What the hell is a private enterprise?

Chapter 261 Ten Minutes of Chaos

Before Dalton could recover from the loss of two seaplanes, he witnessed the attack on the Carl and its subsequent explosion.

He immediately realized that the frigate might have caused the misjudgment, but it was too late.

With only 16mm of cardboard armor, the Carl could still launch a powerful counterattack at full speed by maintaining distance, relying on its maneuverability and accurate shooting.

But at such close range, the MK75 naval gun, firing at a rate of 0.7 seconds per round, is practically like a machine gun.

Thanks to advancements in high-caliber barrels and propellant charges, modern naval guns' 76mm shells possess penetration and destructive power that are in no way inferior to the 149mm guns of the USS Carl.

Within 10 seconds, the McClusky fired 14 shells and the Clarkling fired 9, all hitting the critical midships area, as well as the core engine and ammunition compartments.

The USS Carl was rendered incapable of resistance almost instantly, but the two escorting frigates immediately realized the problem:

They were so close.

Even if the area of ​​the secondary explosion was small, the expansion of the gas cloud affected the two frigates in an instant, causing most of the electronic equipment to malfunction instantly, and the hulls were also damaged.

Then came the black smoke from the explosion and spread of fuel and ammunition, which completely obscured them.

Edwin tried to call them, but couldn't get in touch at all.

Tang Wen originally did not intend to start a heated conflict, but he could not accept such rapid losses.

The three battleships immediately dispersed and activated their high-speed smoke generators, instantly engulfed in expanding smoke. The Bismarck's top speed increased to 41 knots within 30 seconds, while the Scharnhorst and Gleisenau increased to 39 knots, using speed and concealment to avoid being suddenly attacked by concentrated fire.

[Commander: Open fire freely, launch a full-scale counterattack!]

With the Carl sunk at the speed of light, Tang Wen couldn't just sit idly by and gave orders to retaliate.

"Command confirmed!"

Bismarck and the ship girl shouted almost simultaneously.

The first to fire were the three battleships' densely packed 105mm and 150mm secondary guns. The already loaded secondary guns opened fire one after another, and dozens of shells broke through the smoke and headed straight for the Iowa battleship formation.

"Fire!"

Dalton felt continuous vibrations coming from the ship's hull, and the USS New Jersey began to retaliate without his order.

In fact, when the USS Carl exploded, all three battleships simultaneously began to accelerate and rotate their turrets, choosing to create distance between themselves.

Even if it was a misunderstanding, it can't be cleared up now!
Aircraft carriers and air support take time; for now, we can only rely on ourselves to withstand the first wave.

The Iowa-class destroyers, whether in terms of armor, artillery, or modern technology, can only be fully utilized at a greater distance. With a current distance of only six or seven kilometers, it's entirely possible that a novice could defeat a seasoned master.

The three twin 127mm gun turrets on the side of the USS New Jersey were immediately activated. Although their numbers were far fewer, with the assistance of fire control radar, their accuracy was much better than that of the Second Fleet's secondary guns.

Even if the smoke rendered visual observation ineffective, the radar still functioned, pinpointing the ambiguous location.

The outer secondary guns of the New Jersey and Wisconsin locked onto the largest Bismarck, firing 24 5-inch high-explosive shells in 10 seconds.

The crisp sound of cannon fire and the clanging of 150mm and 105mm shells hitting the water were incessant, and more shells landed in the surrounding sea, splashing up sprays of water.

Sailors still on the bridge ran frantically, and alarms were sounded in all areas.

Just then, a dozen brief cavities appeared in the swirling smoke in the distance.

Six or seven seconds later, everyone heard a crisp and penetrating sound, like some kind of heavy impact.

"It's the main gun!"

Edwin immediately knew that it was the Second Fleet's main guns firing, but he didn't understand how to correct the shot in the smoke.

If it were a blind firing, the first volley of shells would definitely miss... His body collided heavily with Dalton's.

[1x Overpenetration, 1x Penetration, 3x Ricochet]

[2x Over-penetration, 1x Not Penetrated]

[2x Over-penetration, 4x Not Penetrated]

Three notifications sounded, one from Bismarck, one from Gleisenau, and one from Scharnhorst.

German warships have poor dispersion, and coupled with their aiming angles, the three Iowa-class ships are not positioned horizontally, so the damage they inflict is not high.

The largest caliber Bismarck and Gleisenau guns were only 380 mm, with 6 out of 14 hits. The Scharnhorst had 9 283 mm guns, and although it hit 6 out of 9, its penetration was too poor, and it was directly deflected by the thick armor of the New Jersey.

