Chapter 479: Shock (Supplement)

"This..." Admiral Jin felt blood welling up in his head. It seemed that this incident had seriously stimulated the president. The situation was even worse than the Pearl Harbor incident, but he obviously did not lose his mind. He replied hesitantly, "I'm afraid it will be very difficult."

"Of course this is difficult! Gentlemen, the American people have elected us to this position to solve problems and difficulties, not to enjoy them." Roosevelt waved his hand boldly, "You can do it from a professional point of view Let's talk about how many difficulties there are. Let's find a way to solve it together. I want to declare to the world and the American people: Even if we spend 4 aircraft carriers to sink one enemy aircraft carrier, the United States will continue the war to the end, because we can. 24 ships started a year!”

"If we build 24 Essex-class ships, there should be no problem with the supply of raw materials and spare parts; the slipway will face great challenges, but if it is operated properly, large slipways can be turned over - even if 24 ships cannot be reached, 22 or 20 There is great hope for the ship." Admiral Jin told the story bit by bit, "Funding should not be a particularly difficult constraint; but there are two things that I am worried about: not only do we lack sufficient and skilled shipbuilders, but we also lack a lot of skilled shipbuilders. Corresponding naval officers and carrier-based aircraft pilots.”

"Shipbuilder, don't worry, I have a solution."

"How?" Everyone looked at Roosevelt in confusion, wondering how he could turn out skilled workers.

Roosevelt quickly revealed the answer: "I will write to Prime Minister Churchill and ask him to immigrate skilled workers from the British shipyards together with their families to work in the United States. We have a large number of cargo ships going to the UK every week, and they are all empty when they return. Yes, we can also send fast cruise ships to transport these people. Transportation capacity is definitely not a problem. If possible, I plan to immigrate 20,000 households first - so that there will be no more than 100,000 people, such as aircraft manufacturing, tanks and vehicles. Manufacturing workers can also migrate to the mainland! Spain, Portugal, and Italy can send their workers to Germany, why can't the United States absorb the British? If necessary, we can also build new companies on the US-Canada border. "

Everyone nodded. Roosevelt's seemingly plain words were actually a good move that killed three birds with one stone:

First, it greatly alleviates the problem of shortage of skilled workers in the United States. Anyway, Britain cannot build that many warships due to limited materials. Instead of counting on the United States to support materials, it is better to directly count on supporting warships;

Second, reducing the burden on the United Kingdom. Absorbing 100,000 to 300,000 people to immigrate to the United States will not cause much burden, but it will reduce the number of mouths for the United Kingdom by 30;

The third and most important point is that after absorbing the most valuable engineers, technicians and skilled workers in British industry, the industrial strength of the United States will be greatly enhanced. In the worst case scenario such as British surrender, the United States will also get the most The most valuable part - before this, Britain's most valuable scientists had been scooped up by the United States.

We are all smart people here. After a moment's thought, they understood Roosevelt's intention of "drunkard is not interested in drinking", and there is no need to worry about the British not cooperating - as long as Congress passes the plan, countless British people will sign up tomorrow Immigrate to the United States.

Admiral Jin nodded repeatedly. The president is indeed very good at politics.

"As for enough naval officers and pilots..." Roosevelt glanced at everyone, "This is your job. You must increase your training and training. I hope you won't disappoint me. If necessary, you can also introduce some Royal Navy. "

Admiral Jin immediately stood up and expressed his determination: "Don't worry, we will have enough sailors and pilots to use every ship we get to fight the enemy!"

Roosevelt nodded approvingly: "We must have confidence that the final victory will definitely belong to us. The United States is not only the world's largest industrial power, but will also be the world's largest military power in the future!"

Although Admiral King issued a military order to Roosevelt, he still broke out in a cold sweat after going back and taking a careful inventory: Except for personnel serving in shore agencies, civilian officers and Marines, the Navy, starting from Pearl Harbor, had served in the front-line fleet before the war. The casualty rate has exceeded 25%, and the death rate of carrier-based aircraft pilots has exceeded 50%. Starting from the Battle of Midway, HNA lost more than 200 people each time. Through successive battles in the South Pacific, Indian Ocean, North Atlantic, and Panama, The pilots lost more than 1,000 people in one year, and not even one of them was a veteran, which really hurt their vitality.

Facing the frowning Admiral Jin, Li Hai and Nimitz could not think of a good solution. In the end, Nimitz made a sacrifice and agreed to transfer 40 experienced pilots (groups) and a group of navy from the Far East. The officers and soldiers went to the Atlantic Fleet, and Admiral King promised to provide the Pacific Fleet with enough new aircraft, including F4U and F6F. As for the new aircraft carrier that Nimitz had originally expected, it was completely ruined due to the defeat in the Panama Battle, but Admiral Kim promised to provide 2-3 more escort aircraft carriers to Australia in June if possible.

When they broke up, Admiral King held Nimitz's hand tightly: "Given the current difficult situation, the Pacific can only count on your support!"

Nimitz nodded sternly, and then the Pacific Theater will completely shift to the defensive.

On April 25, the United States officially announced the results of the Panama Campaign. The situation developed as Cohen expected. The media downplayed the destruction of the Panama Canal, focusing on the bravery and sacrifice of the US Army and Navy. They also solemnly published photos of Mutsu and Hiei sinking in the water. If you don’t analyze it carefully, you might think that these warships were sunk in the canal by US aircraft. However, Cohen didn’t have time to say much. He was appointed as the commander-in-chief of the US Southern Command, responsible for the army and air force in the entire Caribbean and Panama region, and was busy all day.

After such dilution, the United States’ own losses did not seem so serious. The United States itself announced that the losses were 2 fleet aircraft carriers, 2 light aircraft carriers, 1 fleet aircraft carrier severely damaged, and more than 10 cruisers and destroyers. As for the losses of aircraft and pilots, it was concealed and said that there were more than 300 people.

On the same afternoon when the news was announced, Roosevelt was questioned by Congress, accompanied by Marshall and Admiral King as the main witnesses. As a lawyer with many years of experience in politics, he fully demonstrated his ability to maneuver. He did not passively and awkwardly accept the politicians' barrage of questions. Instead, he took the initiative and described the terrible scene to them with a gloomy face.