"Sir, the damage reports of each ship have been reported. Specifically: Eugenio, 14 people were killed and 39 people were injured, the radio communication system and the firing control command system were damaged, the main turret rangefinder a and b were damaged, three searchlights and one air defense machine gun were damaged; the Duke of Abruci, 25 people were killed and 41 people were injured, the main turret rangefinder c was damaged, two searchlights, one air defense machine gun and one air defense machine gun was damaged; the "Giusep Garibaldi, 9 people were killed and 23 people were injured, the communication system and the firing control system were damaged, the main rangefinder was damaged, two searchlights and two air defense machine guns were damaged."

After listening to the adjutant's report, Colonel Masina fell into a long silence. After the enemy air strike, none of the four Italian light cruisers fell behind, nor did any of them suffer from sinking. However, the enemy's unprecedented "soft kill" move made him feel no regrets. In addition to the previous casualties counted by the "Duke of Aosta", the number of casualties in the four formations exceeded 200, while the total number of people in the entire combat formation was only 2,755, and the casualties rate was close to 7.5%. The casualties were concentrated in command, communication, shooting control, and air defense systems. Even if there were reserve personnel to fill up the position, the combat effectiveness of each ship had declined, and the impact of military morale was difficult to calculate with numbers.

What's even more terrible is that this is just a round of attacks by the enemy's naval aviation. If two or three waves of air raids of the same scale and form are carried out, and then ship-based bombers are launched, it is hard to say whether these four Italian light cruisers can escape the fate of being sunk!

After thinking for a long time, Colonel Masina ordered the adjutant: "Send a report to the flagship and report to General Bionkelly that we were subjected to fierce air strikes by enemy fighters, and all ships were damaged. Although the air force escort fighters resisted stubbornly, the enemy's situation will be more difficult to ensure that we are in good vigor in the future. Please make a decision whether to advance or retreat."

After handing the draft of the telegram to the communications officer for a copy, the adjutant turned back to Colonel Masina and said anxiously: "Sir, if General Biangkelly has not made any decision, will we continue to pursue the enemy ships like this?"

Colonel Masina smiled bitterly and said, "What else should I do?"

The adjutant lowered his voice and said, "If there is a sudden mechanical failure of the 'Duke of Aosta', the other three ships should stay here to provide support..."

Colonel Masina had thought about this trick of winning multiple goals in one fell swoop, but it was not convenient to tell his subordinates due to his face. When the adjutant suggested, he pondered: "If it is known to outsiders, we may ruin our reputation and our future will be ruined."

The adjutant understood Colonel Masina's implication and whispered: "I will do it myself, and I will never let the third person know."

Colonel Masina said nothing to show his acquiescence.

After the adjutant left this time, about ten minutes later, the "Duke of Aosta" suddenly slowed down. The engine compartment immediately reported that the main engine No. 1 had a mechanical failure. The cause of the failure was unknown and the engine personnel were conducting investigations. Colonel Masina naturally ordered a signal to the other three warships to inform the ship that the ship was stalled, slowing down their speed and supporting cover in nearby waters.

After receiving the flag-toned command from the command ship, the "Eugenio", "Duke of Abruci" and "Giuseppe Garibaldi" responded to obey the order. In the next half hour, the "Duke of Aosta" slowly marched westward in less than 10 knots, and the remaining three Italian light cruisers circled the temporary command ship over and over again until the second wave of the new United Kingdom naval carrier-based aircraft appeared in sight. Since the enemy planes approached at ultra-low altitudes, the air-to-air detection radar of the Italian ships could still operate normally, and did not detect the incoming enemy planes in advance and issued an alarm, which caused the Italian crew to panic. The four light patrols could not form a formation and had to fight each other.

This time, the new United Kingdom Navy dispatched 24 carrier-based aircraft in one breath. The first 12 to arrive at the battlefield were all ir-44t. Each of them was equipped with 8 bombs of 127 mm under their wings and equipped with air-air rockets in the fragmented high-explosion warhead. The pilots obviously knew that there was no information about enemy fighter jets in the combat area. They continued to fly over the sea until they were three or four kilometers away from the Italian light cruiser to shoot rockets calmly. The bullets generated by the explosion were blocked.

These modern Italian warships were soon covered. When the air-to-air rockets launched by their own fighter jets showed a special suppression effect against the enemy, 12 ik-43ts also entered the battlefield with their superb skills of flying at ultra-low altitudes. These carrier-based bombers, which seemed "large-bellied" due to the ambulance cabin of the aircraft, began to climb upward about 15 kilometers away from the Italian warships, and then projected Angel-iii-guided anti-ship bombs about 6-8 kilometers away from the target.

Compared with the air-to-air rockets projected by carrier-based fighters, these mature anti-ship bombs are no longer "scratching" to Italian light cruisers. Each of them has the considerable power to severely damage large ships. If the explosion is in the right position, it may completely produce the effect of "killing one shot".

