Before receiving a reply from the naval command, the Italian submarine "Archimedes" was like a gentle dolphin, swimming slowly on the calm sea, and although the crew waited by the deck guns and machine guns, they did not turn their guns and muzzles to the approaching new United Kingdom Navy submarine hunter. Pen, fun, pavilion www. biquge。 infoIf this continues, the crews of the two ships will probably greet each other in a friendly manner, exchange gifts, and then wave goodbye.

However, a telegram from the Italian naval command reduced this harmonious scene to an illusion. With the order of the submarine commander, the "Archimedes" sounded the alarm bell for an emergency dive. In the blink of an eye, the crew on deck re-secured their deck weapons, burrowed into the cabin, and closed the hatch. When the scene of water foam churning appears on the side of the submarine, the hull of the submarine will be submerged into the water at a visible speed......

Seeing the target submarine diving rapidly, on the sea not far away, the submarine hunter "North Tipperary" of the new United Kingdom Navy followed closely to adjust its course. The blade-shaped bow of the ship opened the waves, the water waves rolled by the propellers gradually formed a striking white arc, and the smoke from the chimney gradually faded, indicating that the submarine hunter had deliberately reduced its speed, and in the anti-submarine warfare positions on its side and stern, the sailors had entered the combat operation procedure under the leadership of the non-commissioned officer.

In the bridge command room, officers in navy blue navy uniforms and clover insignia were busy with tacit understanding, led by the captain of the ship, Major O'Brien, who was in his forties, a tough guy who had made great achievements during World War II.

"Sir, according to sonar detection, the target is at a depth of 20-30 meters underwater, 2,000 meters in front of our left, with an estimated speed of 5-6 knots, and a course south-east."

"Sam, the left full rudder...... A compass point! Paul, give orders to all battle positions, load the D-type rocket-type deep bombs used in the exercise, and prepare for a salvo! ”

"Full rudder left...... A compass point...... Rudder paddle back in place! ”

"D-type rocket deep loading...... Reloaded! ”

"Hull, calculate the parameters of the deep projectile projection......"

"Sir, a periscope was found 600 meters ahead of the port side!"

"I saw it, all battle positions are on standby for the time being, and send a light code signal to the other party: stop advancing immediately, or you will attack!"

"The signal has been sent!"

"Sir, the periscope is gone!"

"Sir, according to sonar detection, the depth of the target is increasing, the position is 1200 meters in front of our right, the speed is 5-6 knots, and the course is south-east!"

"Hull, calculate the new deep projection delivery parameters!"

"Deep bomb projection parameters have been calculated!"

"The depth bomb projection parameters are passed to the starboard anti-submarine warfare position, and the D-type rocket-type deep bomb attacks in the first round, and fires on its own!"

"Yes!"

About 40 seconds later, the first wave of depth charges was dropped on the starboard side of the submarine hunter with a quadruple rocket depth bomb at the designated location. At the same time, the ship's two sonar crews kept a close eye on the underwater movements through their respective devices.

"Sir, sonar room report, the first round of attacks missed! The target depth is 40-50 meters, the position is 900 meters in front of our right, and the speed and course remain unchanged. ”

"Hull, calculate the parameters of the deep projection projection!"

"Deep bomb projection parameters have been calculated!"

"The deep bomb projection parameters are passed to the starboard anti-submarine warfare position, and the D-type rocket deep bomb attacks in the second round and fires on its own!"

"Yes!"

This time, only a dozen seconds after the anti-submarine staff officer's deep-shell projection parameters were reported to the starboard anti-submarine combat position, the quadruple-mounted rocket-type deep-bomb launcher dropped a second wave of deep-water charges at the target area. These anti-submarine weapons are the second generation of rocket-type deep bombs used by the new United Kingdom Navy, in addition to the conventional contact fuse at the warhead position, but also installed in the middle of the bomb body with an effective distance of about 2 meters magnetic fuse, coupled with the improvement of the explosive charge, the damage rate of the submarine has been greatly improved, even if it is an empty bomb used in the exercise, it can also make the submariners feel the horror of being attacked by the deep bomb.

A moment later, the sonar soldier's slightly excited voice rang out in the sonar room of the North Tipperary: "A D-shaped depth charge has been detonated!" ”

The officer on duty grabbed the phone: "The sonar room reports that a D-type depth charge has detonated!" ”

In this situation, which was close to actual combat but not actual combat, similar to an exercise but beyond an exercise, there were no cheers from the bridge, and the officers were still in their respective positions, except that several pairs of eyes were staring at the area where the target submarine was located at the same time. If the other party is interested, he should float up on his own and then turn around, but if the other party is stubborn, then the development trend of the situation is very mysterious.

"Sir, sonar room reports that the target continues to dive and reduces speed, but does not change course."

