Chapter 1290 New Tactical System
Although Liu Shang's guess was not correct, it was not far from the truth. Haihan has insisted on holding such large-scale military exercises over the years and invited representatives from other countries to come and observe. On the one hand, the purpose is to temper the military, demonstrate force, and intimidate the masses. On the other hand, it does take this opportunity to promote the products produced by Haihan Military Industry. various weapons and equipment. In the international arms sales market in the Far East, Haihan has now firmly occupied the top spot, replacing the previous positions of international arms merchants such as Portugal and the Netherlands.
Representatives from so many countries gathered together to watch the weapons display conducted by the Haihan Army during military exercises, and the effect was naturally much better than door-to-door sales. Moreover, some countries already have competitive or even hostile relationships with each other. In such a sensitive occasion, they will inevitably rush to place orders for the most advanced weapons and equipment. This is also a scene that can be seen in such promotion activities.
For example, Annam and Champa, which are seemingly inseparable, although they both have military alliances with Haihan, have never truly reconciled with each other due to historical reasons. The two countries on the Indochina Peninsula have maintained military confrontation all year round, and some minor frictions and conflicts break out almost every year. If it were not for the existence of Haihan, a full-scale war would have broken out long ago.
For these two countries, arms race is the norm. As long as they know what new items appear on Haihan's weapons sales list, no matter whether the opponent buys it or not, they have to place an order first. If the opponent does not buy it, then the country may be able to gain a certain advantage in armaments. If the opponent also buys the same equipment, then the quantity purchased by the country cannot be much less than that of the opponent, so as not to suffer from weapons and equipment problems in the military confrontation. Falling behind.
Haihan is of course happy to see such a situation. The arms race between the two countries will only bring more income to Haihan's arms sales business, and Haihan can use this as a breakthrough to obtain profits from these two countries. to achieve greater political gains. Although both countries have gradually stopped the original practice of exchanging people for arms, the resources that Haihan is interested in are not just people. The food in the city and the minerals in Annan can be used for exchange of interests. condition.
Haihan's annual "Leap Over" military exercise held on Hainan Island is an annual opportunity for these countries. On the one hand, they send troops to participate in the exercise, or they allow senior officers to observe and learn Haihan's advanced combat methods. , on the other hand, take a look at what new weapons and equipment Haihan has launched in the new year, so that you can decide whether you should place an order at the first time.
The ship Liu Shang was on sailed all the way north after sailing out of Danzhou Bay. He didn't seem to see the Haihan fleet on the sea. This made him feel a little guilty. If he continued to go north, he could It was the boundary of the Ming Dynasty. The only thing separating Qiongzhou Island and Leizhou Peninsula was the Qiongzhou Strait, which was dozens of miles wide. Could it be that the Haihan people were so audacious that they actually conducted military exercises within the territory of the Ming Dynasty?
About three hours after sailing out of Danzhou Bay, everyone on the ship finally saw the participating troops in this military exercise. More than a dozen warships flying the Haihan dual-color flag appeared on the distant sea, and there were several troop carriers carrying spectators cruising in the periphery. It seemed that this sea area far away from the land was the location of the military exercise.
At this time, the officer in charge of arranging the viewing process on the ship informed everyone that the military exercise had not yet started and was still waiting for all participating troops to arrive. A signal will be sent out at sea, and the boats used by observers will watch the exercise from a safe distance.
Everyone had been at sea for half a day, and they were a little tired now. They returned to the cabin in twos and threes to rest, waiting for the drill to start before coming back to the deck to watch. It's just that this troop transport ship is not comparable to the high-end passenger ship they came on. The cabin below the deck is low and crowded, filled to the brim with densely packed three-story camp beds, leaving only narrow aisles for people to enter and exit. If you want to sit in this cabin, you can only sit on the floor, otherwise you have to stand or lie down. But thinking about the upcoming military exercise, this kind of observation opportunity is really rare, so everyone can only endure it for now.
