What the hell is a private enterprise?

Chapter 374 Fluctuations (1600 monthly votes in May)

"Report! The Missouri fleet will cross the waters off Moscow in 6 hours!"

Six hundred kilometers outside the Bahamas, the main fleet led by the Enterprise is sailing south at a speed of 20 knots.

Although he was on the road, Fern Clark did not dare to relax at all.

The entire fleet's southward journey was also an anti-submarine mission, with all the frigates and destroyers deployed to form a dense anti-submarine net.

With modern technology and an impenetrable defense, even nuclear submarines cannot easily break in.

While a conservative strategy may be slow, stability is of utmost importance.

On the contrary, Johnson and Fern were both very concerned about the safety of the USS Missouri.

Naval intelligence believed there was an over 80% chance the Second Fleet would target the isolated Missouri, so they meticulously planned to turn the ambush into a counter-ambush.

On the surface, there are indeed only the USS Missouri and two Perry-class submarines, but there are not one nuclear submarine, but three.

When the idea of ​​reactivating the Missouri was conceived, the Pacific Fleet received orders to transfer two Los Angeles-class destroyers as reinforcements.

They could have called in the Ohio-class destroyers for help, but considering the crucial role of the SSBN, they had to give up on that idea.

With three nuclear submarines providing underwater protection, plus two frigates and three helicopters patrolling in shifts, it is virtually impossible to be attacked suddenly.

However, if the Second Fleet is to take action, it will certainly be after passing Panama, so we need to be very careful.

Fern looked at Calvin:
"The Enterprise and Kearsarge have many anti-submarine aircraft and are not afraid of submarines. I want to send one Perry to reinforce Missouri."

Calvin: "I have no objection, but we can't catch up now."

"But it will be very dangerous once we enter Nanmei, so having an additional anti-submarine frigate would be very helpful."

The two quickly reached an agreement, and after a small meeting, agreed that the Phillips would move forward and pass through the canal to rendezvous with the Missouri.

Actually, sending another one wouldn't be a problem. What hasn't been publicly announced is that European warships will also provide assistance.

Britain spared no expense, deploying the HMS Ark Royal, along with two destroyers and two frigates. The HMS Clemenceau, which Britain had originally planned to decommission in July of this year, was also urgently dispatched, accompanied by two destroyers and four frigates.

The Royal Ark fleet claimed to be reinforcing the Falkland Islands, while the Clemenceau stated that it was going to Guyana for a base—and it did so with unusual discretion, merely giving a symbolic notification in the most inconspicuous corner, which was almost impossible for the outside newspapers to notice.

The true purpose of the two carrier strike groups is, of course, to participate in the operation. However, since they are conventionally powered, they will stay in the South Mei for rest and reorganization, and then provide support to Antarctica after the situation is discovered.

In addition, the Spanish Navy also dispatched four fleets consisting of destroyers and frigates. Italy was also willing to participate, but was stopped by the same authorities as Hans.

Thanks to the fact that Russian submarines used to have to go into the Norwegian Sea and then into the Atlantic Ocean as soon as they left the country, Europe has a lot of anti-submarine warfare capabilities and is more professional than the United States.

Overall, the Enterprise formation has an extremely high safety rating, and its anti-submarine depth charges could make the seawater boil.

Only in Missouri, everyone is worried about Missouri.

[USS Missouri (A.L. Case): Thanks to the assistance of the USS Phillips, we will overcome all difficulties and defeat all enemies.]

[USS Kearsarge (Fern): Best of luck and a safe voyage]

……

Off the coast of the Bahamas.

It was very stuffy inside the submarine.

Tang Wen switched directly to the third-person perspective of U4501, where he saw a murky expanse of seawater and a manta ray that had been knocked away by an orca not far away.

The ship girl's voice rang in his ear:

【让·巴尔：指挥官，密苏里号有90%以上可能经过这里，现在已经有5艘U2501、1艘U4501以及17艘老旧U艇散布在100公里海域内静默。    如无意外预计7小时后接战，还将有3条U2501和11艘U艇加入战斗】

Unlike Dönitz's wolf packs, the Second Fleet's biggest weakness is its ability to communicate regardless of obstacles, allowing submarines to receive the latest information and adjust their tactics at any time.

This is something that will be impossible even 30 years from now, and it has almost completely reversed underwater tactics, turning the seabed from darkness into a transparent map.

Nine fast submarines with a speed exceeding 30 knots underwater, and 28 U-boats.

[Commander: The main objective of the mission is to intercept and destroy the nuclear submarine. One U2501 and four U-boats will be used as decoys. Surface ships need not be given special attention.]

U2501 and 4501 will be dispatched first, while the remaining U-boats will remain silent and await an opportunity. Once the objective is achieved, they will immediately withdraw or remain silent.

【Understood!】*38
Tang Wen nodded in satisfaction upon seeing the news flooding the public channel.

He now possesses nearly 300 submarines, and the growth rate has begun to slow significantly.
Almost all the easy-to-find submarines have been salvaged; the rest are scattered in various corners and are difficult to find unless you try your luck.

More than 70% of them are U-boats, and a significant number are R-series and M-series vessels.

There are too many submarines, but their combat capabilities are too low, so they can only be used as cannon fodder. It would be a bit of a waste to modify and upgrade each one, and it would occupy the dock for a very long time.

Are there any methods that are quick to modify, inexpensive, universally applicable, and can significantly enhance combat effectiveness?
……

Night fell.

After sunset, helicopters are less effective at operating at night.

Case was on high alert, waiting for the nuclear submarine's communication as previously agreed.

Two Perry-class destroyers moved closer to the USS Missouri, sharing the same message:
There is a convoy of two large cargo ships 60 kilometers to the southwest.

Case did not hesitate after receiving Fern's warning:
"Slow down and get closer to them!"

At approximately 19:20 PM, a signal came from the agreed frequency band, and after a brief exchange, the submarine learned the cargo ship's location and Case's intentions.

Since the route would intersect with that of the cargo ship and wouldn't deviate too much, there was no need to inform all the submarines.

Until the two cargo ships met the Missouri fleet, Case accompanied them under the pretext of escorting them, and also slowed down to 10 knots so that the submarine's sonar would have difficulty distinguishing them.

Night was like a harbinger of impending danger. The entire fleet had been cautiously navigating these three days and nights, maintaining a constant state of vigilance.

The shift continued until midnight, when Case began to hand over his shift and go to rest.

But he had only been asleep for a short while when the outermost Perry-class frigate heard a faint disturbance.

When another frigate and aircraft carrier also detected the same noise, Case was awakened, and the warships spread out in full battle array.

They didn't know which type of U-boat it was, but some older people had told them about a super U-boat that was incredibly fast and comparable to a nuclear submarine.

How noisy would that be?
The Los Angeles bases will definitely hear that they are the first line of defense.

The noise was detected again half an hour later, but it was much fainter, indicating that it was at a great distance.

For the next hour, two hours... it was exceptionally quiet.

After an unknown amount of time, in the dimly lit listening room of the frigate USS James, where day and night were indistinguishable, Sergeant Auster, who was dozing off, felt a slight fluctuation in the long white noise in his headphones.

Having served in Europe for 12 years, the experienced Oersted immediately began examining the data.

The fluctuations were brief, appearing to be a small undersea earthquake or explosion within 50 kilometers.

He recorded the data and listened again, but he didn't hear anything until he was replaced.

(End of this chapter)