This round of damage can only be described as gua sha (scraping therapy).

Bismarck and the ship girls immediately communicated and reached an agreement. Bismarck and Gneisenau spread out to the sides, close in and attempted to attack the sides of the ships, while Scharnhorst maintained its course and used its 20-second reload rate of fire to maximize its projectile output and disrupt the Iowa formation.

The three plumes of smoke quickly dispersed, and the USS New Jersey, which was under concentrated fire, felt hit by multiple missiles and was so frightened that it immediately corrected its course, turning its stern toward the Second Fleet to reduce its projected area.

Dalton didn't know the exact number, but judging from the constant vibrations the ship was subjected to, it had taken at least seven or eight large-caliber shells!

Fortunately, most of them were deflected by the armor belt, and the rest only hit the deck and insignificant areas, but still caused a great deal of intimidation.

The people on the bridge were shaken so badly they could barely stand and could only cling tightly to whatever was around them.

Even if three warships concentrated their fire, could they hit so accurately in the first round?

But it was their incredible accuracy that saved them from disaster; otherwise, if half of the shells had landed on the superstructure, the command center would have been immediately shut down.

The smoke from the USS New Jersey was not ignored by the other two battleships, and Edwin immediately shouted:

"Spread out, create distance, and engage the enemy at the stern. Their firing accuracy is extremely high. Fire! Fire! Disrupt their rhythm!"

The USS New Jersey was not fatally damaged, but all the crew members felt the sword of Damocles hanging over their heads.

If it were the original USS New Jersey, we might be able to grit our teeth and engage in a close-quarters battle. However, after modernization, several Iowa-class ships not only had many secondary guns removed, but also had several missile launchers placed on their open decks.

If they were attacked and detonated, the destructive power would be unimaginable.

"Bang bang bang, bang bang bang!"

Before the turn was complete, the Wisconsin returned fire with its No. 2 and No. 3 turrets, which were in position first, and six 406 mm shells were fired at the nearest Bismarck.

Unlike the Second Fleet's turrets firing simultaneously, they used six gun barrels firing in turn, each unleashing a burst of flame, before turning away to create distance.

The loading chamber was filled with the smoke of gunpowder packs, and the ammunition hoist in the No. 3 turret of the USS Wisconsin was feeding shells again.

The gunner, a strong Black man, was coughing and shouting angrily:
"Damn it, the propellant is older than me!"

A heavy armor-piercing shell is automatically pushed into the breech, followed by the propellant charge, and the breechblock closes.

"put!"

The fire control radars of the three battleships were still intact, and they fired shells at the Bismarck and Gleisenau, whose radar signals were clearer.

The smoke obscured their vision, so they frantically loaded shells and fired them as fast as they could!

The Bismarck and Glaisenau needed time to turn and pursue, and their turrets also left a gap of about one minute because they could not keep up with the turn. Only the Scharnhorst could turn into a near-lateral angle and fire all nine guns in succession to harass the target.

Without clear radar correction, the hit rate of the 406mm shells was very low. It took two minutes for the Bismarck's turret to take a hit, causing the gun breech to jam. Theoretically, most of the gunners inside would be lost.

[Ding ding ding ding, damage control has been used, turret #2 has been repaired (3 units remaining)]

Thirty seconds later, the main gun continued to fire relentlessly.

The two fleets increased their average distance to 10 kilometers.

At that moment, the Gneisenau was hit by a barrage of high-explosive shells.

It's the Clarklin.

……

David Lawrence got up from the floor and realized that he had temporarily lost his hearing, his face was covered in blood, and the whole cabin was filled with broken glass.

The close-range explosion of the USS Carl was extremely powerful. The nearby USS McClusky, with its fragile bow broken off, sank with a large amount of water ingress when the explosion cloud dissipated, and its stern was raised high. Sailors jumped into the sea like dumplings being dropped into a pot.

Although the USS Clarkling was also affected, it only suffered shattered glass, minor damage to the hull, and temporary malfunction of electronic systems, but fortunately, some of them were still usable.

As soon as David got up, he saw the smoke cloud from the side of the USS New Jersey that had been hit. He immediately shook the gunner and, finding that the gunner was also deaf, gestured for him to fire.

Fortunately, the naval guns were not damaged.

In terms of firepower alone, the 76mm guns of the two frigates were more powerful than the secondary guns of the three battleships in the Second Fleet combined.

Fire! Fire! Fire!
Without even having time to identify the target, the Clarkling opened fire at full speed on the Gresenau, which was only 8 kilometers away, unleashing more than forty shells in half a minute.

