Chapter 1,175 Chase
Chapter 1175 Chase
Just as the large force commanded by the prince began to gather the fleet and prepare to evacuate, under the command of Major General von Lefetzov, the three battlecruisers Moltke, Goeben and von der Tann plus 3 light cruisers and 8 A follow-up team of destroyers is pursuing Thomas's flagship, the Queen Elizabeth! Hipper had already forwarded the prince's telegram to Major General von Lefetzov, who had only one hour to deal with the matter. And this made him a little extra anxious!
At this time, 12 kilometers away from our own side, the fast battleship Queen Elizabeth was evacuating to the northeast at a speed of more than 24 knots. At the same time, they constantly used smoke screens and turns to try to get rid of the pursuing fleet behind them. Although the three battlecruisers have a maximum speed of more than 27 knots, after all, you have to consider the physical strength of the personnel. From the beginning of the journey last night to now, the stokers in the boiler warehouse have almost changed their shifts, and the battle has been until now. , let’s not talk about the situation of the battleship, anyway, people are already close to the limit. One of the biggest advantages of the Queen is that it burns oil, so there is no need to shovel coal, just use the oil pump to provide fuel!
Looking at the British warship escaping at high speed in the smoke and sea fog in the distance, von Lefetzov realized that his simple pursuit could not capture the warship in a short time. Facing an enemy with the same speed, if you can't use cannon fire to slow him down, you must use other methods to force the opponent to slow down.
"Colonel Gengler led the light cruiser detachment into the battlefield from the right side, covering the torpedo force to block it!" Major General von Lefetzov ordered. "The smoke canisters of the Queen Elizabeth should be almost used up. Once the smoke screen dissipates, fire according to the original arrangement. Let the stokers pay attention to conserving their strength. Our decisive battle is about to begin!"
Led by the light cruiser Stuttgart, the three German light cruisers quickly increased their speed to about 27 knots. They were the first German light cruisers to use all heavy oil fuel. So there is no need to be limited by manpower. These warships were originally 8 kilometers away from the side and rear of the Queen Elizabeth. When the general attack order was issued, these best hounds of the High Seas Fleet rushed towards the tiger-like British fast battleship in the distance without fear!
"Damn it, the Germans are taking action!" Looking at the slender figure looming in the smoke screen, Thomas realized that the most critical moment had finally come! As Rear Admiral Lefetsov expected, there are not many smoke canisters on the flagship now, and it will only last for a quarter of an hour at most. After that, the Queen Elizabeth will be under siege by the opponent's three battleships and numerous auxiliary battleships. under. At that time, cannonballs are flying in the sky and torpedoes are crisscrossing the water. If you are not careful, it will be the next time you die, not even the man and the ship!
"Boom!" The three main cannons at the rear of the Queen Elizabeth that were still usable sprayed thick and long fire snakes, and three 875KG semi-armor-piercing bombs roared and flew towards the patrolling wolves not far away. One of the shells fell into the water less than 150 meters away from the Stuttgart. A high water column exploded, and half a minute later, the falling seawater even bathed the Stuttgart!
"Separate the fleet! Suppress the Queen Elizabeth's main gun group and superstructure! Use high-explosive bombs to attack! Be careful of its main guns,
Don't get bitten! "The distance is 6,000 meters! Three German light cruisers spread out in an inverted shape. More than a dozen 175MM cannons were aimed at the rear half of the Queen's stern. As the firing order was issued, balls of fireballs flew quickly towards the poor battleship. Come!
The three German light cruisers carefully avoided the main gun group on the front of the Queen Elizabeth. The Queen, which has only three cannons, can only suppress one German light cruiser at most. When the Queen aims its long and thick cannon at one of the light cruisers, these little guys with a displacement of only 6,000 tons are like cunning prairie. Like a wolf, he uses smoke screens and maneuverability to dodge! And when the tiger turns its attention to other targets, these cunning little guys will take the opportunity to come up and take a bite!
boom! A pillar of fire once again appeared on the rear deck of the Queen, blowing a crane used to retract and retract the seaplane to pieces! The violent explosion even made a big hole in the uppermost deck, and a large number of flaming shrapnel fell into the lower cabin. The yellow-green flames ignited by the picric acid charge swam in the cabin like demonic fire. It was the teak decking, the sheet steel, the textiles that were all set ablaze by the flames. When the British damage control team members tried to extinguish the flames with water hoses, another shell penetrated the upper deck and exploded above the heads of the damage control team members! Accompanied by a loud noise, a flash of fire flashed, and more than 20 Royal Navy officers and soldiers and the surrounding cabins within a ten-meter radius were swallowed up by the raging flames!
More than 2 digits of 175MM artillery are fired at a rate of at least 3 rounds per minute. This is basically equivalent to more than 2 tons of ammunition being dumped on the target in one minute. If there are only three light cruisers, Elizabeth The Queen can fully mobilize its main gun firepower to turn each ship into a large firecracker, but unfortunately, facing the lions staring at the wolves behind them, the Queen has no other choice but to escape with her tail between her legs.
Continuous high-explosive bombs landed on the stern of the Queen Elizabeth's hull. From the upper deck to the waterline, there were densely packed bullet holes like a honeycomb. Flames and thick smoke rose into the sky, blown by the sea breeze, like a slanting gray pillar stuck upside down at the rear of the battleship. The flames even spread along the deck to the front of the hull, gradually covering the main rangefinder at the top. The rangefinder attached to the main gun had long been killed by the shell, and the rangefinder of the No. 4 turret was directly knocked off by a 175MM shell. The lens of No. 3 turret was shattered by shrapnel.
The Queen Elizabeth tried its best to fight back against these wolves, but the rear main gun was not accurate and the forward main gun failed to fire. The 6-inch gun on the side string has no lethality. The three German light cruisers became more and more courageous, and they shortened the distance to about 5 kilometers. The destroyer group at the rear also approached the opponent carefully like assassins, and then struck a fatal blow at close range!
"The main guns are ready to fire!" The high-explosive shells fired by the three German light cruisers in close combat ignited a fire at the rear of the Queen, plus part of the bridge that had already been ignited. The entire rear half of the battleship has become a huge torch. The flames and gray-black smoke pillars rising into the sky mark the position of the battleship like a lighthouse, and the three German battlecruisers can finally clearly determine each other's location. Got the bearing!
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