What the hell is a private enterprise?

Chapter 253 (1600 monthly votes in April)

Philadelphia Shipyard.

Under the East Coast sun, the 50,000-ton battleship USS New Jersey sounded its horn, and the seawater rippled as it broke through the waves.

Big J departed again.

The USS New Jersey's nickname is NJ, and within the Navy, it is affectionately known as "Big J," meaning "Big J."

The Iowa-class, as the last class of battleships of the Empire, was second only to the Yamato-class in overall quality, and four were actually built.

When the Second Fleet headed north, the USS New Jersey was in the best condition after its maintenance, followed by the Iowa-class destroyers, and then the USS Wisconsin.

As for the famous USS Missouri, although it is also preparing to enter the decommissioning process, it is theoretically still combat-capable. However, it is currently on the West Coast and there is no time to wait.

Conversely, the other three sisters are all located on the east coast and are clustered together, close to two well-known shipyards, making deployment much easier.

On the 25th, then-Secretary of the Navy Dalton was already calculating how many warships could be deployed.

At that time, although there were many aircraft carriers, they were either deployed overseas or undergoing maintenance and retirement. In particular, there was a large wave of retirements of conventional aircraft carriers in the early 90s, and it was impossible to restart them in a short period of time. However, there was a newly built aircraft carrier, the USS George, which was commissioned in 92 and was absolutely cutting-edge. With sufficient auxiliary ships, an aircraft carrier battle group could be assembled at any time.

If the Second Fleet is indeed a historically accurate representation of the force, then the USS George carrier strike group has an overwhelming advantage.

But what if they don't fight? That's the norm.

In fact, blocking each other's way and closely interfering with each other is the daily routine of the navy; no madman would actually think of launching a missile.

Sending aircraft from the USS George is fine, but getting too close to the Second Fleet would be suicidal. Even the slightest scratch would be painful, let alone the Ticonderoga-class cruisers and Perry-class frigates under 10,000 tons.

Fortunately, the proposal to retain the battleships was discussed again last year. The three Iowa-class battleships had sufficient personnel and supplies and could still play a role.

Moreover, these three battleships have undergone modernization and each carries dozens of missiles, making them comparable to the Second Fleet in both quantity and quality.

于是一支由3艘衣阿华级战列舰、1艘核航母、2条盾巡洋舰和4条护卫舰，共10条战舰组成的加强特混大西洋舰队临时组建。

"Mr. Dalton, is this really..."

On the bridge of the USS New Jersey, Captain Edwin looked at Dalton, unsure of what to say.

The latter, dressed in a uniform reserved for formal occasions, unceremoniously took over his command position.

Dalton: "Shut up. This is a battle involving seven capital ships. I must be in charge."

Edwin: "..."

A 4v3 battleship duel is indeed a famous battle, but there's no need for you to come up and fight for the command position, is there?
Dalton was very cunning. He announced the list of task force commanders at the last minute—himself. By the time the outside world found out, he had already landed on the USS New Jersey by helicopter and used it as the flagship.

So, perhaps it could be called the "Great J Fleet" now?

……

Beijing.

The news of the Atlantic Task Force's departure from Norfolk could not be kept secret and it flew to all parts of the world in the blink of an eye.

In the Strategic Relations Research Room, Lao Zhang laid a map flat on the table, then drew the curtains. There were seven or eight people smoking around him.

The modern-class destroyer was ultimately not introduced.

The Sovremenny-class destroyer is indeed inferior to the Type 052 destroyer. The order was placed because of the urgent need for it. However, with the establishment of the Type 962 destroyer, also known as the new Type 055 destroyer, the import plan was halted after various considerations.

Fortunately, after arduous negotiations, the two types of radar needed were successfully imported into China, and he immediately flew back.

The Atlantic nautical chart was covered with small flags and makeshift warship models.

"Have you still not been able to contact Tang Wen?"

