At that time, the port of Cologne already had relatively late ship repair facilities, and many other equipment were already in place, except for two large ones under construction. In addition, the Navy also sent several engineering ships that had been sent to the fortress of Gibraltar, as well as several engineering ships at Pearl Harbor. The fleet was quickly repaired after returning to the port of Cologne.

Damage from storms is relatively easy to repair compared to combat damage. If you get a bomb or a torpedo, the damage is from the inside out, and a lot of surrounding equipment must be dismantled before repairs. The damage caused by the storm is from the outside in, so the damaged parts can be replaced directly. Both the Third and First Fleets returned to Cologne on the 25th, and after a brief inspection, the engineers determined the damage to the ships and drew up a repair plan. Because there were enough engineering and maintenance personnel at that time, the maintenance work of both fleets could be completed by the end of the month at the latest.

The most serious problem is the battleships of the Third Task Force. Before Tan Renhao returned to the port of Cologne, he sent someone to contact Lei Shaoqing and asked him to send four engineering ships to the port of Limon. The specific maintenance work is the responsibility of the engineering personnel, and Tan Renhao did not worry about it. Subsequently, the other warships of the 3rd Task Force also returned to the port of Cologne, and several warships with minor injuries needed to be repaired, and all of them were combat damaged, and it was relatively troublesome to repair. After the inspection, the engineers came to the conclusion that the 3rd Task Force was likely to be absent from all combat operations in July.

The matter of maintenance is not urgent, and Tan Renhao did not urge the engineers and maintenance team to speed up the maintenance, after all, if the battleship does not accept the best maintenance, it will be considered to be back on the battlefield. It is also impossible to have a good performance. The Imperial Navy had a lesson in this regard, and the aircraft carrier "Xuanzong" had to leave the combat unit after less than ten years of service because of several incomplete repairs, which led to the worsening of the problem. It was also from the lessons learned from the "Xuanzong" that the Imperial Navy formulated relatively strict and perfect maintenance regulations during the war, thus ensuring that other damaged warships could be taken care of in the best possible way. 94b941

Tan Renhao was also happy to relax for a few days. Especially after getting the latest information on the US Atlantic Fleet on 27 July, he had no pressure.

The Atlantic Fleet, which entered the port of Cienfuegos, suffered much better. Although the harbor is sheltered from the wind, when the hurricane makes landfall nearby, you can imagine the scene. At about 10:40 a.m. on the 24th, the hurricane made landfall near the beach of Giron, less than 60 kilometers from the port of Cienfuegos, and the storm center of the hurricane was 10 hours in diameter, and the wind speed over the sea surface of the port exceeded 80 knots. If it weren't for the rapid weakening of the hurricane after landfall, I am afraid that even the warships anchored in the harbor would have been overturned. By the time the hurricane passed, the Atlantic Fleet was largely "destroyed".

The Empire's intelligence services obtained information from the U.S. Admiralty and several important naval shipyards on the 27th, and after a comprehensive analysis, it was finally judged that the Atlantic Fleet had basically lost its combat capability. And there is a good chance that it will not be possible to fix it before mid-July.

According to the information obtained at the time, all six aircraft carriers under Spruance were damaged by the hurricane. Like the "Lake" class aircraft carriers, the flight deck of the "Essex" class aircraft carriers is extremely vulnerable. Originally, the "Essex" class aircraft carrier was designed for the environment of operations in the Pacific Ocean, so it did not use a fully enclosed bow at the beginning, and also used an open hangar. Outcome. Several aircraft carriers were damaged by storms in the Pacific Ocean. Later, starting from the third batch, the US Navy installed "hurricane bows" for aircraft carriers, but because the number of antiaircraft guns carried by the "Essex" aircraft carriers at that time was seriously exceeded, and even had to reduce the weight of the superstructure by reducing the ammunition reserve of antiaircraft guns, it was difficult to install semi-enclosed hangars for aircraft carriers. In other words, the "Essex" class aircraft carriers also have the phenomenon of "not adapting to the water and soil". In the event of bad weather, it is difficult to protect yourself.

