Empire Conquest -
Chapter 308 - 304: Coming out in Full Force
Chapter 308: Chapter 304: Coming out in Full Force
The Newland Federation had deployed more than just a hundred merchant ships.
In late August, on the day the 41st Special Mixed Fleet returned from the Battle Zone, two carriers in Treasure Harbor weighed anchor and set sail, followed by the stealthy departure of the "Fenjin" from Yotun Port after a refit. By early September, the two fleet carriers stationed on the west coast of Newland had also left port.
Now, all five of Newland’s Navy fleet carriers were active on the seas!
And critically, they constituted five carrier battle groups.
Each carrier was directly covered by two heavy cruisers, and at the very least, each had the escort of two light cruisers and four destroyers.
The only thing missing was the fast battleships.
It wasn’t surprising, really—Newland’s two "Beika" class were still being outfitted at the dock, and the four "Nanda" class were still under construction on the slipways. Temporarily lacking fast battleships to operate alongside the carriers meant the heavy cruisers had to provide the necessary cover.
This was the greatest shortcoming of the Newland Navy.
Because they had run up too much debt in the early stages, they had actually wanted to drag the Liangxia Empire into the mess before the "Huacheng Treaty" and the "Luntai Treaty" expired. That is, they hoped to prolong the treaties for another five years without the Saiyi Imperial Kingdom’s participation, but the Liangxia Empire did not fall for it and Newland only trapped itself. Thus, only after the treaties had expired did the Newland Federation begin to build the post-treaty fast battleships, starting construction on its first two about a year later than the "Xu Sea" class. Consequently, due to various problems, the construction pace of the two "Beika" class has been lukewarm.
This was also a key reason why the Newland Federation had delayed its entry into the war.
When the war broke out, the Newland Navy did not have a single respectable anti-air warship!
The large carrier battles in the Flame Sea and Nanzhu Sea had already proven the immense value of anti-air warships, which could even determine the life or death of a carrier at critical moments.
It’s precisely for this reason that the Newland Navy abruptly sent ten of the newest Treaty Type heavy cruisers back to the shipyards for the largest modernization improvements since their commissioning. The focus was clear: to enhance anti-air combat capabilities by replacing secondary guns and mounting machine guns, among other upgrades.
One must acknowledge that the Newland Federation indeed possessed formidable industrial strength and shipbuilding capacity.
The fruitful results of six years of new policies also played a role in the development of the west coast region.
Of these ten heavy cruisers, six underwent modifications at three shipyards on the west coast, while only four returned to the east coast region.
Otherwise, such a feat could not have been accomplished in just a few months.
The four "New Ao" class that went to the east coast for retrofitting passed through the Wangxi Canal at the end of August and were expected to arrive at Treasure Harbor in early September.
The anti-air combat capability of heavy cruisers was definitely not comparable to that of fast battleships, for the simple reason that their deck area was much smaller and couldn’t accommodate as many high-altitude guns. Almost all the Treaty Type heavy cruisers, especially those built early in the treaty, were designed to carry the largest caliber main guns available and did not reserve the necessary redundancy in displacement for modifications, thus it was impossible to mount the powerful high-altitude guns during later upgrades.
But still, it was better than nothing.
It wasn’t until these ten heavy cruisers were in place that the Newland Navy’s carrier battle groups began to take shape.
These months were also vital for the Newland Navy’s shipborne air force.
Although there was still much room for improvement, such as the lack of high-performance fighters, as bystanders, at least the Newland Navy knew how sea battles centered around carriers and shipborne air forces should be fought. They knew which direction to strive in for the possibility of victory.
Moreover, there were Saiyi Navy officers to testify in person.
According to intelligence provided by the Sixth Bureau, over the past half a year, the Saiyi Navy had sent a large number of experienced officers to the Newland Federation via submarines, represented by Tanimoto.
They were now the tactical advisors for the Newland Navy!
In summary, by the month of September, Newland’s five fleet carriers were in top condition and could maintain this state for three months.
It was based on this point that the Sixth Bureau concluded that the Newland Federation’s participation in the war was imminent.
The focus should definitely not be limited to the five carriers, but also on the deployment of the East Ocean Fleet in Treasure Harbor, with ten pre-treaty battleships as the main force.
Crucially, those ten pre-treaty battleships were already being prepared for departure.
Because they were stationed in Treasure Harbor, they did not need to set sail immediately; even if they left a few days later, they could still get ahead of the carrier battle groups.
While these battleships’ top speeds were not particularly fast, their cruising speeds were not slow at all, and they possessed quite an astonishing range.
From a combat utilization standpoint, these ten battleships are likely to be deployed to protect the transport convoys.
To put it bluntly, they’re going to the front to attract fire.
This introduces another issue.
The Imperial Navy has no battleships capable of confronting them!
The twelve old battleships formerly under the Southern Fleet—nine have been salvaged but are all still undergoing repairs in port.
Optimistically estimating, it would take at least three years to repair them all.
The ones that could be deployed are the four "Longxing"-class originally under the Domestic Fleet, now part of the Fourth Fleet.
Of course, the Imperial Navy is not without battleships.
There are six fast battleships, four old and two new, in total.
Counting the six fast battleships, there are exactly ten in total.
Actually, this precisely illustrates the issue.
Why would the Newland Navy deploy ten battleships in the East Ocean Fleet?
It’s clear that they’re targeting the Imperial Navy.
Putting it bluntly, if the Newland Navy’s ten battleships escort the convoys, should the Imperial Navy dispatch a fleet led by battleships to intercept?
If so, how many battleships should be deployed?
If only the four "Longxing"-class are sent, then in an actual battle, they would certainly meet a grave ending.
If the six fast battleships are used, then only the heavy cruisers can provide anti-air cover for the carriers.
Consequently, the anti-air combat capability of the carrier battle groups would inevitably be severely compromised.
With insufficient anti-air combat strength, how high are the odds for the Imperial Navy to win when it’s a four against five battle?
Key point is, the Newland Navy holds the offensive position, while the Imperial Navy is on defense.
To fight or not, and how to fight, all the initiative lies in the hands of the Newland Navy!
Without the initiative, the advantage in forces, or even sufficient strike resilience, is there any chance of victory in this battle?
If the Newland Navy’s East Ocean Fleet comes out in full force, with ten battleships and five carriers all bearing down, the Imperial Navy will be extremely passive.
By then, it won’t be about intercepting the transport convoys; stopping the Newland Fleet from heading to the Saiyi Imperial Kingdom would be an achievement.
If the opposing commander is not too mediocre, the Imperial Navy is likely in greater danger than fortune.
Truly speaking from a tactical perspective, the obvious choice would be to strike first.
Unfortunately, that is absolutely impossible.
Having discussed this, Xue Yuanzheng did not require a prompt response from the Navy generals led by Liu Changxun but gave them more time with Bai Zhizhan and others.
The ensuing discussion was basically unrelated to the Navy.
Now that the Newland Federation had formally entered the war and declared war on the Liangxia Empire, the Bulan Kingdom would certainly also declare war on the Liangxia Empire.
How to counter the threat and challenge posed by the Bulan Kingdom?
Since the Navy must concentrate its forces to cope with the Newland Navy, even if they achieve a great victory, it will not be until next year that there will be capacity to send fleets to the Fan Flame Ocean. So, for the upcoming months, which are the initial phase of the war with the Bulan Kingdom, the Army will have to bear the burden in the Fan Flame Ocean direction.
By implication, should they consider advancing into Fanluo, opening a second front on the Gangaro Plain?
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