The engagement off the coast of San Diego had reached a critical juncture, at least for the Spanish fleet.

The battle between the two Garibaldi-class cruisers and the two Pennsylvania-class cruisers continued, with both sides trying to throw their shells at each other with the precision they could.

Some people may want to ask, isn't there another Maria Teresa-class patrol, why didn't you see it?

In fact, it is very simple, in view of the fact that the Maria Teresa class did not perform well on the battlefield, she was directly sent by Colonel Ramos to support the two Venice classes. In the face of the seven protective cruisers of the United States, the pressure on the two Venetian classes is too great, although the Maria Teresa class performance is not very good on the battlefield of this 10,000-ton loading patrol (the 7000-ton loading cruiser needs to ensure a speed of 20 knots, and it is necessary to make certain concessions in fire protection), but in the face of the protective cruisers, it can be played.

"Boom, boom!"

A new salvo of the two Garibaldi-class ships began, and 13 254-mm shells, after a distance of three thousand meters, either fell into the sea, or plunged headlong into the hull of the USS Pennsylvania or New Jersey, and the violent explosion caused great damage to both ships.

The two Garibaldi-class ships were also bombarded by the Pennsylvania and the New Jersey, and their 305 mm main guns and 152 mm secondary guns were also constantly counterattacking the Columbus and Francisco.

After a long exchange of fire, the two Garibaldi-class patrols were damaged, including the Columbus No. 3 main gun turret was damaged and could not be used, and the Francisco also had a 254 mm gun barrel broken. In addition to the main guns, as for the 76-mm guns and 57-mm guns, the losses were quite large.

In addition to the loss of artillery, the loss of the Columbus's hull was not small, and many of its armor plates were knocked off. However, the most serious injury was the huge gap under the bow, which was hit by the 305 mm main gun on the Pennsylvania, and this gap also caused the bow of the Columbus to enter dozens of tons of water, and also reduced Columbus's speed.

As for the Francisco, the situation is not much different from that of the Columbus, and the losses are not small.

Of course, the Pennsylvania and the New Jersey were not doing well, and their losses were no less than those of the two Garibaldi-class cruisers.

However, although the two seemed to be similarly injured, the officers and men of the Pennsylvania and the New Jersey were terrified, because they both saw the strong combat effectiveness of the two Garibaldi-class armored cruisers. After fighting for so long, the three Maria Teresa-class patrols are purely a number. It was these two ships that really caused them great damage, but they realized it too late, or rather a little less lucky.

No, a 254-millimeter shell fired from the USS Francisco slammed into the right side of the New Jersey with a terrible scream. Without any suspense, the shell tore through the upper layer of 102 mm thick armor and exploded inside the hull.

The immense energy released by high explosives. The temperature and pressure of the surrounding air were raised to terrifying proportions in an instant, and the fiery red waves of surging air carried a large number of irregular twisted shrapnel and liquid metal into the sky, spewing like a hurricane volcano.

More than a dozen American sailors didn't even have time to snort before they were instantly swallowed by high-temperature shrapnel, and in an instant, their limbs flew sideways, and blood sprayed like a flash flood. The violent explosion also swept through the adjacent cabin, and the flames swept wildly, and the steel armor shattered, and it was a mess.

The massive hull of the New Jersey shook violently, making a heart-palpitating tearing sound, and smoke billowed out of the hole. It looks extremely embarrassing and poignant.

It is clear that the USS New Jersey was hit hard.

"Let the USS New Jersey retreat immediately, and we'll cover its evacuation. In addition, a telegram was sent to Major General Samplin that our patrol formation had failed, and he was asked to consider it carefully. ”

Seeing that the New Jersey had been heavily damaged, Colonel Simpson immediately ordered it to evacuate. A heavily damaged patrol can't continue to stay, and needs to leave quickly.

As for the only one warship left of him, he will try his best to drag the other two ships, for which he has the consciousness of sacrificing here. Of course, if he didn't die here, then he would let the fools in the battleship design department know what happened to the officers and sailors of the Navy who drove the garbage of their design.

Colonel Simpson's displeasure, Rear Admiral Samplin on the Oregon was deeply touched. "Damn, the performance gap between this battleship is too big."

Before his eyes, the BM2 shallow water heavy gunboat was already scarred.