All six aircraft carriers will definitely have to be repaired, and the port of Cienfuegos is only a commercial port, and the port is not large, and there are no supporting maintenance facilities. In addition, the U.S. Navy did not have the problem of long-distance operations, so it did not build a large number of engineering and maintenance ships like the Imperial Navy, and damaged warships could only go to military ports with infrastructure for repair. At that time, the nearest military port was San Diego, but it had been bombed and a lot of infrastructure was damaged. There was also insecurity, so it was not possible for the fleet to return to Santiago. In addition, there are only a few military ports such as Miami in Florida and Norfolk on the east coast of the United States. Leaving aside how much time it will take to repair, the Atlantic Fleet will take two days to reach Miami from Cienfuegos, and three and a half days to Norfolk.

In addition to aircraft carriers, other warships in the Atlantic Fleet also had problems, especially destroyers, which suffered the greatest losses. Compared with the large destroyers of the Tang Imperial Navy, the tonnage of the destroyers of the US Navy is about 2,500 tons, and the power of the main engine is limited, and the > can only adopt the design of a long hull, which also reduces the ability of the warship to resist wind and waves. In order to improve stability, it is necessary to reduce the weight of the superstructure, which makes it more fragile. At that time, more than half of the more than 20 destroyers in the port of Cienfuegos were damaged, two were overturned by strong winds, and the other was blown to the beach because the anchor chain was broken! Because of the limited water surface in the port, several destroyers collided in high winds because they were berthed too close!

Because only a few destroyers were still sailing, it was necessary to wait for the escorting destroyers to arrive in order to allow the damaged warships to go to other ports for repairs, which delayed for several days. By the 27th, when the US Navy had finalized the maintenance plan, the Atlantic Fleet remained in the port of Cienfuegos, and the destroyers who came to escort it would not arrive until the 29th!

After grasping this information, Tan Renhao was naturally much relieved, even if he had no way to deal with the US fleet parked in Cienfuegos, and the heavy bomber group of the HNA had no way to dispatch immediately (lack of ammunition, fuel, and spare parts), but Spruance could not continue to operate at sea, and sooner or later he would have to return to the US mainland, if before mid-July, the Atlantic ship

If it is impossible to restore combat effectiveness, then it is impossible for the US Navy to block it at sea. In other words, this is the best time for Han Shaofeng to attack the island of Jamaica!

Early in the morning of 28 July, Tan Renhao and Huang Xiaotian went to Panama City together, and Han Shaofeng had already convened the commanders of the Marine Corps, the Navy, and other units the night before to hold a meeting on the landing operation, and tentatively set the time for the landing operation at the end of June. The originally planned landing time was June 15, which means that Han Shaofeng had already postponed his combat operations for half a month. In the past half a month, Han Shaofeng has done all the necessary preparations. Moreover, Han Shaofeng also learned that the US Atlantic Fleet had lost its ability to move, so even if Tan Renhao and Huang Xiaotian's fleet would not be able to enter battle until early July, Han Shaofeng would not postpone the landing operation again, and he could completely rely on the support fleet in the landing fleet to cover the landing of the marines and complete the landing operation.

"We have to take advantage of the inability of the U.S. Navy to move." This time, Han Shaofeng's attitude was very resolute, and there was no room for negotiation. "The intelligence is relatively credible, and in the past two days, other spies will go to confirm it, and I have also arranged a reconnaissance plane, so I will probably be able to get an accurate reconnaissance report today." As soon as it is determined that the Atlantic Fleet will return to the continental United States for repairs, then I will immediately initiate a landing operation, and at the latest will not be able to land on the 30th [|:Maiga Island. ”

Huang Xiaotian lowered his head and smoked, and did not talk, while Tan Renhao was watching the battle plan formulated by Han Shaofeng. At this time, the two also knew that they couldn't make Han Shaofeng give in again, and Tan Renhao didn't want to find out the loopholes, but just wanted to know how Han Shaofeng was going to attack Jamaica Island. And whether the fleet can help. 94b941

Han Shaofeng's battle plan is relatively perfect, and he has half a month more time to prepare, and he has half a month more time to improve and revise the battle plan. This time, Han Shaofeng planned to first commit two marine divisions, and leave three marine divisions to complete the ground offensive. That is, the ground forces that Han Shaofeng put into operation have five marine divisions. Nearly 90,000 horses, and the intelligence that Han Shaofeng had at that time was that the US ground forces on the island of Jamaica would not exceed three army divisions, that is, five people. Of course, the real main force is not the Marine Corps, but the support troops that Han Shaofeng is ready to put in.

