Chapter 735: Naval Battle (5)

The German heavy torpedo ship was converted from the British Leander-class light cruiser. The Leander-class was the first new type of light cruiser built by the British Royal Navy after the signing of the London Naval Treaty. This class of ships is a scaled-down version of the York-class heavy cruiser, with a more compact bridge and a smaller 152mm main gun on the York-class hull.

After receiving these cruisers, the German Navy transformed them into heavy torpedo ships, dismantled all the turrets, reinstalled several 40mm twin anti-aircraft guns, and added 6 quadruple torpedo tubes on each side. Together with the original 2 quadruple torpedo tubes on the cruiser, the single-side torpedo tube can launch 28 torpedoes at the same time.

As Major General Bachmann's order was issued, the two heavy torpedo ships, the Leander and the Achilles, which had been ready for a long time, immediately accelerated forward. Because these heavy torpedo ships were equipped with ordinary torpedoes and were not equipped with oxygen torpedoes with a high risk factor, they needed to get closer to the opposite US fleet to reach the range.

After rushing forward for more than 3,000 meters, the two heavy torpedo ships fired 56 torpedoes at the US fleet in one breath, then turned the bow and circled around, and fired 56 torpedoes on the other side.

These torpedoes are ordinary thermal power, and they will leave a very clear string of bubble marks on the sea surface when sailing. If so many torpedoes were seen swarming in during the day, the US fleet would probably be shocked, but in this dark night where you can't see your hand in front of your face, no one can find these deadly torpedoes.

Five minutes later, the "sound induction mechanism" of the torpedo that had run more than 7,000 meters was activated, and the pendulum control system began to adjust the direction and aim at the US fleet in the distance. The leading torpedo, the sound induction mechanism on the head firmly locked the "Washington" battleship, which had the most obvious noise in the formation.

A few minutes later, the torpedo group approached the US fleet. The first torpedo hit the stern of the battleship "Washington" and exploded!

"Boom!" "Boom!"

A second later, the second torpedo also rushed up, and the huge explosion directly blew away the propulsion system and stern rudder at the stern.

At this time, Vice Admiral Ingersoll in the bridge of the "Washington" was looking at the dark sea in the distance and frowned deeply. The German fleet suddenly stopped moving after firing a few rounds of shells, and they completely lost the movement of the German fleet.

"What are the Germans doing?" Based on the battle situation a few minutes ago, the Germans clearly had an advantage in night combat capabilities. If they continued to fight, they would only suffer. But the Germans just stopped moving, which puzzled Vice Admiral Ingersoll. "Have you sent a telegram to the country?" He just ordered someone to send a telegram to the Navy Operations Department to inform the German fleet of the intelligence equipped with advanced radar.

"Yes, it has been sent. General, have the Germans run away?" Could it be that the dense firepower of the seven battleships scared the Germans away?

Vice Admiral Ingersoll shook his head slowly. "The Germans are not cowards. If they were so easily scared away, they would not have come here. How far is it?"

"According to the previous distance between the enemy and us, there are still three thousand meters before the German fleet will appear on our radar. Will they go around behind us and want to sneak attack us?!"

Vice Admiral Ingersoll shook his head again. A head-on fight already has a considerable advantage, and there is still a need to sneak attack from behind? Vice Admiral Ingersoll didn't think the Germans would do so much.

Boom! Boom!

Just as Vice Admiral Ingersoll racked his brains to guess the Germans' intentions, the sudden violent shock almost knocked everyone in the bridge down. Vice Admiral Ingersoll quickly grabbed the handrail next to him and shouted. "What's going on?!" As soon as he finished speaking, he keenly noticed that the speed of the battleship suddenly slowed down. It was obvious that the power system was severely damaged.

"Damn it!" Since it was not the Germans' artillery fire, there was only one possibility, the Germans fired torpedoes! !

But at this distance, in such a vast ocean, how much luck would it take to hit a battleship? Or did the Germans have to fire dozens or hundreds of torpedoes? Or what powerful torpedoes did the Germans come up with that could hit the target every time? !

Torpedoes that hit the target every time? ! Lieutenant General Ingersoll was shocked by his own speculation. If the Germans really made such a terrible torpedo, would they only fire one or two? !

"Quick! Order the fleet to maneuver and evade!!" Unfortunately, he was still a step slower. Boom! Boom! Boom! Violent explosions rang out one after another, and the surroundings were illuminated red by the flames of the explosions.

"General, the stern of the Mississippi was hit!!"

"The stern of the Idaho was hit!!"

"The stern of the Oklahoma was hit!!"

"The stern of the New York was hit!!"

"Oh my God!!" Hearing the heart-wrenching reports of the damage, Vice Admiral Ingersoll's eyes went dark and he almost fainted. However, he noticed a detail while being shocked and angry. All the warships were hit by torpedoes at the stern! Could it be that the German torpedoes specifically attack the stern?

What is at the stern? Propeller?

"!!" It seems that the German torpedoes can lock onto the propellers of ships to attack. Although he can't figure out the principle for the time being, this discovery is very important and must be reported back to the country immediately.

"Send a telegram home! The German torpedo will..." Vice Admiral Ingersoll shouted. Suddenly, there was a dull explosion under his feet. Everyone in the bridge fell to the ground. Vice Admiral Ingersoll was not spared. He fell awkwardly on the hard floor, dizzy and dazed.

"Hurry up and send a message to the country..." Vice Admiral Ingersoll struggled to get up, and another explosion sounded. The huge impact force threw him into the air and he fell to the ground. A bloody smell rushed up his throat, and he suddenly vomited blood. His eyes gradually blurred. "Send a telegram to the country... The German torpedoes specifically attack propellers..." Unfortunately, the entire bridge was in a mess at this time, and there were painful groans everywhere. No one noticed his murmurs at all.

The first wave of torpedoes launched by the German army was acoustic torpedoes, and the second wave was magnetic torpedoes. Magnetic torpedoes were detonated under the ship, causing terrible destructive power to the ship. Seawater cannot be compressed like air. The energy generated by the explosion of the torpedo warhead will be transmitted through the water and all act on the hull of the warship, using huge water pressure to squeeze the hull of the ship, causing it to twist and break. Especially when attacking large-tonnage ships, its destructive power directly acts on the keel, and even if it cannot be sunk, it will be severely damaged.

The energy from the consecutive explosions of the two magnetic torpedoes savagely tore open the armor of the bottom of the "Washington", and the keel structure supporting the ship was twisted and deformed. The cold seawater rushed in frantically along the cracks, accompanied by the harsh sound of steel bars twisting, and the latest battleship that had just been put into service began to tilt slowly.

Tons of seawater poured into the hull, and the battleship gradually became overwhelmed. After only two minutes, the hull's tilt had exceeded 20 degrees.

Unfortunately, the other warships in the fleet were already in trouble and had no time to take care of the flagship that was about to sink.