Speaking of which, the three shallow-water heavy gunboats were also unlucky enough, they were first used as bait, and then they ended up fighting with the battery. Then, after attracting the Spanish fleet to fight, the three shallow water heavy gunboats hurried over, but due to the distance between the two sides of the battle, the three shallow water heavy gunboats could only run at a maximum speed of 10 knots, so it took a little longer.

But when they arrived at the battlefield, they were a little dumbfounded, the battlefield was divided into three parts, and they didn't know which part to start with. At this time, the Indiana caused heavy damage, and Rear Admiral Samplin hurriedly asked it to rush over and take over.

Major General Samplin was very dissatisfied with the performance of the Indiana class on the battlefield, especially after comparing it with the opposite Turin class. Before the Spanish battleships exchanged fire, he believed that although the Indiana-class battleships were not very good, they would not be too bad in performance, and the chances of the American fleet winning were still quite high depending on the large number of cruisers.

However, his idea has lost hope in the battle so far. The gap between the two sides is quite large, and in addition to the performance of the warships, the training of officers and men, as well as the command, are much higher than their own fleets. If it weren't for the superiority in tonnage and the number of warships, the defeat would have come much faster.

But now, he needs to think about it for the US Navy, and this naval battle has done its best.

"Send a message to the BM3 and BM5 ships and let them drag the enemy. In addition, a telegram was sent to the third formation, telling them to prepare for evacuation. ”

True, after the loss of several battleships, even Rear Admiral Samplin had to admit that this naval battle could not be won, and the issue of retreat had to be considered.

And with his order, the two shallow-water heavy artillery battleships, which knew that they were abandoned, could only come forward.

"Rise to the occasion, lads, we have no way back. The Spaniards have nothing to fear, our 10-inch guns can knock through the opponent's armor! "An officer inspires his subordinates.

Seeing the two shallow water heavy artillery battleships coming up, Vice Admiral Cedra glanced at the two Turin-class battleships under his command. Now the two ships are scarred, and the artillery alone has lost 3 356 mm main guns, 9 152 mm secondary guns, and finally 76 mm guns and 47 mm guns, which is a lot of losses.

Of course, in addition to the loss of naval guns, the hull is also full of holes, but near the most important waterline, it is intact, which also makes the power of the two ships not damaged. Even the damaged Turin-class is not something that two shallow-water heavy gunboats can humiliate. True, Lieutenant General Cedra considered it humiliating.

"Sink them."

Following the order of Vice Admiral Sedra, the two Turin-class battleships immediately turned their guns to the two shallow-water heavy gunboats.

"Fire!"

With an order, more than 20 large-caliber guns of the two battleships spewed out tongues of fire into the distance, and the orange flames and gunpowder smoke at the muzzles of the guns were connected. THE 427-KILOGRAM SHELL FLEW AT AN INITIAL VELOCITY OF MORE THAN 700 METERS, AND FLEW OVER THE 3.5-KILOMETER-WIDE SEA IN LESS THAN SIX SECONDS, ENVELOPING THE TWO SHALLOW-WATER HEAVY GUNBOATS IN A COLUMN OF WATER.

Five minutes later, a 427KG 14-inch shell plunged headlong into the middle deck of the bm3 shallow water heavy gunboat! The 6-inch Harvey nickel steel armor simply could not block a blow from a 14-inch armor-piercing bullet.

The hardened body easily tore through the armor and plunged headlong into the middle deck. After passing through 2 chambers, explode at a distance of about one chamber from the flue!

More than a dozen kilograms of explosives, mixed with shrapnel and hull fragments, turned the surroundings into a burning purgatory. The high-velocity debris easily shredded the compartment walls, while the blast wave and fire from the explosion spread in all directions with the breach, billowing smoke billowing from the amidships of the BM3's hull.

"Open fire, fight back against the Spaniards." The American gunners cursed as they operated the guns.

But those 10-inch heavy guns that give people a sense of security are not as good as people think, and the American-made 10-inch 35L guns are very backward in nature, and even the propellant is still maroon gunpowder. The rudimentary turrets, poor feeding and reloading systems, and the smoke that lingered after firing made these 10-inch guns uneffective.

Countless 356-mm and 152-mm shells rained down on the American battleship, and in less than 5 minutes, the BM3 was hit by at least 3 large-caliber shells, and each 356mm shell was like a hammer, constantly hitting the BM3's fragile hull.

I saw a huge fireball smash into the bridge of the BM3. The flames of the shell exploded rapidly, almost completely covering the bridge of the small BM3. With a crackling sound and a constant hit of cannonballs, the wooden part of the BM3 bridge quickly turned to ashes, and the steel supports softened and bent in the flames! A tooth-aching creak under heavy pressure. The days of the BM3 shallow water heavy gunboat are running out.

