Empire Conquest
Chapter 101 - 97 Facing Difficulties Head-On

Chapter 101: Chapter 97 Facing Difficulties Head-On

In the northeastern Flame Sea, within the southern waters of the Zu Island Strait, aboard the fleet carrier "Imperial Capital."

The sun had already sunk to the horizon, and it was nearly dinner time. On the flight deck, the air force service personnel were still bustling about.

To the north, a vast swarm of planes was approaching.

These were not enemy aircraft, but shipborne aircraft from the Third Shipborne Air Force Wing, rushed over from an inland airfield.

When Li Mingbo brought over dinner—a super-sized hamburger sandwiching two beef patties—the first group of shipborne aircraft had already entered the landing pattern.

In terms of dietary habits, the Imperial Navy favored Western cuisine.

This was not out of blind adoration for foreign things but because Western cuisine was simpler to prepare, more convenient to eat, and provided higher calories, making it ideal for naval officers and soldiers who typically endured high-intensity daily tasks.

Take the hamburger, for example—one could suffice for the better part of a day.

If circumstances allowed, the chefs would also prepare dishes that suited everyone’s tastes.

"Is there any news?"

Bai Zhizhan asked, but Li Mingbo just shook his head.

Bai Zhizhan didn’t press further and couldn’t help but heave a sigh.

Ten days ago, he didn’t return to the First Aviation Mixed Fleet but followed Li Yunxiang to Cizhou to board the newly repaired fleet carrier "Imperial Capital."

Afterward, Bai Zhizhan was promoted to Navy Brigadier General and took on the role of Acting Commander of the Third Aviation Mixed Fleet.

Additionally, he served as the Acting Commander of the First Aviation Mixed Fleet.

This was not a choice made by Bai Zhizhan himself, but the result of a coin toss.

Before leaving the Imperial Capital, the new Navy Commander, Liu Changxun, had presented Bai Zhizhan and Liu Xiangzhen with a challenging decision.

Who would go to Chengjiang Port to command the Special Mixed Group?

Of course, the other would have to go to Cizhou to take over the newly combat-ready Third Aviation Mixed Fleet.

Liu Changxun didn’t directly assign Liu Xiangzhen to Chengjiang Port, which was a considerable concession to Bai Zhizhan, especially since Liu Xiangzhen was originally from the Southern Fleet.

For fairness’s sake, Liu Xiangzhen suggested they guess fists.

Bai Zhizhan, true to character, proposed a single round to determine the winner: if he lost or if it was a draw, Liu Xiangzhen would command the Special Mixed Group in Chengjiang Port.

As it turned out, both of them threw scissors.

Keeping Bai Zhizhan’s title as Acting Commander of the First Aviation Mixed Fleet was actually for security reasons—to prevent news leaks due to personnel changes.

As such, Liu Xiangzhen commanded the Special Mixed Group comprised of the First and Second Aviation Mixed Fleets.

Bai Zhizhan was in charge of the Third Aviation Mixed Fleet centered around two "Imperial Capital" class fleet carriers—this was the Imperial Navy’s cutting-edge force.

Both carriers, the "Imperial Capital" and the "Peijing," were handed over to the Navy at the end of the previous year and hadn’t yet completed all their training programs.

The key issue was these two fleet carriers, built according to the standards of the Huacheng Treaty and the Luntai Treaty, incorporated many new technologies and equipments to meet the Navy’s tactical performance requirements, leading to numerous unforeseen and unpredictable problems during design.

According to the plan, both carriers were expected to join the order of battle by the end of June next year.

In peacetime, whether the Navy had two more or fewer carriers didn’t make much of a difference, as the primary use for carriers was the annual fleet exercises.

However, as the situation deteriorated, the value of these two carriers became apparent.

Let’s not forget that the Saiyi Navy had already acquired two "Ruihe" class vessels, and even Newland, across from East Ocean, boasted as many as five large fleet carriers.

