Chapter 1,150 The Establishment of the Air Fleet 3
Chapter 1150 Establishment of Air Fleet 3
"Holy shit, right? Can they still deliver the goods at this time?" The prince's first reaction was not frustration and disappointment but shock! This is so amazing! The British have restored the North Sea blockade, and they can still enter and exit freely under the blockade of light cruisers and auxiliary cruisers. This is really amazing! You can get rid of a simple auxiliary cruiser blockade with speed, but what do you do when you add a light cruiser? !
"It is said that they also rely on speed, but they just run faster." Earl Sherrin said with some embarrassment.
"Damn it, did they use a battlecruiser to transport it?" As a senior naval person, the prince knew very well how much was behind this light sentence. Theoretically, the fastest large and medium-sized ships on the sea in this era are light cruisers and destroyers. Generally, new light cruisers can easily run at a speed of 25 knots. Most cruise ships can't get rid of it. What's more, this is a heavy-duty cargo ship loaded with hundreds of trucks, tractors, a large number of accessories and metal ingots!
"Where is this ship?" The prince was really interested in this thing now.
"It's in Wilhelmshaven, on the civilian berth. You can see its mast from here." The Earl pointed in the general direction and said.
"Come on, let's go take a look." said the prince.
"No wonder it can outrun the light cruiser. I bet the weather was bad when this ship entered the North Sea!" After arriving at the port accompanied by Earl Schelling, the first thing that caught the prince's eyes was the ship named Chicago. The huge square stern of the transport ship. The square stern is very effective against wind and waves, and the balance is unusually good. The last British battleship Vanguard with a square stern used this kind of stern. During the exercises in the Atlantic, this battleship performed very well in wind and waves.
"His Royal Highness the Crown Prince welcomes you." Captain Felt of the Chicago personally introduced his proud fast ship to this distinguished guest.
"This high-speed transport ship belonging to the Morgan consortium was born for war transportation. This 190-meter-long ship with a maximum width of 32 meters has a tonnage of 21,000 tons. But don't underestimate the speed of this behemoth. He is It is specially designed to transport high-value materials such as cars, tractors and various machinery, so it must be able to break through all obstacles on the sea. Relying on 18 small water tube boilers and 4 steam turbines, this ship has an output of more than 56,000 horsepower , the maximum speed can reach more than 25 knots,”
"Of course, if this is the case, it cannot be guaranteed to be foolproof. What this ship can really demonstrate is its high-speed sailing ability in high sea conditions. For example, this time, we seemed to have encountered a cruiser, and the other party's top speed was sufficient. For more than 27 verses, we watched the distance between each other getting closer and closer. As a result, God willing, when a storm came,
We were still able to sail at a speed of more than 23 knots, but the other party was almost knocked over by the waves! Your Highness, you have not seen the miserable appearance of the British at that time. Felt said proudly.
"It's very good, it's a good ship." The prince nodded and said, then walked towards the inside of the ship. After arriving inside the hull, the prince had to give the Americans a thumbs up. The design of this ship is really unique. First of all, from the structural point of view, apart from the middle part of the ship, there is a 130-meter-long structure. A huge space with a width of 25 to 30 meters. The height is generally across the 2nd to 3rd decks, that is to say, the height of the cargo warehouse is between 5 meters and 7.5 meters. The lower part of the hull is used to store various raw materials, fuel and products that should not be damaged. Then, a layer of steel plates that can be disassembled or folded is installed on the upper layer of these things! These steel plates coupled with lateral supports form a temporary deck, which can be used to park vehicles, tractors, packaged engines, gearboxes and other high-value items!
"This design is very good. It makes full use of the space in the hull and can transport different types of cargo at the same time. It is very creative." The prince did not hesitate to praise him. In fact, this idea of transporting cars by simply dismantling the deck to increase the cabin area is the same as that of later car transport ships. The first pure car transport ship only appeared after World War II. It used the limited tonnage to pack as much cargo as possible. This is simple to say, but it is not easy to do.
And the most important thing is, don’t you think this ship is a very good aircraft carrier reserve ship? It has a high enough speed, as well as reserved hangar and modification space. Of course, the biggest advantage of this ship is its large enough width, a hull width of 32 meters! If it is made into an open hangar, the width of the upper deck to 36 meters is possible! And such a large hangar also provides the possibility for taking off and landing aircraft with a larger wingspan... This is simply an aircraft carrier specially built for the takeoff and landing of twin-engine aircraft!
Of course, such an aircraft carrier will definitely not look good when it is modified. The hull of 195 meters in length and 32 meters in width looks a little fatter... Somewhat similar to a pre-Dauntless body type.
"Isn't it a bit too luxurious to equip this ship with such high power just for transporting goods?" The prince thought for a while and asked. He still didn't understand why the Americans built such a ship. Those capitalists They will definitely not install such a luxurious power system on a cargo ship. Even if Bavaria will pay 30% more for American products, it will not be enough for those vampire-like capitalists to specialize in producing such a ship.
"This is a ship that enjoys government subsidies, and in return, the U.S. Navy can recruit this ship to transport supplies and personnel when necessary. You know, the Japanese armored cruiser fleet is very powerful, and high speed is safe. Guarantee." Captain Fitter thought for a while and said.
"I see." The prince finally understood the reason. Since the outbreak of World War I, with Japan's occupation of the former German Pacific colonies, the two countries of the United States and Japan were once again on the verge of war, and the U.S. government had already After the Philippine Navy, it was discovered that as a country on the east coast of the Pacific, it was too difficult to project its power to the Far East. The fleet was one aspect, and the transportation of materials and personnel was another aspect. In order to meet this demand, the construction of Some high-speed transport ships have become an inevitable choice, and this Chicago is the product of this plan!
"A very nice ship, really nice." The prince visited all the places he could go on the ship and even asked the captain about the ship's watertight compartments. Finally, the prince made up his mind, and the fourth aircraft carrier was modified with this ship!
"Go back and say hello to the people at the Admiralty, and then notify the relevant government departments and tell the Morgan consortium that we want this ship!" the prince said to the people next to him after completing the visit. As for how much to pay and how to deliver it, that is their business, and the prince will not care about such details!
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