Bismarck

Chapter 727: Dealing with the Ship Girl's "Land Battleship"

In wartime, everything was a race against time, especially when the country's main leaders had been evacuated to various places. It was impossible to hold meetings as often as in peacetime. Therefore, the most common working mode of the Bolsheviks was to make multiple copies of the documents that needed to be communicated and coordinated, and then exchange information and documents through the special channels and special messengers controlled by the Ministry of Internal Affairs, and finally try to solve the problems in as many meetings as possible within the limited meeting time.

This time, the military production adjustment meeting was held directly on Stalin's special train.

"…If everyone has no objection, the new 54-ton medium tank designed by the Nizhny Tagil Design Bureau has been approved! According to the opinion of the Nizhny Tagil Factory, this tank is named T- tank. Comrade Malyshev (People's Commissar of the Tank Industry), the task of putting this tank into production is now handed over to you!"

"…Our situation is very difficult now. Although the T-34 tanks have been equipped with 85mm tank guns, they still have little advantage over the German (modified) Panzer IV tanks! Therefore, the T-54 tanks are the Red Army's hope for victory!"

"Yes!" Malyshev stood up and answered. Stalin waved his hand to signal Malyshev to sit down, and then continued to talk about the next topic:

"The next question is, from now on, we must prepare for a comprehensive change in our entire military design!" Stalin said as he took out a document:

"Everyone should have seen the intelligence about the British 'shipgirls' in the Atlantic. In addition, our soldiers on the front line have also expressed some opinions on our weapons and even tactics. The soldiers on the front line said... In addition to the quality of the weapons, the design problems also include the following aspects: our tanks have poor ergonomics and lack more accurate sighting devices; infantry anti-tank means are extremely scarce, and anti-tank guns, which are completely outdated, are still the main front-line equipment."

"In addition, many people said that our troops are too small and the casualty rate is too high. They hope to improve the defense of the troops, especially the problem of too many casualties when the troops are suppressed by enemy fire in open areas before entering the assault line. Some people even suggested that they hope to develop something similar to the German half-track manned armored vehicle..."

Stalin held the report in his hand and informed the senior military and political officials present of the relevant situation. At the same time, those senior military and political officials were also carefully studying the exact copies of the documents in their hands.

A thorough transformation of the troops' weapons thinking and combat thinking can directly determine the country's military doctrine. A single move can affect the entire body, not to mention that it is still a war period and everything must happen against the clock.

Under the requirement of wartime efficiency, although these documents are not very thick, the number of words is not particularly large, and the writing format is also the orthodox official document routine, it looks dry. However, the content recorded in the documents is very detailed and rich! Many of these contents were collected word by word from the grassroots officers and soldiers on the front line and the workers in the arsenal. With a considerable degree of research and refinement, typical government documents can be written: concise, comprehensive, specific, and not lacking in typical opinions and cases.

When government agencies make decisions, there are many tasks and affairs involved. Especially before major decisions, each department will be notified before the meeting to conduct sufficient preparation and research: first, it is necessary to conduct basic situation investigations at the grassroots units, and then conduct special research within the department, so as to give an opinion of the department as a reference for the final decision-making meeting.

However, although the task was very complicated - from the troops' feedback on weapons, the State Planning Commission's analysis of industrial capacity improvement and technological development, to the strength analysis of the "Ship Girls", as well as related tactical summaries and tactical research... all of this work was completed quickly under the vigorous administrative efficiency.

Before the meeting, these ministers and marshals had already had a certain understanding of the situation under their command. Similarly, based on the situation under their command, they also had their own opinions on the change in military thinking and the problem of dealing with ship girls - if you still don't know anything at this time, what did the country appoint you as a minister for?

After all, this is a meeting of the national leadership, not a royal brothel. The fighting race, the bear people, who have lived in the cold northern regions of Eurasia for generations, are bold and simple, but boldness does not mean stupidity, nor does it mean they rely on hearsay and brazenly talk nonsense. As long as there is no foreign aid, they will be confused and stupid bears...

"According to the feedback from the soldiers and considering the existence of the 'Shipgirls', I think it is necessary for us to make overall adjustments to our weapons and equipment development strategy. Now we need to solicit your opinions - Comrade Vasilevsky, you represent the military, you go first!"

