On October 5th, it was exactly one week before the end of the military meeting on the evening of September 28th. French Navy Commander Boult and Navy Chief of Staff Sucrete appeared in Xiao Jie's office in the Elysee Palace on time.
Dugel and Eke also came here. Today is the last day for the navy to submit the battle plan to Xiao Jie. Although, this battle plan started to be made two years ago. However, with the continuous changes in the strength of both sides, as well as the influence of economic and political factors, this battle plan is also constantly changing.
Yesterday morning, thanks to the efforts of all the staff of the Admiralty, the operation plan was finally completed. Boult and Sucrete have been paying attention to this battle plan. In the afternoon, some desired revisions were made. It was not until last night that the draft was finalized. [bsp; The entire combat plan is named "Boseidon Project", which means that after this battle, the French Navy will control the entire ocean like the legendary Poseidon.
The entire combat plan lists the military power comparison, advantages and disadvantages of both sides, and then formulates a detailed combat plan so that the enemy can be completely defeated in one battle. The combat plan is very detailed, from where and when the French navy should launch an attack, what kind of response the US and Canadian navies will have, and based on these responses, what countermeasures the French navy will take, and so on. Very detailed. Xiao Jie just flipped through it roughly. For naval battles, he is actually a layman at all. Those naval staff officers are much more professional than him.
The decisive sea area of the naval battle is actually the area of the Lesser Antilles Islands. This surprised Xiao Jie, but then he figured it out. Since the failure of the US and Canadian navies in the last naval battle in the English Channel, they have become more cautious. Completely withdrew from the eastern Atlantic region and retracted the defense line to the central Atlantic region, which can be described as extremely cautious. Under such circumstances, it is basically impossible to fight decisively in sea areas favorable to France. The U.S. and Canadian navies simply don't come to these areas, so France's air power cannot be used.
Therefore, the sea area of the decisive battle can only be the western Atlantic region, close to the United States. But in this case, it is very detrimental to the supply of the French Navy, and they need to prepare enough supply ships. Otherwise, the supply of the huge navy is a very serious problem. Fortunately, the Ministry of the Navy had already prepared for it, and built more than 20 supply ships on its own, and also recruited hundreds of merchant ships. This is enough to supply the naval fleet.
According to the latest intelligence, the U.S. and Canadian navies have readjusted. Moreover, a joint command was established, and Davis officially became the supreme commander, responsible for commanding the navies of the two countries.
The United States and Canada have a total of 18 fleets, of which, the United States has 12 fleets and the Canadian land branch. Canada's 6 fleets are mainly responsible for the defense of the northern Atlantic region. Among them, the Canadian 3rd Fleet suffered heavy losses, losing four "William" class warships, and its combat power was only equivalent to one-third of its previous strength. The 12 fleets of the United States are responsible for the defense of the central Atlantic region and the southern Atlantic region. Among them, the central Atlantic region is the main defense area. In the southern Atlantic region, the United States only dispatched 3 fleets to blockade the entire South America, and at the same time provide support for the US and Canadian army forces in South America. They are the US 6th, 7th and 8th Fleets respectively. However, after failing to command in the Battle of the English Channel, the 8th Fleet was transferred back to China. In the South Atlantic, only the 6th and 7th Fleets remained. In the strait, the 5th, 9th, and 11th fleets of the United States, which were hit hard, only have half of their combat power left, and the most powerful "North Carolina" class warships are only half left. Therefore, these three fleets were deployed in the Caribbean. The remaining seven fleets, the 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 8th, 10th, and 12th, were deployed in the Mid-Atlantic region and the coastal areas of the United States, focusing on defending the security of the United States.
The "Boseidon Project" of the French Navy Department is not new, but it forced the United States and Canada to fall into the French plan step by step.
The whole plan is: In the first step, the South Atlantic Fleet of the French Navy breaks through the US Navy's blockade of South America and escorts an army to land in South America. After that, the French Navy's South Atlantic Fleet will face the siege of the US 6th and 7th Fleets. The South Atlantic Fleet is the last fleet established by France. The capital ships only have two 'Giant Whale' class warships and two 'Tiger Shark' class warships. The overall strength is slightly stronger than any fleet in the United States, but facing The siege of the two US fleets only failed. In the second step, the Straits Fleet supported the South Atlantic Fleet. At this time, the U.S. Navy was forced to dispatch a fleet to rescue the besieged 6th and 7th Fleets. Most likely, they are the three remaining fleets stationed in the Caribbean. After they headed to South America, the Mediterranean Fleet would go straight to their rear, encircle the three remaining fleets, cooperate with the Strait Fleet and the South Atlantic Fleet in front, and wipe out all the five fleets of the US Navy.