The 62-caliber gun barrel burst into flames with a series of bangs, leaving a trail of flying bullets in the air.

Under such a dense barrage of shells, the Gresenau was being attacked by shells almost every second. Although the 76mm guns were not very powerful, they still caused considerable damage continuously, leaving the entire superstructure in a mess.

The secondary guns immediately switched targets and returned fire at the Clarkling.

However, the latter was much smaller, and most of its shells landed in the sea. David knew he was a dumpling with a thin skin and a lot of filling, so after successfully drawing fire, he abandoned it and sped away, leaving only a few lifeboats for the sinking McClusky.

With the rudder fully engaged and turning at full speed, disregarding safety standards, the USS Clarkling tried its best to swerve, but it still inevitably took hit by six or seven secondary gun shells, and the hull caught fire and began to burn.

"gogogo, moving moving!"

The damage control personnel, who were usually almost invisible, rushed to the damaged area with their tools and water guns, running at the fastest speed they had ever seen in their lives.

David kept checking the radar above his head; if all the radars failed, the Clarkling would be completely useless.

The main gun turret of the Gresenau also changed targets, and just now a shell landed in the water dozens of meters away, splashing up spectacular waves.

Even if a 380mm shell misses and becomes a near miss, it can still distort the fragile hull of the Clarkling.

David is waiting, and the distance is extended to more than 13 kilometers.

This is the minimum range of the harpoon.

The USS Clarkling has been protecting the MK-13 single-arm launcher on the bow, and a harpoon has been loaded.

This brave frigate not only attracted the attention of the Gresenau, but also drew the attention of friendly forces.

By this time, the USS New Jersey, which was the first to be targeted, had moved 14 kilometers away, increasing the distance.

Upon noticing the Clarkling's actions, the New Jersey also opened fire on the Glaisenau.

At this time, the Iowa and Wisconsin held off the attacks of the Bismarck and Scharnhorst. Although no results were visible, they successfully reduced the firing rate of the Second Fleet's main guns.

The USS New Jersey was able to fire two volleys of shells at the USS Glaisenau, one of which hit the Glaisenau's No. 1 turret, temporarily disabling it.

At the same time, the weapons room eagerly launched eight Harpoons from the port side.

In reality, although the fire control system was still working, its effectiveness was poor and it frequently lost targets, but they couldn't care less about that anymore.

Previously, a 283mm main gun hit the midships of the USS New Jersey, destroying two twin 5-inch gun turrets and a Phalanx CIWS, and narrowly missing the missile launchers.

Even if they don't hit their targets, it's still a good thing to get rid of these time bombs.

As thick white smoke billowed from turret number 3, eight harpoons were fired in quick succession within a few dozen seconds, immediately descending to a lower altitude and heading towards the Gresenau.

The latter immediately turned to starboard at full speed, attempting to align its bow with the direction from which the missile was coming.

It takes at least a minute for the Harpoon to fly 14 kilometers, which is enough time for the Gneisenau to correct its course.

At the same time, thick smoke was also rising from the stern of the USS Clarkling.

She had just been hit in the stern by a 380mm shell, which instantly destroyed the entire stern and propulsion system, with the stern section almost completely disappearing.

Even the best damage control could not handle this situation; the Clarkling could sink or explode at any moment.

In the final moments, David launched all six Harpoon missiles he was carrying at full speed.

The two waves of missiles attacked at an angle of nearly 70 degrees. If the Gresenau evaded one wave, it would have to meet the other wave from the side.

The missiles from the USS New Jersey arrived first.

The first one flew past the target 60 meters away.

The second and third bullets missed their target and grazed overhead.

The fourth missile hit the bridge, the fifth and sixth flew past in succession, and the seventh hit the mast and triggered an explosion.

The fourth harpoon detonated right next to the bridge, its power no less than that of a 16-inch shell, blasting the bridge into a distorted shape.

The last harpoon was driven in from beside turret number 2, penetrating the armor below the deck before exploding.

The Gresenau suffered its first major damage.

【-twenty four】

[32510/50900]

However, the battleship's maneuverability was not affected, and the Gresenau stubbornly continued to turn, dodging the six harpoons fired from the Clarkling.

Due to radar damage, only one of the six missiles hit its target, passing right through the chimney and exploding.

【-twenty four】

[28010/50900]

If it were a normal battleship, the Gresenau would have been rendered combat ineffective at this point, but it immediately employed damage control and repair team skills.