As for the daily training of naval officers and soldiers, although Italy is not as harsh as Germany and the new United Kingdom, it can at least meet the basic needs of modern warfare. As soon as the enemy carrier-based bombers appeared in sight, the lookouts on Italian warships issued the highest level of alarms. The still-operated air defense gunners quickly turned the muzzle to these fatal threats and projected the few remaining radio near-blasting fuze ammunition, forming a series of extremely tight fire blocking networks in the low altitude area. The technicians of the radio department immediately activated the radio signal detection-tracking-jammer system to interfere with the normal operation of enemy radio-guided weapons in the form of radio band blocking. This technical means

It has a good effect against the first generation of wireless guided weapons, but the opponent's development in the field of guided weapons has always been one step ahead of the Italians: Angel-iii adopts radio frequency hopping technology, and once the communication between the control and receiver is interrupted, it will automatically jump to another frequency, and repeat. In addition, because of the integration of rocket power technology, the operation mode of the Angel-iii type guided anti-ship bomb is much more advanced than the previous generation of Angel-ii series. Even if it is projected at medium and low altitudes, its effective combat radius can still reach about 10 kilometers. The terminal radar self-guided and radio near-fighting fuze technology have also maximized their attack efficiency under the existing technical conditions.

The 12 Angel-iii type anti-ship bombs, except for three of them that were due to technical failure or the interference of the Italian artillery fire, were unable to approach the target, and the other nine were all flying towards their respective targets. Seeing these black death gods roaring, the Italians suddenly felt that something was wrong. Those who were nimble and quick-witted immediately ran to the other side of the warship, while those who were not smart enough or who were too brave would either stay in place or run in the cabin in a panic...

Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!

The thunderous explosion sounded one after another, and dazzling flames flashed again and again. The four Italian light cruisers were soon wrapped in thick explosion smoke. They seemed to be small boats in the stormy waves. The hand of fate determined whether they continued to float or overturn here, and no matter how much effort they tried, they were in vain; they seemed to be small deer on the hunting ground, and the performance of the hunters determined whether they continued to survive or die here, and no matter how much struggle they struggled, it would be useless.

It felt as long as several centuries, Colonel Masina finally climbed from the hell-like command room to the outer corridor of the bridge. He breathed the fresh air from the sea breeze, and his mind was almost in chaos. He reached out and wiped his forehead, and it was indeed full of blood. He stood up with a hard time holding the railings. Looking around, the "Duke of Aosta" had become a warship that made him feel strange. The superstructure on the starboard side was not intact, the deck was full of holes, and countless corpses and dying survivors were scattered everywhere in the cannons everywhere, and thick black smoke was pouring out from under the deck...

"Paul! Dario! Rami!" Colonel Masina tried his best to shout the names of the shooting commander, the navigator, and the commander of the damage. Their duty positions were all outside the combat bridge, and they might have survived the catastrophic blow just now.

However, no one answered or answered.

Driven by the power system, the light cruiser was still staggering forward. Colonel Masina stood on the railing and gasped. His reason had long reminded himself that it was very dangerous to pursue the enemy ship rashly. It was the command of the ups and the temporary greed that blinded him, making him feel that this combat formation was fighting a powerful enemy. As a result, he was beaten beyond recognition by a few planes of the enemy without even seeing the face of the enemy warship.

Judging from the current situation, I must be responsible for this tragic failure...

Suddenly, Colonel Masina came to his senses from deep self-blame and regret, but when he saw the communication officer opening and closing his mouth, he could not hear anything, he suddenly realized that something was wrong with his hearing. He shook his head and pointed his ears to indicate that he could not hear. The communication officer hurriedly took out his pocket, and then took out a piece of telegraph paper that was automatically printed by the telegraph receiver.

Colonel Masina looked closely and the content of the telegram almost made him faint. Lieutenant General Bionkelly ordered him to suspend the journey west and tried every means to drag it for a few more hours. As long as the enemy's carrier-based aircraft continued to attack, his air force could search for air strikes on the enemy aircraft carriers, thus winning a "decisive victory."

At this moment, Colonel Masina's mind was extremely clear. He pulled his throat to speak to the communications officer, asking him to send a telegram to the flagship to inform the battle formation that the enemy's aviation force was attacked violently and was almost destroyed. Moreover, the enemy's anti-ship weapons, the power and efficiency were far beyond their pre-war expectations. Before finding out the performance of the enemy's weapons and finding countermeasures, his fleet would face the enemy head-on. Finally, he asked the communications officer to send a communication signal to the other three light cruisers, and the combat formation could be disbanded, and each ship quickly withdrew from the battle and returned to his port as soon as possible.
Chapter completed!