After reading the speech in his hand, Stalin waved his hand towards the Chief of General Staff Marshal Vasilevsky. Seeing Stalin's question, Marshal Vasilevsky, who had been prepared, was not flustered at all. He opened his notebook and speech memorandum in his hand and explained his views word by word:

"…We are also aware of the opinions of the frontline officers and soldiers, and we have also estimated the possibility of encountering 'ship girls' in field battles or raids."

"...Due to the influence of the German Lütjens Fleet, the naval strength of Britain and the United States has been greatly damaged, and their relationship with us is not very good, so we don't expect to get any help from them."

"... In this case, we believe that if we want to ensure our combat effectiveness while ensuring our continuous combat capability, we hope to strengthen the survivability and defense of weapons and equipment, and make operation and maintenance more convenient... Especially in the case that the enemy may have a 'ship girl', the firepower and defense of the tank cannot be too bad, and it must also be easy to mass produce."

"In addition, our infantry units must also be able to have stronger assault and anti-tank capabilities... Based on the existing weapons, we suggest that in addition to the T-54 tank as the main force of the armored group army's deep operations, the combined army, which is the backbone of the army, should also have advanced heavy tanks or large-caliber assault guns, light infantry front-line anti-tank weapons, and armored personnel carriers."

"In order to counter the enemy's warships and cover the attack and defense of the combined army, heavy tanks with certain mobility are indispensable. As long as I have heavy tanks, I can organize a mobile assault team with heavy tanks as the core and personnel carriers as the front-line fire brigade and assault core. The combat efficiency can be increased by at least 20%, and we can also directly fight against the German fascist warship..."

"Taking various issues into consideration, the military's evaluation criteria for heavy tanks are that they must be equipped with at least a 122mm gun, have a defense of at least 230mm, and a speed of no less than 40 kilometers per hour..."

After listening to Vasilevsky's opinions, many representatives from the military industry, starting from Malyshev, began to frown: things like armored personnel carriers and infantry anti-tank weapons, even if the Soviet Union did not have them before, as military experts, as long as the military's request was within a reasonable range, they were confident that they could design a rough version within two months.

However, if this thing exceeds the technological limit...

A 122mm gun, a defense of more than 230mm, and a heavy tank with a mobility of 40 kilometers per hour... What the hell is this?!

As soon as Vasilevsky finished speaking, Malyshev, who was in charge of the tank industry, spoke up: "Comrade Vasilevsky, this kind of heavy tank will be very difficult to develop. Can't we use a large-caliber assault gun instead?"

After hearing what Malyshev said, Vasilevsky looked embarrassed without even thinking:

"We have evaluated large-caliber assault guns. Large-caliber assault guns above 122mm howitzers, 130mm cannons or 152mm howitzers can indeed be used for field attacks. In terms of performance, there is no problem with the attack power and cost, and the defense is barely acceptable. However... the gun of the large-caliber assault gun is fixed on the front of the vehicle body. If the ship girl uses rapid lateral movement, the assault gun cannot keep up with the speed of the ship girl. Moreover, if it cannot keep up with the speed of the opponent, the numerical advantage will be meaningless..."

"…In addition, the hull of the large-caliber assault gun is based on the T-34 tank. However, in terms of the hull design of the T-34, its center of gravity is now very forward, the barrel is longer, and the off-road performance is not good, so its field combat capability is only an emergency function…In actual combat, the main purpose of our large-caliber assault guns is to accompany tank troops in rapid action, and to be used as self-propelled howitzers. However, from the perspective of frontal breakthroughs of the combined army on the battlefield, as well as support points and reserves during defense, heavy tanks are still more suitable…"

Listening to Vasilevsky's narration, Malyshev, who had been in charge of military industry for many years and was not a layman in military affairs, opened his mouth and wanted to refute the question of heavy tanks. However, knowing that what Vasilevsky said was indeed the truth, he was unable to say a word in the end. The factory directors and designers behind him, after hearing the military's statement, looked at each other in bewilderment and could not say a word.

The German fascist warships were already able to directly destroy the British fortresses, and judging from Hitler's fascist aggressive ambitions, the army's urgent demand for heavy tanks was not excessive.

but……

Are you sure this thing is not something that can be made in fifty years?