The United States and Canada will certainly not sit back and watch these fleets be wiped out. We will definitely concentrate the main force for rescue, or take the opportunity to gather the main fleet, surround the French fleet, and injure or annihilate it in one fell swoop. At this time, if the U.S. and Canadian navies reveal such intentions, the French Atlantic Fleet must buy time for the other three fleets.
In this way, a large-scale decisive battle will be launched around the Lesser Antilles. According to the analysis of the Ministry of the Navy, in this naval battle, the two sides are likely to be evenly matched, and the French navy has at most a slight advantage. Even if it wins, it will be a miserable victory. In order to change this outcome, the 'Brilliant' fleet will appear as a trump card. When the war is in its intensified stage, the brilliant fleet will appear on the battlefield. With its powerful power, it will severely damage the American and Canadian navy, divide it, cooperate with other fleets, and severely damage the American and Canadian navy.
After that, the French navy will go north as a whole to fight the remaining fleets of the U.S. and Canadian navies. If the U.S. and Canadian navies dodge, the French navy will destroy all industrial facilities along the coast of the United States, including shipyards. This can greatly weaken the war potential of the United States. Get ready for future landings.
"The Ministry of the Navy has prepared a thorough contingency plan, please rest assured Your Majesty." Sucrete replied.
Xiao Jie nodded, and then asked: "Then, when is the implementation date of the whole plan? There doesn't seem to be a date marked on the plan?"
"This needs to be discussed with the General Staff. I don't know if the General Staff has any other requirements for supplementary support for the three legions in South America. The Admiralty's suggestion is to keep it within 50,000 people and bring less supplies. , so that the South Atlantic Fleet can react quickly after discovering the siege of the US 6th and 7th Fleets." Boult said.
"We've also discussed it. Let's send a marine division there, and transfer two divisions from the reserve by the way. After they arrive in South America, they will be added to the three legions. As for the supplies, we will mainly replenish them. Some shells are enough, especially the shells of the 155mm howitzer, Marshal Davout’s telegram clearly mentioned that the shells are very short, which has seriously affected their battle.” Eck said.
"So how long will it take for these to be ready?" Boult asked.
"It will be ready in three days!" replied Eck.
"Then, the whole plan will be carried out on October 12. The supply fleet and the South Atlantic Fleet will set off at night. At the same time, get in touch with Marshal Davout, and they will need their cooperation to capture a port. Thus mobilizing the US fleet Get up." Sucrete said.
"This is no problem. The General Staff will coordinate with the three legions in South America." Eck promised.
The navy will play an irreplaceable role in this battle. Only if they win, will the army have a chance to land in North America and make great achievements. Therefore, the Army naturally fully cooperated with the Navy's request. If the two sides were not separated by such an ocean, it would be much easier~ www.mtlnovel.com~ The French army alone could easily destroy the other side.
"In addition, the issue of confidentiality requires the cooperation of the Ministry of the Interior and the Ministry of Security!" Bult said.
"I will personally speak to the Ministry of the Interior and the Ministry of Security. During the war, they will fully assist the military's intelligence department." Xiao Jie directly agreed. The Ministry of the Interior and the Ministry of Security belong to the subordinate departments of the government, and the military has no right to direct command. Xiao Jie needs to personally order it.
Three days later, the General Staff quickly prepared the 50,000 troops to be transported to South America and the mainland's strategic materials. There are more than 150 transport ships. At the same time, all naval bases in France were under martial law. The intelligence, interior and security departments of the French government jointly investigated these areas and guarded them tightly.
This news was sent back to the United States by American spies. The United States realized that this was a precursor to the beginning of war. They immediately made preparations, and at the same time, notified the Canadian side.
The pace of war came quietly. Although both sides have already made preparations, at this time, the top management of both sides feel extremely nervous. Xiao Jie is no exception, after all, this battle is related to the future of France. Whether to continue to prosper or decline.