"The ’Longjiang’ class’s combat power may be formidable, but it is still difficult to prevail against greater numbers with fewer ships.

Fortunately, the shipborne air force assigned to the Third Aviation Mixed Fleet had already completed their training. Two-thirds of the pilots were veterans from two other air force wings. Even the novices had spent several years studying and training at the aviation school, with many having participated in the annual fleet exercises.

In fact, for the Imperial Navy, pilots have never been the main problem.

According to statistics from civilian institutions, by promoting and encouraging the aviation industry through international flight speed competitions and other means, there are over two hundred thousand civilian pilots in the Empire, the highest number in the world, with most of them aged between twenty and forty years old.

During war, these civilian pilots become the reserve team for the Navy and Army air forces!

Conservatively estimated, the Empire could mobilize fifty thousand pilots within a year and form hundreds of tactical air force units the size of a wing.

As for the planes, that’s even less of an issue.

Just last year, the Imperial Navy formed the Third Shipborne Air Force Wing and ordered hundreds of ship-borne aircraft. This year, under the pretext of training losses, the Imperial Navy applied for additional funding to place extra orders with several manufacturers, enough for two more shipborne air force wings. The total number of combat aircraft ordered reached three hundred and sixty, with three hundred already delivered to the Navy before December.

However, it’s not to say that the Third Aviation Mixed Fleet isn’t lacking anything.

It’s lacking anti-air warships!

Although fast battleships are assigned to combat fleets, they spend most of their time in the special mixed fleets, specifically providing air defense cover for the carriers.

The value of the fast battleships has been proven in the annual fleet exercises.

That’s why, three years ago, when the Saiyi Imperial Kingdom refused to enter into a treaty, causing the so-called ’Navy Long Vacation’ born from the Huacheng Treaty and Luntai Treaty to inevitably come to an end, the Imperial Navy decided to build brand new fast battleships to counter the threat from other Great Powers.

Because the treaties were not yet invalid, the new battleships’ design faced strict constraints.

Of course, the Imperial Navy only needed ’fast,’ so they did not have particularly high demands for specific performance.

Once the treaties were invalidated, the Imperial Navy immediately placed construction orders, with Puzhou Navy Shipyard and Cizhou Navy Shipyard each building one ship.

This was for the shipyards to practice, as the Imperial Navy had not built any battleships during the entire treaty period!

The two treaty-type fast battleships were both launched at the beginning of this year. Although they were both delivered to the Navy last month, they are temporarily assigned to the Domestic Fleet. As per tradition, after completing all their training, a commissioning ceremony will be held, and only then will consideration be given to how they will be allocated.

Since the war has already broken out, they will likely be assigned to the special mixed fleets.

But right now, those two battleships are still in Mast Harbor.

Oh yes, Li Jie and Jin Hong were called back by the Domestic Fleet at the beginning of the year precisely to replace the two supervisors and assume the role of acting captains for the two ships.

The result of this is that the Third Aviation Mixed Fleet does not have any fast battleships for providing air defense cover for the carriers; it’s the heavy cruisers that are doing the job.

Can heavy cruisers compare with fast battleships?

Clearly not!

But what can be done?

We can’t just say that because there are no fast battleships to provide air defense cover, the Third Aviation Mixed Fleet should just hide in the Zu Island Strait and watch the action, right?

It’s the carriers that decide the victory, not the battleships!

In fact, Bai Zhizhan also knows this well, which is why when he played rock-paper-scissors with Liu Xiangzhen, he purposely chose scissors, intentionally giving the good post to Liu Xiangzhen.

What does this mean?

It’s not the first time the two have played rock-paper-scissors.

In the past, Liu Xiangzhen’s first choice has always been either scissors or rock.

As long as Bai Zhizhan chose scissors, he would certainly not win.

While Bai Zhizhan was halfway through eating a hamburger, the first ship-borne aircraft had already landed on the flight deck, a ’Flying Fish’ with an auxiliary fuel tank attached beneath it."