The military-industrial scientific research system of the academic master.

Later that day, it was about 50 nautical miles northeast of Nanci Island.

A huge fleet consisting of more than thirty ships was slowly sailing due north.

On the aircraft carrier Excellence in the middle of the fleet, fleet commander Rear Admiral Alan West was sitting in the Combat Information Center (CIC), his eyes fixed on the circular radar screen in front of him.

Starting about 20 hours ago, two old Chinese warships loomed near the fleet.

But this is not what the Major General is particularly concerned about.

An inconspicuous signal is displayed at the edge of the screen. It looks like a slow passenger plane or transport aircraft, but from the zigzag route it flies, it is not difficult to judge that it is conducting a sea search. Task.

The Invincible-class aircraft carrier referred to the experience of the Soviet Union when preparing its budget, and deceived the parliamentarians in the name of an "all-deck command cruiser." This decision resulted in the ship paying the price of reduced combat effectiveness in many aspects, but At least it brought a CIC that far exceeded the tonnage standard of this ship.

After the data link system was upgraded in the early 90s, the commander sitting here can see the targets searched by other ships in the entire fleet.

This is especially important for the Royal Navy, which experienced heavy losses in 1982.

Also upgraded after 1982 was the radar equipment of the Type 42 destroyer.

But even so, West is still a little worried.

After all, as the captain of the sunk frigate Enthusiasm, he had a close brush with death.

And now the major general in a high position already knows that the Type 42, or the entire Royal Navy fleet air defense problem, actually only retains dedicated long-range warning radar and fire control radar, but it was later proven that such a configuration saves money. place, but it is difficult to connect during combat.

What often happens is that the long-range warning radar has clearly seen the target, but the fire control radar cannot accurately lock it and can only watch.

This is not a problem that can be solved simply by upgrading equipment.

However, there is good news. The newly added Type 23 frigate HMS Somerset can make up for this problem to a certain extent.

During several small-scale maneuvers along the way, Alan had to admit that he had some past prejudices against the new model and its captain, Dortham Slater, the son of the current First Sea Lord.

The Su-22 of the Annan Air Force simulated the low-altitude penetration strategy of the Super Etendard that year in an attempt to break through the air defense network many times, but was successfully intercepted every time, including several simulated anti-ship missile targets.

This made the major general feel somewhat relieved.

What made him even more troubled was that many people in the country regarded this operation as a royal parade like a century ago, without any sense of seriousness about carrying out a military mission.

Therefore, this fleet, which was quite professional and capable when setting sail, was required to include various unnecessary non-combat ships along the way.

Originally, according to the Rear Admiral's plan, one Fort Victoria and one Fort Rosalie logistics supply ship were enough to sustain the operation. After all, there would be more than a dozen ports to stop along the way, and most of the supplies could be on shore. conduct.

However, now, the fleet has expanded to nearly 40 ships, more than half of which are unplanned transport ships and oil tankers. Most of them do not even have the ability to replenish during the journey and can only rely on helicopters to lift and transfer supplies.

Reasons include, but are not limited to, some trust relationships to fill ships in which family descendants hold positions, hoping to add to their resumes, and some companies register their almost abandoned small cargo ships as oil carriers to join the fleet to obtain Special royal subsidies for participating in the royal parade.

Yes, from the beginning, the Conservative cabinet has followed the standards and caliber of the "Royal Parade" in its propaganda.

This operation allowed them to quickly boost the already precarious support rate and delay the suspense over the distribution of parliamentary seats that should have been settled in early May for two months.

As a professional naval commander, West naturally refused to do this at first, but many companies had high-level and even royal connections behind them, which was not something he could manage as a mere major general.

The situation reached its peak five days ago when a Royal Cruise Ship packed with tourists joined the group.

The entire fleet is now more like a tourist group.

"Alan, this target is nearly 300 kilometers away from us, and you have been staring at it for almost 10 minutes."

A man of similar age came from behind West, patted him on the shoulder and said.

There was a slight expression of disgust on the former's face, but it was only fleeting.

Vice Admiral Michael Boise is rumored to be the next First Sea Lord to succeed Jock Slater.

This kind of rumor is actually a leak before appointment, and is often extremely accurate, so West is not willing to offend such a popular person.

"Sir, before the Zealot and Sheffield were sunk, the fleet was monitored by a P2 patrol aircraft wandering around the edge of the defense zone for a long time."

Every detail about Falklands will echo in West's mind for the rest of his life.

The answer made Boise frown.

In the process of appointing the new Sea Lord, the biggest obstacle he encountered was that some people pointed out that he had no experience in commanding or even participating in any major maritime missions.

He forcefully intervened in the middle this time to silence this critical voice.

And now that someone is mentioning this matter in person, it will undoubtedly make the lieutenant general feel unhappy.

So he simply replied:

"If you are really afraid of this target, you might as well take off a formation to verify it. We can't analyze anything even if we just watch here."

West turned his head slightly and glanced at Boise behind him with his peripheral vision, but did not give any direct response.

The latter joined the fleet with the royal cruise ship.

In fact, Michael Boise was closer to a political officer than a naval admiral.

What makes West most intolerable is that the lieutenant general himself has no such consciousness.

Since joining the fleet, the latter has taken a helicopter to the USS Excellence aircraft carrier to stay for a few hours almost every day.

In theory, as fleet commander, West should have the highest command authority.

But when a person with a higher military rank, a knighthood, and a high probability of becoming the next Sea Lord stands in the CIC, it is difficult for him not to be disturbed.

The same is true for other people in CIC.

For example, sitting opposite the rear admiral, Colonel Lejar Dennis, the captain of the aircraft carrier Excellence, who had been silent just now, suddenly said:

"General West, before setting sail, I specifically read the detailed information on the Chinese navy and air force provided by the intelligence department."

"The Su-27 aircraft with the longest range of the Chinese military currently has a very low readiness rate and can only be stationed at an inland airport. The remaining aircraft do not pose any threat to us in terms of range or performance, so they can only dispatch one aircraft at most. It is just a patrol aircraft with no attack capability for reconnaissance, so even if a group of Sea Harriers are sent out, it should not matter."