Looking at the looks of the military designers, Vasilevsky also felt that his request was a bit awkward. Stalin saw this scene and was ready to speak to ease the awkward conversation.

However, at this moment, someone stood up:

"People's Commissar Malyshev, the design specifications of this tank have been accepted by our Chelyabinsk Kirov Plant!"

Hearing this person's arrogant words, everyone looked at him, and they were a little surprised to find that this guy who was talking nonsense was not just a young boy, but in the environment where there were endless talents in the Soviet tank industry, this guy could be considered a top figure - the head of the "Kirov" factory in Leningrad, and also the son-in-law of Soviet founding marshal Voroshilov, and the designer of the KV series tanks. Joseph Yakovlevich Kotin.

Seeing that it was this person who spoke, everyone was skeptical, surprised, and even pursed their lips. But since that person had already spoken, even if it was not for Marshal Vorosilov's sake, but for the sake of the tank industry's own business, Malyshev had to ask a question.

"Comrade Kotin, do you have any ideas?"

"Of course!" Kokin raised his head confidently, and glanced at the chief designer of the Kharkiv Tank Plant in Nizhny Tagil. The meaning of the look in his eyes was very clear - as direct competitors, you made the T-34 medium tank, and I made the KV heavy tank. Now that you have made the T-54 tank, how can I allow myself to be worse than you?

A while ago, General Secretary Stalin consulted me about some heavy tanks, so I went back to my father-in-law to ask about it. Although my father-in-law, Marshal Voroshilov, was actually only a political marshal, and now he has basically retired from the front line of the army and started to retire as the commander-in-chief of the guerrilla movement, I didn't get any clear information.

However, even with those few words I heard, with my ability as a first-class tank designer, I was able to conclude that what the army and the general secretary needed was a heavy tank that could be called a "super weapon"! Now, I have already prepared the design of this "heavy tank"!

Although his idea had nothing to do with the "Ship Girl" he had just heard at the meeting, Kokin discovered that his design ideas were not only basically in line with this concept, but were also much better than the military's requirements!

"Comrade Stalin, Comrade Voroshilov, Minister Malyshev, colleagues... This design is very demanding, but it is not impossible to achieve!"

Having been given the opportunity to perform in front of the country's top military and political leaders, and being able to directly outperform several of his old rivals at the Kharkov factory, Kotin was somewhat proud, but more of a confident person: "... I have a bold idea... Since one of the design goals of this heavy tank is the legendary German ship girl, then this tank is meant to fight against 'battleships'! - Then, why don't we just use the stuff used to build warships to build tanks?!"

"The stuff that makes warships... makes tanks?!"

People around looked at each other in bewilderment, but Kokin was very confident as he continued to talk about his design concept:

"Because the opponent is a 'battleship', or a warship on land, so in terms of firepower, it is most appropriate to directly use 130mm naval guns - even in order to shoot at high-speed moving 'battleships', optical sighting equipment can be equipped!"

"In addition, the defense must be very strong, so the weight of the vehicle must be more than 60 tons, or even close to 70 tons. Our tank engine only has 1200 horsepower, and it can't run such a heavy thing. But... what if we take the engine from the torpedo boat? You know, that thing has a full horsepower! In this way, the biggest difficulty, the power problem, is basically completely solved! And since there is excess power, it means that we can strengthen the defense a little more! Especially when the opponent is a warship, how can we not have a stronger defense?"

"…It just so happens that I have a design plan in my hand! This plan plans to use a 130mm naval gun with a mechanical loading assistance system, equipped with an optical rangefinder, a fire control computer and even a gyro stabilizer, which can have a certain ability to fire on the move. The power system uses a 1200-horsepower naval diesel engine to ensure a road speed of 70 kilometers per hour and an off-road speed of 45 kilometers per hour - that is, the mobility is not much worse than that of the current T-34 tank, and the vehicle body can be made 70 tons! The frontal defense can reach 150 mm/65 degrees, which is a theoretical conversion of 356 mm defense!"

At this point, Kotin smiled confidently, even looking in Stalin's direction, and took out a few design drawings from his briefcase and spread them out on the table: "Please look, this is my draft drawing and data calculation - in the name of our wise general secretary, for this tank that can be called a land battleship, I personally suggest naming it the 'Stalin' heavy tank!"

