Therefore, before that, we must try to lure the Atlantic Fleet out and then fight it! ”

These words are exactly what Tan Renhao wants to say, and the two commanders of the main fleet have the same idea. Zheng Guanhua naturally did not put forward Xindi's opinion, and Yan Yulong, who had the same idea as Zheng Guanhua before, was also silent.

"That's the difficulty of our campaign." Tan Renhao took over Huang Xiaotian's words, "It is difficult for the actions of our two main fleets to remain hidden, and it is even more difficult to avoid being discovered and tracked. In addition, the area of the Caribbean Sea is limited, and if the fleet is active in the Caribbean, it will be difficult to completely separate, and it will be difficult for Spruance to take the initiative. ”

"If we want to leave the Caribbean, then we have to revise the landing operation plan, which will have to be discussed with Han Shaofeng, if we revise the landing operation plan at this time, I am afraid it will be too hasty." Dong Jue said the rest of the words before Tan Renhao.

Tan Renhao didn't blame his brother-in-law for stealing the limelight, in fact, this is the question he needs to ask.

"In this case, it is too troublesome, and Han Shaofeng may not agree to our suggestion. If it is necessary to revise the landing operation plan in the end, it will even need to be reported to the naval command, which will take a lot of time. Chang Jianxin shook his head as he spoke, "It seems that this combat operation not only has trouble for the enemy, but also has a lot of trouble for ourselves. ”

"Then, we'd better consult with the marines before arranging the actions of the fleet." Huang Xiaotian made a suggestion at this time.

In the absence of any objection from others, the matter was temporarily settled, and after discussing with Han Shaofeng and determining the combat plan of the Marine Corps, the combat plan of the fleet was drawn up. Sea Soul Volume 23 Springboard for Progress Section 31 Goal