I Became a Plutocrat in World War I: Starting with Saving France

Chapter 724: This Guy is Really a Genius

"Vice Admiral, there are some things you may not understand," Gai Pratt did not agree with Shire’s organization method, but his tone was calm and he spoke very tactfully. "We typically pursue fleets of the same model warships because they have the same main guns, which is more conducive to hitting the target."

Warships of the same model have an advantage in combat: as long as one warship achieves a crossing shot on the target, other warships can make slight adjustments based on this shooting data, often achieving concentrated fire on the target and even sinking it in combat.

(The above image shows a "cross shot" on the target, also known as "encircling," where once the shell’s impact point is in front and behind the target, it means the data is accurate and can effectively cover the target. The prevailing British warship tactic at the time was to line up the warships, with a 10-second interval to fire a salvo at the target, and the ship with the most accurate shot would immediately pass the data to other warships.)

Vice Admiral Gai Pratt believed that Shire, as an army commander, did not understand this knowledge, which is why he grouped two different types of warships together.

Unexpectedly, Shire replied unhurriedly, "You are right, Vice Admiral. But if we do it this way, they will also be more easily hit by the enemy, and this is obviously not favorable for the side with a larger number but smaller displacement, don’t you agree?"

Vice Admiral Gai Pratt suddenly realized that Shire was not ignorant but deliberately doing so based on understanding.

After a brief thought, Vice Admiral Gai Pratt understood that Shire was likely correct.

Shire’s destroyer squadron generally had smaller displacements and smaller caliber guns. In this situation, if they appeared in a cluster in front of the enemy battleships, they would present an excellent target for the enemy. A salvo could easily hit several warships.

Furthermore, destroyers encircling battleships with torpedoes also required surrounding from all directions, rather than concentrating the attack from one direction.

If this were the case, there would be no need to provide reference data for other warships because the distances were too great for the data to be meaningful.

As Gai Pratt was contemplating, Wells asked in confusion, "But why don’t we group two warships of the same model together? For example, group destroyers with destroyers and light cruisers with light cruisers. Isn’t that more conducive to coordination and command?"

Before Shire could answer, Vice Admiral Gai Pratt explained, "We intend to use torpedoes to attack the enemy’s battleships, Mr. Wells. Mixed composition is more beneficial to us."

"What?" Wells did not understand the difference.

He actually had a bit of obsessive-compulsive disorder, finding it unpleasant not to align two identical ships neatly together, insisting on mixing a large one with a small one.

Vice Admiral Gai Pratt explained, "In torpedo attacks, there is no issue of transferring data, so mixed composition has minimal impact on us but greatly affects the enemy."

Wells responded with an "Oh," seemingly understanding.

The 100MM or so naval guns on light cruisers and destroyers are almost like a scratch for battleships, so they gave up the idea of cannon attacks from the start.

Without cannon attacks, there was no need to consider whether the guns were the same model or if the data was the same.

However, he still did not quite understand, "But General, why does this significantly affect the enemy?"

Gai Pratt glanced at Shire and set up a miniature battlefield with a coffee cup and matchsticks on the table:

"This is the enemy battleship, and this is our destroyer."

"If our destroyers are all the same model, the enemy battleship can easily measure the distance to our destroyers with great accuracy."

"But if they are different models and of different sizes, the situation changes, causing significant trouble for them."

(The two images above show mechanical rangefinders from World War I, categorized as "coincidence" and "stereoscopic" types. The principle is the same, based on the principle of dislocation of the target observed from both the left and right sides, then fine-tuning the alignment of the left and right images to read the distance. The rangefinder had an error margin of about 10% during World War I, meaning at distances of dozens of kilometers, the rangefinder error itself could exceed one kilometer.)

Wells, being proficient in shipbuilding, had some understanding of these devices. He just lacked combat experience and had not thought of it at the time.

At this point, with Gai Pratt’s reminder, he understood, "So, mixing two different models of warships can reduce the enemy’s artillery hit rate?"

"Yes, you could say that." Vice Admiral Gai Pratt looked at Shire.

If Shire had considered this all along, it was truly impressive.

Could this be a genius? Not only proficient in land battles but also naval battles!

Impossible, naval warfare requires knowledge, an understanding of equipment, and Shire had never been involved in naval battles.

But why could Shire develop such a strategy?

Could it be a coincidence?

Amid his doubts, he saw Shire calmly continue the topic:

"The advantages of mixed composition are not limited to this, Vice Admiral."

"As I mentioned before, our fleet tactics seek a form of ’guerrilla warfare.’"

With that, Shire glanced at Wells and continued, "I believe Mr. Wells has discussed this idea with you, right, Vice Admiral?"

That was a discussion Shire had with Wells at the Brest Shipyard not long ago, mainly about the fleet relying on speed to maneuver outside the enemy battleships’ range, first dealing with the destroyers, then encircling isolated battleships.

Gai Pratt nodded, suddenly enlightened, "So, light cruisers will have a significant firepower advantage in guerrilla warfare compared to destroyers, ensuring our warships can win in guerrilla battles?"

Neon’s "Celestial Dragon Class" light cruisers had four 140MM caliber naval guns, which could not compare to the battleships’ cannons, which were hundreds of millimeters in caliber, but were a significant advantage over the commonly 100MM or so caliber navy guns of destroyers.

Shire nodded and summarized:

"This is ’asymmetric warfare’ on the Ocean, gentlemen."

"We use speed to ensure our initiative, use our naval guns to crush the enemy’s destroyers, then use torpedoes to attack the enemy’s cruisers and battleships."

"Additionally, our light cruisers can be equipped with large communication and reconnaissance equipment, enhancing coordination among the groups."

Vice Admiral Gai Pratt nodded repeatedly, smiling with joy, "Most importantly, we also have aircraft coordination."

"Yes." Shire was pleased that Vice Admiral Gai Pratt had understood. "So, you should understand how to train our navy?"

"Of course, Vice Admiral." Gai Pratt replied.

Inwardly, he exclaimed: My God, this guy is truly a genius, even in naval tactics.

Shire felt that other aspects were fine; he considered sea-air coordination the most challenging.

At this time, radio communication was not yet on aircraft, even if it was, it was prone to malfunction and signal instability.

This meant communication had to rely on flag signals and flares, with coordination depending primarily on mutual understanding.

However, for the time being, it was not a significant issue. If all else failed, letting pilots focus on bombing the larger tonnage enemy cruisers and battleships would suffice.