Kotin's outrageous words shocked everyone in the room, and there was an uproar - including Stalin, who was so frightened by "Stalin" that his pipe fell to the floor...

After the uproar, the meeting continued...

Chapter 729: Bismarck is misunderstood

The sea breeze sang wildly over the vast North Atlantic, and dancing seabirds accompanied the steel bodies of the giant ships. The sailors who returned from the voyage worked hard, and the songs accompanied by the sweat were full of masculinity. After experiencing a long march of 25,000 kilometers, and defeating the Allied Indian Ocean Fleet, the Cape of Good Hope Garrison, and the Bermuda Fortress, they were full of high spirits and confidence in themselves and their fleet!

The sailors couldn't help but smile, and from time to time they would glance at the girl who appeared on the bridge and deck. Although there had always been rumors of some evil spirits circulating on the ship, these rumors were only confirmed a few days ago. Everyone looked at Bismarck's secretary differently.

Moreover, some of the young men felt embarrassed when they thought that they were on Bismarck's secretary's body. Recently, there were even many soldiers in the fleet who did not take a shower - if they did not take a shower in such hot weather, they might suffocate their comrades. Going to the toilet was a very difficult task, how could this be tolerated?

When the officers below started asking questions, the young men concealed their feelings and said something that made the girls laugh and cry - they were taking a bath inside the secretary's body and were afraid of being seen.

Bismarck thought, I didn't even ask you to eat, drink, defecate or urinate on my body, but there are still people who are shy and afraid of her peeking?

She just doesn't care!

So one morning at a deck meeting, after Lütjens finished speaking, Bismarck, who was standing next to him, walked to the front and began to teach those who didn't want to take a bath with a serious face.

I'm too lazy to peek at you taking a bath. What's so good about you little birds?

For those who don’t take a bath, this secretary’s solution is that they will always fall when they walk!

As soon as these words were spoken, all the officers and soldiers laughed, and their eyes turned to the fleet commander...

They are little birds...so...

Lütjens looked at the man who was still chattering on and on and had no choice but to lower his head. This was the first time he lowered his head as the fleet commander.

Bismarck realized what he had said only after returning to the bridge. He understood the meaning of the officers' and soldiers' eyes, and fell on the chart table with a scream.

Beating the chest and stamping the feet.

It's over, her innocence is gone. She and the captain are obviously innocent!

I haven't done anything, isn't it a big disadvantage to be said like this? !

The navigation officer tried hard not to laugh, but he couldn't help but laugh out loud when he saw the secretary rolling on the ground.

"What are you laughing at? I'll beat you up if you laugh again."

"And you!"

Bismarck glared at everyone on the bridge and spoke unreasonably, acting like a willful girl.

Having said that, everyone couldn't help but feel embarrassed when they saw the secretary's embarrassed and angry look.

Seeing that no one listened to him, Bismarck stamped his feet in anger and said, "I will never come again."

After saying that, she disappeared in front of everyone. From then on, she really did not step into the bridge for a day...

But it is still useful in the morning, and my shower is back to normal...

----

After the Bermuda Fortress regained 1800 tons of fuel, the well-fed girls regained their vitality. Although the fleet's shells and aircraft were almost gone except for aerial bombs and aerial torpedoes, there was only one last obstacle left on the other side. Moreover, this last barrier, called the "Allied Atlantic Combined Fleet" commanded by the old rival Admiral Tovey, had to defend the two directions of Biscay Bay in the south and GIUK (Greenland-Iceland-United Kingdom) waterway in the north, with a longitudinal width of 1000 kilometers ( nautical miles)! Moreover, even without the terrifyingly slow Giant-class light aircraft carrier, the Tovey fleet was five knots slower than the German fleet due to the drag of the American South Dakota and South Dakota-class battleships, which had a speed of only over knots!

The 25,000-kilometer Long March is about to end. The goddess of victory is now before everyone, smiling with approval and reward at the brave warriors who have fought through so many battles.

With this high morale, the Eastern Expeditionary Fleet of the Greater German War Navy finally embarked on the final journey home, which would victoriously end the long march.

"This weather is neither too hot nor too cold, it's really comfortable. Captain! Speaking of which, we are finally going home!"