Not long after Liu Shang lay down on the bed, a crew member came to inform them that the exercise was about to begin. He quickly got up again, fearing that he would miss a key link.
Everyone returned to the deck and saw a red flare slowly falling from the sky, and soon another red flare rose from a warship in the distance. Soon the fleet in the distance accelerated and sailed westward. And the ship they were on, like other troop carriers carrying observers, immediately turned around and sailed westward.
In terms of relative position, this ship is still at the side and front of the fleet, so it can just take in the situation of the entire fleet. However, Liu Shang soon realized that the speed of this fleet was astonishingly fast, far exceeding the full speed of the troop transport. The large chimney spitting out black smoke at the rear of the battleship's hull seems to have explained the real reason for its amazing speed.
Although Liu Shang has never been on a steam-powered warship, he has already taken a steamship on the Ningyuan River outside Yacheng this time. The speed of a steamship using a paddle wheel is naturally far slower than the dual power of steam and sail. Battleship, but it allowed him to roughly understand the structure of this unique power-driven ship - the unique large chimney of the steam engine already explained everything.
It is actually no secret that Haihan has steam-powered warships. As early as 1631, when the Haihan fleet went to Fujian as a mission, steam warships had already been publicly unveiled. However, the manufacturing period of this thing is long and the cost is high, and daily supply and maintenance are troublesome. Even among the Haihan Army, it is rare. Local garrison fleets often require flagships to have such high equipment.
However, the fleet seen in front of them was all steam warships with chimneys. The overall speed was far faster than that of sail-powered troop carriers. In less than a cup of tea, they caught up from the side and rear and overtook the front.
Before Liu Shang could figure out what impact the appearance of this steam fleet would have on the situation in the South China Sea, the people watching on the ship were already cheering excitedly. For Haihan, these powerful armed ships are undoubtedly a symbol of national strength. As a Haihan citizen, he will naturally be proud of having such a powerful force in his army. As for the emotions of visitors on other ships seeing these ships, it may be more complicated. They may be like Liu Shang now, with envy, jealousy and hatred intertwined. The accompanying officer introduced to everyone that the current exercise is a fleet coordination project while traveling at full speed at sea, that is, each ship must maintain the same speed, course, and overall formation of the fleet. This can be said to be a very basic project for the navy, but for a fleet equipped entirely with steam power, this is also a brand-new combat subject, and various positions on the ship must be adjusted accordingly to adapt to the speed. Tactical arrangements after the upgrade.
Lu Ting was originally a commentator at the Military Museum, and now he joined in to explain the reasoning to everyone. In the past, flagships used steam power, but now entire steam fleets have begun to appear. When formulating combat plans, commanders must more fully consider the use of fresh water and coal-fired supply guarantees, and ship-borne artillery at high speeds during wartime. There are many issues such as the effective launch frequency, the adjustment of fleet attack methods and formations, and so on. One of the tasks of this military exercise should be to run in and practice these tactical arrangements that are still relatively new to the navy. From a certain perspective, this can actually be seen as the navy trying to build a newer and more advanced strategy. tactical system.
Except for Yu Xiaobao and Lu Ting who are familiar with the military, most of the members of the inspection team are civilians. They rarely have the opportunity to have in-depth contact with the military. They do not know much about military knowledge, although there are two officers explaining it. explanation, but everyone was still confused and could not fully understand what the information they said meant. But it doesn't matter. Everyone has at least determined one thing, that is, their navy is going to upgrade its equipment and tactics again and continue to improve its combat effectiveness on the existing basis.
Liu Shang's understanding was about the same as the others, and he had no idea what the many terms said by the two officers were. However, judging from the situation they introduced, it was inferred that Haihan's establishment of such a fleet of all-steam warships was also a kind of The new attempt has not yet truly achieved combat effectiveness, nor has steam warships been installed on a large scale in the navy. This may be considered good news for neighboring countries including the Ming Dynasty.
