Scapavolo, Britannia.

Along the narrow gangway, British Empire Admiral Winston Churchill boarded the bridge of the USS Man, and as far as the eye could see, more than a hundred ships of the Great Fleet filled the bay in dense turns.

"The world's No. 1 fleet ......"

Churchill muttered quietly, took off the Cuban cigar from his mouth, turned to the commander of the Ocean Fleet, Admiral John Jericho, and asked, "Have you all the troops you need for the operation?" ”

"Yes, look over here—"

"Including this ship, the 4 aircraft carrier squadrons of the Rear Admiral Hood assault force, a total of 3 aircraft carriers, 6 fast water carriers, 220 carrier-based aircraft, /.2 destroyers, and 16 destroyers, are now all ready."

"Over there - Vice Admiral Jeram's 1st Battleship Squadron, Vice Admiral Study's 2nd Battleship Squadron, and Rear Admiral Thomas's 4th Battleship Squadron, a total of 24 Dreadnought battleships/10 cruisers, 50 destroyers, I will be in the 1st [(. main force, as a solid backup for the assault force."

"Over there - Vice Admiral Betty's mobile force, two squadrons of 7 battle cruisers, with 8 light cruisers and 21 destroyers, will clear the enemy patrol forces before the assault force arrives at the attack position, and cover the main force into the decisive battle in due course."

"There are also 19 minesweepers, 27 submarines, 3 large attack airships and 2 airships from other bases to cooperate in the operation......"

Churchill listened silently, took a puff on his cigar, and asked coldly, "What do you think is the key to this battle?" ”

"Aviation attack."

"Well, don't you want to be Nelson's second?"

Jericho smiled slightly: "Nelson's spirit is worth inheriting, but the Nelson era has passed. I did not think that my task was to annihilate the German fleet, but to lock it up in the North Sea, to ensure the unimpeded flow of Britain's maritime lifelines to all parts of the world. ”

"I'm glad you think so, but now we have no choice, this time, if not to annihilate the German fleet, at least to leave it immobile for 6 months." Churchill said this, and turned to Major General Horace Hood, who was accompanying him.

"Are you sure?"

"Rest assured, all torpedoes equipped with mine protection net cutters have been distributed. A week ago, 8 out of 10 torpedoes successfully hit the target ship through the mine net. The ship-based Cuckoo attack aircraft can fly 350,400 miles (560-640 km) in one breath with this 18-inch 457 mm torpedo or three 250 (560-640 km) bombs, the SCHOTT S184 can carry smaller 14-inch torpedoes or 3100 (454 kg) bombs to fly 560 miles continuously, and the Camel and Seal Cub fighters are equipped with auxiliary fuel tanks that are sufficient to cover the attack aircraft for the whole time...... In short, the assault force can guarantee a 100-mile sortie in three hours, carrying inch torpedoes and 30 14-inch torpedoes to strike the enemy fleet in the air. Chase, to Churchill's satisfaction.

"It's not that I'm impatient with the North Sea war, but the British Empire can't afford to lose ......India anyway," Churchill said with a wry smile, holding up his cigar.

The combat operations of the Royal Navy's Ocean Fleet in the North Sea began according to a plan drawn up before the war. The main focus was on a far-reaching blockade of Germany, which covered the 120,000 square nautical miles of the North Sea, the Strait of Dover and the English Channel. Seven cruiser patrol areas were established, and each cruiser detachment was supported by the main force and submarines to conduct regular reconnaissance, and due to the frequent activities of German submarines, the main force of the Ocean Fleet once retreated from Scapavlo to the ports on the west coast of Britain, which gave the German fleet the opportunity to launch a "small war" aimed at gradually depleting the British naval strength.

In the course of 1914, the German submarine forces were insuccessful, sinking four cruisers, boats, several merchant ships and dozens of trawlers in just 9 to 10 parts. The surface ship forces, which were mainly light forces, frequently attacked the British coastal zone and laid offensive mine obstacles along the British coast, but the German High Command also adhered to the principle of "presence of the fleet". For the time being, there is no intention to use the main forces - this is largely influenced by the naval battle of Helgoland.

In 828, in order to cover the landing of the army in France, the British high command decided to rush to the Gulf of Helgoland, the main base of the German Navy in the North Sea, and the Ocean Fleet almost poured out: the 2 light cruisers of the Truitt fleet and the destroyers of the 35 fleet were used as assault forces. Break into the bay first; Betty's fleet of 5+7 light cruisers as support troops, followed by the response; Jericho personally led the main force, including the aircraft carrier force, to press the formation 200 miles away.

The Betty fleet battlecruisers played a key role in the battle, and the ill-prepared Germans lost 3 light cruisers, 1 destroyer and 1 minesweeper in 6 hours. people, 2 cruisers and 3 destroyers of the British army were wounded, casualties were less than a hundred.

After this battle, the Kaiser ordered a ban on large warships, including light cruisers, sailing out of the Helgoland Bay without his approval, and the few sorties since then have not yielded any meaningful results, and the British naval blockade has become increasingly tight, and the maritime trade between Germany and neutral countries has gradually been cut off.

At this time, the East Asian Alliance, which I don't know what to do, got involved, and it was a big deal at first, Pearl Harbor brought down the US fleet, and Lingayan disabled the four-nation combined fleet.

If this continues, India, the crown jewel of the British Empire, is really in jeopardy, and if India loses it, the Middle East and Africa will not be guaranteed, and the day when the East Asian Alliance and Turkey will join forces is not far off.

Churchill was both resentful and annoyed by this, and while angrily scolding the yellow monkey for being vile and shameless, he had to reluctantly cancel the Battle of Dardanelle, which he had dreamed of and diligently planned, and in his view, the defeat of the Combined East Asian Fleet should be the primary goal of the Allied navies in the future.

However, simply canceling the Battle of Dardanelles could not muster enough forces to deal with the East Asian Combined Fleet, and the most fundamental solution to this problem was to strike at the German High Seas Fleet, which directly threatened the British mainland, weaken its strength, dampen its morale, and make it unable to fight again for a period of time.