"3 directions! Unidentified aircraft approaching! ”

The lookout's hurried report interrupted the two men's insincere argument.

Sano looked at his pocket watch: "It shouldn't be our plane, the reconnaissance plane of the Nagara will not be back for another 15 minutes." ”

"Signal to confirm."

"Yes!"

Soon, two red flares hit the air, but there was no response.

"There is no response, it's an enemy plane, the order, the whole team is ready for air defense!"

The black smoke of the airburst bomb polluted a large area of clear blue sky in the blink of an eye, and the enemy plane, seeing that the situation was not good, quickly climbed high and turned around, hiding in the white and fluffy clouds like cotton candy in the distance.

Sano got anxious: "Oh no, we were also discovered...... Commander, what to do? ”

Matsumura snorted through his nose, "There's nothing surprising, in fact, we were discovered when we drove Rabaul." ”

Sano patted his forehead: "I see, that's why I touched it so accurately......"

"Isn't there any news from the Oje's reconnaissance plane?"

"It's past the time limit for communication, and I haven't received a report yet......"

Matsumura frowned: "There is no time, send a telegram to Commander Gu - this team has been discovered by enemy aircraft, it is estimated that the enemy has set up an ambush in front, after weighing and considering, this commander immediately led the team to Rabaul, and Commander Wanggui led the team to transfer together after receiving the report, and the team will meet with the ship group at the 3rd assembly point." ”

"Commander, the commander-in-chief of this operation is Commander Gu, if we act without permission......"

Matsumura raised his chin slightly: "We are not obliged to be martyred for the down-and-out warlords of other countries, just send it like this, I will bear the responsibility!" ”

"Report! Nanyuan A call! ”

"Read."

"Due to the sudden change in the enemy's situation, it was decided to suspend the operation, and the whole army was transferred to Rabaul - the commander of the front army according to the 3 plan. Look at. ”

Sano breathed a sigh of relief: "Okay, this way, we don't have to bear the charge of acting without permission." ”

Matsumura disagreed: "Originally, our judgment was correct, and what is the crime of taking the right action according to the correct judgment?" Being led by the nose by an army layman is really a shame for naval soldiers! ”

"Understood!"

Seventy nautical miles southwest of the Kaga, a group of flown rice flags and rice stars.: > slowly sailed north, and on the open-air flybridge of one of the former dreadnoughts flying the vice admiral's flag, stood a medium-sized, blue-eyed and high-nosed white-clothed general, who was none other than George Bryan, commander of the combined fleet of the Royal Navy and the Australian Navy (the British and Australian Combined Fleet).

At this moment. Brian was leaning his head over the railing, looking at the sea antenna to the north, as if expecting something to pop up.

Before the East Asian Alliance entered the war, the basic strength of the Royal Australian Navy was a new light cruiser of 55,000 tons, lacking capital ships and destroyers, after the Battle of Lingayen, Britain urgently sent a team of 2 cruisers, 3 ships 3700~: galloping to aid Australia, and the Australian army formed a joint Anglo-Australian fleet. During this period, a number of submarines and the Australian cruiser "Melbourne" were lost, but the results were very limited. On the contrary, it was the Allied side that broke up diplomatic relations with the participation of the German navy, which posed a greater threat to the Anglo-Australian sea lines of communication.

The great success of Operation Kiel and the accession of the Italian Navy. Greatly improving the maritime situation in the Treaty, the British High Command revised its operational plan for the defense of India and Australia, preparing to defend the Indian Ocean with the Anglo-French-Dutch-American Combined Fleet under the command of Jellicoe, and the Anglo-Australian Combined Fleet to defend the Australian side with a greatly strengthened force.

It was at the beginning of the 3rd that Brian led a detachment that included 6 ex-dreadnoughts battleships

Eight destroyers and a number of auxiliary ships towed the destroyers across the ocean from the ships Gibraltar and armored cruisers, and resupplied them via the British Virgin Islands in the Caribbean, the British Falkland Islands in the South Atlantic, and Wellington in New Zealand, and arrived at Port Moresby in early June, where they joined and regrouped with the forces assembled earlier, with Brian as the commander of the fleet.

—

In 615, Brian received a report from a British submarine deployed near the port of Rabaul that an East Asian fleet of 46 former dreadnoughts had been spotted leaving Rabaul. Sail south. A few hours later, a medium-sized convoy of transports, directly protected by a relatively strong surface force, had been spotted out of the port of Rabaul, following the previous fleet southward!

Despite a three-month voyage halfway around the world, Brian and his reinforcements remained motivated, thanks in large part to the global network of Royal Navy bases and merchant fleets. The fleet didn't have to worry about fuel and supplies along the way, and the accompanying supply ships carried plenty of ammunition and spare parts, and Brian didn't have to skimp on ammunition. During the voyage, a number of live-fire exercises were also conducted, which was very different from the "suffering voyage" of the Russian Second Pacific Fleet in the Asian-Russian War.

Although the main combat forces of the fleet are outdated former dreadnoughts, they are all "youths" completed after the Asian-Russian War and the ships are only about ten years old, including the 14,000-ground "Queen" class in 2 standard rows and the "Edward VII" class with 4 tons - the former has a maximum speed of 18 knots and is equipped with 440-fold diameter 12-inch (305 m) main guns, 126-inch, 1412-inch and 63-pounder rapid-fire guns; The latter had a maximum speed of 18-19 knots and was equipped with a 12-inch (234 mm) second-class gun, as well as 10 6-inch, 1412-pounder and 14 3-rapid-fire guns.

Next to the six battleships were four 813-year-old armored cruisers: the "Cressey" class "The Hague" and "Bacchus", and the Warrior class "Warrior" and "Achilles" completed in 1906-07. The "Cressey" class has a standard row of 12000, a maximum speed of 2-22 knots, and is armed with a 292-inch main gun, 12 6-inch and 33-pounder rapid-fire guns. The "Warrior" class standard platoon is 13350, equipped with a 69-point 2-inch main gun, 4 7.5-inch second-class main guns, and 26 guns.

After the modification, the 4 "Edward VII" class each carried 2 water planes, and the 2 "Warrior" class each carried 1 water plane, in addition, the Australian Army's remnant "M" class and the 2 "Birmingham" class new light cruisers can also each carry one water plane, and in total, the fleet can carry up to 14 water planes to attack.

Long before Bryan received the report, the British intelligence agencies predicted through comprehensive analysis that the East Asian coalition forces were about to attack Australian Papua, and roughly estimated the possible strength of the East Asian coalition forces, and the report on the 15th confirmed the British side's earlier prediction, and the British high command decisively led Vice Admiral En to lead the main force of the fleet to attack, intercept and destroy the transport fleet of the East Asian army, and thwart the enemy's attempt.

Knowing himself and his opponent, Brian now knows the enemy's intentions and force composition, and all that remains is the enemy's current position, course, and speed—the naval forces carried by the fleet and the submarine cordon deployed in advance in front of the fleet will serve as extended eyes and ears to obtain these tactical information.

"Report! Achilles' reconnaissance plane is calling! ”

Hearing the loud voice of the communications staff officer, Brian's face flashed with a victor's smile in advance.