On the windowsill of the command room of the battleship Bismarck, a blonde Persian cat was lazily lying on the windowsill, happily looking at the magnificent seascape of the North Atlantic Ocean outside the window, and was in a relaxed mood and wanted to catch the seagulls flying by. If she really turned into a cat, she would really want to wag her tail.

During the days at sea, all I saw every day was the sea, and during this great breakout, the monotonous and dull sea even made people feel small and lonely. But now that I am about to return home, even this vast sea that is so vast, empty, and a little boring to look at, seems to make people feel familiar.

It feels good to go home and see Lily.

After all, her true existence is a warship that was born for the sea, takes the sea as its stage, and may even end up with the sea! ——Wait! Why do I always feel like this sentence is setting a flag for myself...

Bah, bah, bah, Bismarck spat immediately, and his golden hair shook with the movement.

However... as the pride of the German Navy, she has been through many battles and has already let go of life and death. If you are afraid of death, you will never be able to truly fight. Only by not fearing death can you win.

So now she always risks her life to survive.

Oh, hey, hey, what are I thinking?

Bismarck, who was thinking wildly and even swallowing the black hole at the center of the Milky Way, covered his face and turned his head to look at his captain. However, even now when he was about to go home and the situation was very good, his captain was still sitting in front of the chart table, continuing to meticulously calculate the ship's position and the breakout route map.

Moreover, he looked as if he hadn't heard my happiness...

"Captain!" Bismarck's face drooped instantly, and her frown showed that she was very unhappy.

She quickly pulled up Lütjens's ironed, straight sleeves. Even on the battlefield, her captain seemed to still pay attention to his image.

It was a good time to take a break, but my captain was still calculating the position! This was too unromantic. Shouldn't he enjoy the scenery with me at this time - even if the scenery was enough to make me sick.

Although it is true that this is a responsible act for a fleet commander...

She even wanted to drag her captain away from the chart table.

"What?"

Seeing the secretary almost hanging on him, Lütjens was a little puzzled.

Then he stepped back carefully, his intuition telling him that his secretary was beginning to act like a little girl again, but this was the bridge, not a private scene.

Although his secretary was very dedicated during the battle, there was a high chance that he would turn into a creature he did not understand during the intervals between battles.

"Captain! Don't try too hard in anything you do. It's important to change your mood!"

Pulling his captain's sleeve, Bismarck said with a smile, then nodded seriously.

The weather is so nice. Even if the captain can't spend more time with me, I should at least get up and take a rest and relax!

Lütjens burst out laughing and patted her hands.

"Stop it!" Lütjens, whose sleeve was pulled by Bismarck, was helpless: "You think we can relax now? We don't have enough shells and planes! We haven't passed the last level yet. If we really meet Tovey and the others, let's see what you can do!"

When the other staff officers and officers around saw this scene, they looked at each other silently and fled directly - if they didn't flee and continued to stand aside and shine brightly on the world, they would probably be stewed soon.

"Well...if that's the case, at worst...at worst I'll just run away at full speed." Looking at the captain who really didn't want to get up, the Persian cat with an unhappy face said something stupid.

Looking at his own silly and cute Persian cat, Lütjens was able to be amused immediately.

"Okay, I'll take a break." Lütjens put down the red and blue pencil in his hand, but after thinking for a while, he looked at the ship cat hanging on his arm and said with a smile: "Bismarck, if I take a break, there will be no one to do the calculations. Otherwise, can you help me calculate the position?"

"what!?"

Bismarck was dumbfounded by his captain's sudden words. However, looking at his captain's smiling eyes, he didn't know what to think. The proud Persian cat snorted and turned his head away, but at the same time he stretched out his claws and grabbed the red and blue pencils on the table. Then he squatted beside the chart table with a pursed mouth and carefully looked at the chart with various signs drawn on it. And he twisted his pointed cat ears angrily.

"The Captain is so bad!"

Looking at the marks on the chart and the note cards and sketches in the notebook, the arrogant cat gnashed her teeth and muttered while fiercely grabbing the red and blue pencils and began to draw lines. Next to her, Admiral Lütjens, who was completely amused at the moment, stood aside, looking at his own arrogant cat with some amusement and some pampering.

The other ships now, except for Zeppelin, have basically the same scenes as his.

Life is still beautiful.