For a layman like Liu Shang, watching the Haihan Navy's marching drill on the sea is actually not very interesting. Apart from the obvious feature of super speed, there is no other great feature. Liu Shang couldn't help but secretly regret, why he didn't think of ways to learn more military knowledge at the beginning, so that he wouldn't just be a passerby watching the excitement at this time.
A layman will watch the show, while an expert will watch the show. Not all laymen are invited to observe the military exercise by Haihan. The invited countries will basically send senior military officers to the scene to judge the technical content and actual combat effectiveness of the Haihan military exercise. The Haihan fleet demonstrated its march at high speed, which naturally seemed to have a different flavor in the eyes of these officers.
The overall high speed of the fleet means that the chance of escaping from Haihan's guns during the battle is smaller. This is probably the most intuitive feeling for everyone. Even for countries like Portugal and the Netherlands that have high-end sail warships, their representatives could only silently swallow their saliva after seeing the performance of this fleet. Compared with Haihan's steam warships, the speed of the sail warships was as high as There is still a clear gap in mobility. Moreover, the naval gun of the Haihan battleship has a range advantage, and the time for both sides to enter each other's firing range will be shorter during a battle. This is extremely disadvantageous to the side with relatively lagging weapon performance, and will further amplify its disadvantages, making it more difficult to attack the sea. Han warships formed an effective strike.
From a higher tactical level, the increased speed of the Haihan Fleet means that its maritime maneuverability will be even more terrifying. The voyage that originally took three days may be completed by the Haihan Fleet in just two days, or perhaps We know the endurance of its fleet for a certain period of time, but due to the increase in its speed, it is difficult to judge how large its range of activities will be during the endurance period. If Haihan used this method to land troops at a certain place, it would be easier to achieve the effect of a surprise attack. If viewed from the hostile side, it will be difficult for the commander to make a relatively clear judgment on the movements of the Haihan Army, and the difficulty of formulating countermeasures will certainly increase accordingly. This is a problem that is enough to give any officer a headache. .
The deterrent effect of the appearance of this fleet is undoubtedly obvious. It only takes a moment for knowledgeable people to realize that the emergence of this new fleet will give Haihan a newer, more advanced, and more difficult to resist tactical system. . The Haihan Navy's advantages in the South China Sea are likely to be further expanded, which is not a good thing for some countries.
Of course, some people will also have doubts. Generally speaking, Haihan will display some of the latest military technological achievements during military exercises, and promote its export version to the militaries of various countries after the military exercises. But the problem is that as of now, Haihan is strictly prohibited from exporting even civilian steam engines, and it is simply impossible to sell such advanced warships equipped with steam propulsion systems to foreign countries. Even with allies such as Annam and Champa, I haven't heard of Haihan showing signs of relenting in this regard. Even if someone could afford a high price for high-end equipment like a steam battleship, the Haihan people were determined not to include it in the arms sales list.
If you think along this line of thinking, then the steam battleship should not be the equipment that will be promoted to potential buyers in this military exercise. There should be other highlights. Military officers from various countries can only suppress all kinds of thoughts in their hearts for the time being and wait patiently.
The officers on the ship where Liu Shang was aboard had been explaining the fleet's tactical intentions to everyone conscientiously, but most people were just listening to it. But this will not hinder everyone's interest. Just watching the heroic appearance of these large ships chopping the waves on the sea is enough to make people excited. Of course, if you can find a target and fire a few shots, it will feel more like being on the battlefield.
However, according to the military's exercise procedures, today's content seems to be only maritime navigation exercises. After the steam fleet tossed back and forth on the sea for about two hours, it finally slowed down. Everyone thought they were about to start training on the next subject, but at this time, other warships with slightly different appearances appeared from the southern sea.
Just when everyone was wondering who was so blind that he actually broke into this place, the officer on the ship promptly explained the identity of the visitor to them. It turns out that these ships are the foreign armed ships participating in the joint military exercise, including four Annan warships, two Occupy warships, one Portuguese and Dutch armed merchant ship, and under the banner of the Guangxi Navy, But the appearance is obviously the same as the six warships of Haihan "Exploration Class" warship.
(End of chapter)