And when BM3 was destroyed, BM5 was about to follow in its footsteps.

BM5 was also hit hard, destroying all the guns on the flanks and pouring in a large amount of seawater from the sideline. Pushing down the already inadequate freeboard, the flames and smoke on the bridge less than five feet from the waterline had turned the ship into purgatory.

From time to time, American officers and soldiers covered in fire jumped into the water, and as the sea water flowed through the damaged compartment into the engine room, the boiler, which had been overwhelmed, finally shut down. The large amount of steam that poured out of the breach seemed to be the last sigh of the dead.

Immediately, the entire battleship slowly tilted to the left, and finally quickly sank, and the entire bottom of the ship was upside down on the sea, surrounded by struggling U.S. Navy personnel, dying struggles, hysterical cries and cries for help.

The two shallow-water heavy gunboats were destroyed after only holding off for more than 20 minutes, and even the Oregon did not go far.

"Catch up, you can't let the ship go."

Under the orders of Vice Admiral Sedra, the two Turin-class ships increased their speed and pursued the Oregon.

Although the speed of 16 knots is not fast, it is different against the backdrop of the battleship USS Oregon at 13 knots.

"Let the ships evacuate quickly, and we will hold off the opponent."

Seeing that he couldn't escape, Rear Admiral Samplin was also ruthless, and he said that he wanted the US Navy to retain more vitality.

"Report, Colonel Ramos reports, they have defeated the enemy patrol formation, sank 3 Pennsylvania-class, 1 New York-class cruiser, and escaped with serious injuries, now ask for instructions."

Vice Admiral Sedra, who was pursuing the enemy ship, immediately ordered when he heard the good news. "Send a telegram to Colonel Ramos and allow him to pursue the fleeing U.S. ship until it gets dark."

After allowing Colonel Ramos to pursue, Lieutenant General Sedra stared at the Oregon, which was preparing for a desperate battle, and laughed. "It seems that the enemy wants a decent end, then we will give them a decent end."

As the two warships approached, both sides continued to project tons of ammunition at each other, and this is the time to compete in firepower and protection to see who can overwhelm the other first. There is nothing fancy about this kind of collision, and everything is based on strength. And in this kind of high-intensity confrontation, the Indiana-class Oregon is fundamentally lacking.

The two shallow-water heavy gunboats were destroyed after only holding off for more than 20 minutes, and even the Oregon did not go far.

"Catch up, you can't let the ship go."

Under the orders of Vice Admiral Sedra, the two Turin-class ships increased their speed and pursued the Oregon.

Although the speed of 16 knots is not fast, it is different against the backdrop of the battleship USS Oregon at 13 knots.

"Let the ships evacuate quickly, and we will hold off the opponent."

Seeing that he couldn't escape, Rear Admiral Samplin was also ruthless, and he said that he wanted the US Navy to retain more vitality.

"Report, Colonel Ramos reports, they have defeated the enemy patrol formation, sank 3 Pennsylvania-class, 1 New York-class cruiser, and escaped with serious injuries, now ask for instructions."

Vice Admiral Sedra, who was pursuing the enemy ship, immediately ordered when he heard the good news. "Send a telegram to Colonel Ramos and allow him to pursue the fleeing U.S. ship until it gets dark."

After allowing Colonel Ramos to pursue, Lieutenant General Sedra stared at the Oregon, which was preparing for a desperate battle, and laughed. "It seems that the enemy wants a decent end, then we will give them a decent end."

As the two warships approached, both sides continued to project tons of ammunition at each other, and this is the time to compete in firepower and protection to see who can overwhelm the other first. There is nothing fancy about this kind of collision, and everything is based on strength. And in this kind of high-intensity confrontation, the Indiana-class Oregon is fundamentally lacking.

After allowing Colonel Ramos to pursue, Lieutenant General Sedra stared at the Oregon, which was preparing for a desperate battle, and laughed. "It seems that the enemy wants a decent end, then we will give them a decent end."

As the two warships approached, both sides continued to project tons of ammunition at each other, and this is the time to compete in firepower and protection to see who can overwhelm the other first. There is nothing fancy about this kind of collision, and everything is based on strength. And in this kind of high-intensity confrontation, the Indiana-class Oregon is fundamentally lacking.