After listening to the report of the staff officer, Major O'Brien said angrily: "The Italians will not understand the standard rules of joint exercises, they did it on purpose!" Since they are not kind, we don't have to be polite to them! Order, the stern battle position is loaded with a B-type delayed deep bomb for attack! ”

"Sir, do you really want to get on the B-type deep bomb? What should I do if I accidentally dry it out? ”

The major snorted coldly: "Set a 30-second delay fuse and throw it in front of the Italians!" ”

The staff officer suddenly realized: "What a good idea!" ”

The major ignored the compliments of his subordinates, and based on his many years of anti-submarine experience, he directly ordered the first mate to adjust the course continuously, and when the adjustment was over, the sonar room reported that the target submarine was already behind the ship.

"Three B-type deep bombs, with a 30-second delay and a 10-second throwing interval...... The throw begins! ”

The order was quickly transmitted to the stern anti-submarine warfare position, and the crew had heard that the target was an Italian submarine, and it was understandable that the rocket-type depth bombs used in the exercise were projected at it, but now they were using real cartridge depth charges, each of these humble creatures were loaded with 120 kilograms of high explosives, and the radius of destruction in the water could reach 12 meters, which was powerful enough to blow any submarine in service to pieces.

Doubts are doubts, and the crew did not hesitate to confirm the order. In less than a minute, all three cartridge deep bombs with time-delay fuses activated were in the water. With a dull roar like rolling thunder, huge columns of white water appeared one after another behind the stern.

"Sir, all three deep bombs have detonated, and no traces of oil or debris have been found on the sea!"

"Even if the Italian submarine was unlucky enough to be damaged by us, they were to blame, after all, we had warned us repeatedly! Now, the task force is on Combat Alert Level 2, and we have the right to stop any external action by force that could threaten the safety of our core ships! ”

After that, Major O'Brien turned his head to look at the first mate with an expressionless face: "Right rudder 15...... Annular anti-submarine ...... Search for enemies! ”

"Searching for enemy traces" is certainly a common tactical phrase, but at this time, it pops out of the major's mouth and makes others feel a little unpleasant.

The sonar room reported that the target turned off the power, the speed stopped, and the depth of the dive increased again, reaching 70-80 meters.

"Are the Italians clearly trying to play hide and seek with us?" The staff officer said, "Do you want to give them a few more deep bullets?" ”

The major stared at the calm sea, and after a long while, he shook his head and said, "If the enemy does not move, I will not move!" Sam, low-speed cruise! Hull, arrange two shifts of personnel to be on alert! Kevin, send a report to the hive, the target did not accept the advice of our ship, and wanted to dive, but was suppressed by our ship and did not move in the deep dive. ”

Not long after, the Fenia, the flagship of the task force, sent a telegram ordering the North Tipperary to remain on the lookout, and to use the necessary force if the Italians deliberately provoked it.

About an hour and 20 minutes later, the Italian submarine that had dived into the deep sea moved again, it advanced at a low speed and turned slowly -- this common trick of evading anti-submarine ships ran through the two world wars, but the development of sonar technology did not stop with the end of the war, and by the end of the 40s, the detection range and positioning accuracy of passive sonar had been greatly improved, and the range of action and anti-jamming ability of active sonar had also been qualitatively improved. As an emerging industrial and military power, the new United Kingdom has not hesitated to strengthen and stimulate its scientific research capabilities to maintain technological leadership in many fields, and on the other hand, it has worked closely with Germany and the United States in different fields to pool the strengths of others and avoid technological shortcomings in one field. As a result, there is a considerable gap in technology and awareness between the anti-submarine warfare capabilities of the new United Kingdom Navy and the fact that the submarine technology level of the Italian Navy is only in a quasi-first-class position. The direct manifestation of this disparity is that the commander of the "Archimedes" thought that he could get rid of the surveillance of the other side, but he did not know that his every move was under the close supervision of the "North Tipperary".

This kind of confrontation between cat and mouse is a test of skill and a competition of patience. Rigorous training, rigorous organisation and rigorous attitude have endowed the Irish Navy and its successor, the New United Kingdom Navy, with extraordinary combat capabilities. Even if the "North Tipperary" leaves the squadron for a long time, the rest of the escort ships of the "Fenian" formation will be able to build a protective circle, not to mention that the Persian Gulf Garrison Fleet, which has another main aircraft carrier, has already sailed from Bahrain in the name of rotation, and it will soon be able to join the task force in the eastern Mediterranean, and the vigilance and protection of the task force will be more thorough.

By the afternoon, the Italian submarine had finally risen to periscope depth. When their periscope stretched out of the sea, the "North Tipperary" was waiting on the sea several hundred meters away, and the other side did not project anti-submarine firepower with a face, but issued a warning with an internationally accepted light code: Please stop here, otherwise, our ship has the right to sink you!

Seeing such a blunt warning, Captain Pasquel, an Italian naval officer in charge of commanding the "Archimedes," was immediately furious, and he also realized that it was difficult to get rid of this "old submarine" that had been in service for more than ten years, so he decided to use torpedoes to intimidate the other side, even if he could not let the other side retreat, he could save the face of the Italian Navy.

(End of chapter)