"He went abroad and didn't answer the phone."

With Tang Wen absent, the information the research lab received was actually quite similar to that abroad, placing them on the same level.

Upon learning of the deployment of the Atlantic Task Force, Old Zhang measured a distance in the North Atlantic and set down a large teacup:

"On the morning of the 28th local time, which is tomorrow afternoon, it is highly likely that the four warships of the Second Fleet will encounter the Guinness destroyer Dubre in Natal, Brazil."

At this time, the Atlantic task force was approximately 1500 kilometers away, and the European fleet, which had departed from Gibraltar, was 2500 kilometers away.

Natal is the far right corner of Bassin. After crossing this corner, their target can be clearly identified based on the Second Fleet's course. "They really take it seriously."

"Two fleets, one large and two small, totaling 15 warships with a total tonnage of approximately 300,000 tons."

Old Zhang: "Tang Wen is right. After this move, the world's main forces will be searching for South Mei and Antarctica. With the size of the Second Fleet, it's at least the culmination of ten years of accumulation by a medium-sized power."

Unlike the army, the navy and air force often have a three- to five-year cycle for building a large ship, except for Geijin, of course.

It is now generally known in China that Geiger's shipbuilding technology is extremely advanced. The Algeria appears to be completed from the outside, but it was built right under their noses in just one month, making it a 10,000-ton cruiser.

At this rate, it might only take half a year to build a battleship.

When will the dredgers be sent to the Spratly Islands?

"Tang Wen should have made arrangements, but he's still in the port right now."

"How long do you think the Second Fleet can hold out?"

The previously lively atmosphere immediately fell silent, and it took a long time before someone spoke:

"It's a battleship after all. It can withstand five or six heavy missiles without any problem. If they are light missiles launched from aircraft, it can withstand even more. Then consider the hit rate. Half a day?"

"I think an hour is enough."

"No matter what, this is a 200,000-ton navy."

Everyone immediately began to sigh. Knowing in advance that the 20-ton warship was about to sink was more heartbreaking than not knowing it at all.

Someone suggested, "Let's buy Hanover. It's a 100,000-ton battleship. We can't just take it out and destroy it like that."

"The hull design of the Hanover ship was too wasteful."

"We don't have the money! Where would we get the money to buy this thing? We don't even have enough manpower!"

"But a 100,000-ton, 30-knot hull, even if converted into an aircraft carrier, wouldn't be a loss; it would be a perfect solution in one step."

When this super-giant ship was mentioned, people immediately became lively again and started to happily digress.

……

At 7 p.m. on the 27th, the USS Dubreuil rechecked the position of the Second Fleet's forward detachment.

Captain Bertrand and First Officer François contacted the Yellowstone again to confirm that the submarine was in good condition.

"At this rate, we will contact them at 8 a.m. tomorrow instead of in the afternoon."

"35 knots? That's terrifying! Damn, is that really a World War II warship? We can only crawl at 20 knots!"

"By the way, don't you have satellite photos of that destroyer?"

Bertrand suddenly asked a question, and François replied:

"We can't find any satellite or aerial photos, but it certainly won't stray too far from the formation, as destroyers have a very short range."

"I think we still need to be prepared."

Bertrand was very cautious. He glanced at his watch and said:
"Let's all go and rest, and we'll make preparations at five in the morning."

After all, it was one against four, so the two of them were inevitably a little nervous and rationally returned to the bridge to rest.

Late at night, the servants' frantic knocking on the door woke the two who had just fallen into a deep sleep.

Bertrand pushed open the door and saw a servant whose face was deathly pale and bloodless. The servant said tremblingly:

"Captain, we have encountered an unknown small warship."

"Is it earlier than expected? Is it six or seven o'clock now? It can't be five o'clock, can it? That would be too fast."

The servant was almost in tears: "It's 23:35 p.m., and you've only been asleep for less than four hours."

"This is impossible!"

(End of this chapter)