At that time, Han Shaofeng had already gathered one of the most powerful support fleets of the Imperial Navy, and he had gathered all the support ships that were originally planned to attack Cuba. And two support fleets were formed. Among them, the 1st support ship [|2 escort aircraft carrier, 37 fire support ships, its instantaneous ammunition delivery capacity exceeded 1250 tons. The 2nd Reinforcement Fleet had 23 escort aircraft carriers and 34 fire support ships, and its instantaneous ammunition delivery capacity exceeded 1200~:.= equal, and the fighters carried on the escort aircraft carriers at that time could already deal with fixed targets on the ground at night. Therefore. Two support fleets can take turns, one to cover the Marine Corps, and the other to replenish ammunition and other combat materials, which can ensure continuous support firepower for the Marine Corps!

With such a strong support force, Han Shaofeng did not equip the Marine Corps with additional artillery units. This is also mainly aimed at reducing the pressure on logistical support and reducing the number of troops that need to be transported. Moreover, the narrowest point of the island of Jamaica is less than 50 kilometers, and if the fire support ship reaches the coast, its artillery fire can completely cover the entire island, which is not a problem for combat aircraft. In this case, as long as there is no problem with the liaison and coordination between the Marine Corps and the support units. There is not even a need to send ground artillery units.

Han Shaofeng compressed the entire campaign time into half a month, and he definitely wanted to complete this combat operation before the US Atlantic Fleet regained its combat effectiveness, and then use Jamaica as a springboard to attack Cuba. At that time, even if the Atlantic Fleet regained its combat effectiveness, with the island of Jamaica already under the control of the Imperial Navy, it would not dare to rashly enter the Caribbean Sea, or even the Gulf of Mexico, and it would naturally be much less difficult for the Marines to attack Cuba.

After reading this battle plan in general, Tan Renhao had to admit that Han Shaofeng's preparations were basically in place. As long as the U.S. Atlantic Fleet does not interfere, there is no need to talk about Renhao and Huang Xiaotian at all, Han Shaofeng has enough strength to defeat Jamaica. Judging from the previous offensive operations on the islands in the Pacific, perhaps the campaign will take less than 15 days, and the troops will be elite enough, and within 10 days, the island of Jamaica will be controlled by the Marines

"It seems that our worries are a bit unwarranted this time." Tan Renhao put down the documents in his hand, "Old Han, we just want to help, not to make trouble for you." ”

"Yes, since the Atlantic Fleet no longer dares to fight us head-on, then there is no need for us to continue to focus on naval warfare, sea supremacy is already in our hands, and now it should be up to the Marine Corps to fight the main force." Huang Xiaotian immediately chimed in.

"That's the best, actually, there's nothing to bother." It can be seen that Han Shaofeng is also relieved. "The situation of your two fleets is not ideal, so I did not take you into account when I revised the battle plan. At that time, if the fleet can regain its combat effectiveness at the beginning of next month, and the battle on the island of Jamaica is not over, then you should come and join the battle, after all, the ground support of the main fleet is unmatched by any other fleet. ”94b941

"That's it." Tan Renhao stood up, "We won't delay your precious time any longer, let's go back to Cologne, supervise the maintenance of the battleship, strive to restore combat effectiveness as soon as possible, and then assist the marines to attack Jamaica Island." Maybe we'll be able to attack Cuba in advance! ”

"Of course, with the support of the fleet, we are even more stable this time!"

After the two and Han Shaofeng said goodbye, they returned to Cologne, and said polite words, but both of them knew in their hearts that Han Shaofeng didn't want Tan Renhao and Huang Xiaotian to intervene, after all, Tan Renhao and Huang Xiaotian were fleet admirals, and their authority was above Han Shaofeng, if the fleet was allowed to participate in the battle, then Han Shaofeng would have to take care of the situation of the fleet, which would add trouble. On the contrary, if Han Shaofeng does it alone, the problem will be much simpler.