[Ding ding ding ding, damage control has been used, fire has been stopped (2 remaining)]

[Repair team activated, +280 (28 seconds) (3 seconds remaining)]

The wrecked bridge began to miraculously recover, even the blackened area from the explosion gradually dissipated, the almost destroyed smokestack remained standing, and the holes were being repaired.

[36050/50900]

A barrage of shells from the Clarkling destroyed several 105mm secondary guns, and that was beyond repair.
However, all six main guns remained undamaged.

The USS New Jersey, having established a 15000-meter distance, believed its defenses were sufficient and turned its hull sideways to improve its firing range.

Edwin waited anxiously for the results. A dozen or so harpoons in a row—even with a one-third hit rate, that would be bad enough to cause him trouble.
As Dalton watched the USS Clarkling disappear into the distance after launching its missiles and losing its mobility, his heart ached.

Two Perry-class destroyers, one sunk and the other severely damaged and still under attack, represent a heavy loss.

But he had only just begun to feel sorrow when three of the four shells fired from the two forward turrets of the Gresenau hit the New Jersey. One shell struck the midships armor belt but failed to penetrate, another hit turret number 2, and the last hit the superstructure.

The strong shock to turret No. 2 caused an electromechanical malfunction that prevented it from rotating, while the last bullet, though not fatal, destroyed the main radar with its fragmentation and deck storm.

Now, the USS New Jersey is blind.

Upon discovering that the Gresenau was still firing normally through the smoke, David slid down to the floor in despair. The Clarkling was now only able to take hits passively, its main gun turret destroyed and its missiles exhausted.

"I command, abandon ship!"

……

At the same time, another explosion was heard on the sea.

One of the quadruple missile launchers amidships on the USS Wisconsin was hit by two high-explosive rounds fired by Scharnhorst, resulting in a catastrophic secondary explosion.

The four missiles that were directly hit exploded with a total of 880 kilograms of warhead, which also caused the fuel to explode, affecting the remaining three missile launchers.

The remaining 12 missiles were detonated in succession, exploding in a chain reaction next to the superstructure.

The USS Wisconsin immediately fell silent. Not only was its radar damaged, but its personnel also temporarily lost command capabilities, though it continued to move at high speed.

At this point, only ten minutes had passed since the official opening of fire.

Chaos was all Dalton could think of; the fighting had been going on non-stop until now.

The USS New Jersey suffered a malfunction in one of its secondary guns, lost its electronic sighting capability, and could not be calibrated optically. The USS Wisconsin experienced a missile explosion that temporarily cut off communication, leaving the two battleships temporarily unable to communicate and fighting independently.

The Iowa, being on the outermost edge and thus spared from concentrated fire, kept firing at the Bismarck. Upon seeing this, it quickly began launching missiles, fearing it would be detonated in reverse.

Although the Atlantic Fleet is not in danger of sinking, its overall combat effectiveness has decreased by more than 50%!

The three Iowa-level command leaders were extremely frustrated. They couldn't see the enemy at all, nor did they know the results of the battle. They were almost being attacked unilaterally.

The Iowa launched all 32 missiles in one go, with 8 aimed at the Bismarck and the other 24 at the Scharnhorst in the center.

At this point, the positions and situations of both sides have also changed.

Originally, the two sides were about 7 kilometers apart. After the firing began, the Atlantic Fleet turned around to increase the distance, while the Second Fleet also needed time to turn, which increased the distance between the two sides to between 12 and 15 kilometers.

The three Iowa-class destroyers, having initially created some distance between themselves, began to cross the river, intending to concentrate their guns and missiles on the Bismarck and Gleisenau, but they encountered a major setback.

Conversely, both battleships were closing the distance at speeds approaching 40 knots, with a relative speed exceeding 25 knots.

The eight harpoons were so close that almost all of them passed over the Bismarck.

However, the furthest ship, Scharnhorst, was in dire straits. It had been firing at low speed and horizontally to take advantage of its secondary guns. When it spotted the missiles, it tried to cut outside to evade them, but it was too late.

Five of the 24 harpoons hit, all striking the mid-rear area, completely destroying turret number 3 and two torpedo launchers, while also causing massive damage and fire. Even with immediate use of damage control and repair teams, the damage was still severe.

[17550/56500]

Because the outer edge and No. 3 turret were damaged beyond repair, the Scharnhorst No. 1 and No. 2 turrets lost their firing arc and could no longer fire.

At this point, the Atlantic Fleet was facing only the Bismarck and the Gresenau, with their four forward turrets and eight main guns.

Seeing the two rapidly approaching plumes of fog, Dalton felt a chill run down his spine.

(End of this chapter)