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Chapter 750 The battle between sea and air

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    The huge development of the Chinese Air Force cannot but put pressure on another People¡¯s Party general, Guo Songling.  However, the country's military expenditure is limited, especially during the period of large-scale industrialization.

    Because the government plans to introduce compulsory education for all and invest a large proportion in industry and transportation, relatively speaking, the navy can get a smaller share of the pie.

    Taking 1925 as an example, national defense expenditure accounted for about 1/4 of fiscal revenue, which was 835 million yuan.  This number has increased tenfold compared to the Beiyang era, and the number allocated to the navy has naturally increased, but Guo Gongling is still not satisfied.

    According to the practice of the Republic of China, the entire military has a commander-in-chief of the army and a commander-in-chief of the navy. As the commander-in-chief of the navy, Guo Songling should have been extremely influential in the military circles. However, seeing that the air force's military expenditures are in the hundreds of millions, the amount that can be allocated to the navy is only  Half of it.

    Zhang Hanqing has a famous saying when talking about the proportion of the three armed forces, that is, the "half and half" theory: "The navy's expenditure should account for half of the air force, and the air force's expenditure should account for half of the army."  This slogan lasted for nearly 10 years when the national strength was not yet able to coordinate the development of the three armed forces.  Under the guidance of this national strategy, it has become inevitable to prioritize the army, rapidly expand the air force, and moderately develop the navy.

    Knowing that he had to obey the overall situation, Guo Songling still often approached Zhang Hanqing to complain about the navy.

    "Young Marshal, this military expenditure is only enough for the navy to maintain its current operations. If we want to achieve the blue water navy that the Young Marshal dreams of, the current investment is not enough! We must know that the development of the navy is not achieved overnight. The Young Marshal himself often says  'Century Navy'¡ª¡ªCan you allocate some more funds?"

    It is indeed difficult for him. Generally speaking, the construction cost of the Japanese battleship "Yamato" is as high as 13 million silver dollars. The entire navy's military expenditure for a year can only build 9 such warships.  Excluding the food, accommodation, training, and maintenance of machinery, equipment, and ships for officers and soldiers, there is really very little money that can be used to purchase new warships.

    This is not because Zhang Hanqing is partial, but because the navy is really too money-hungry.  To build warships, you need a shipyard, right?  There must be various equipment, right?  Even if only a warship of a few hundred tons is built, the complete supporting factories, mines, enterprises and machinery and equipment are indispensable, as are the skilled workers and management cadres who serve it.

    Considering that the country is almost starting from scratch in the navy, just by investing in infrastructure, several Yamatos can be built every year.

    What's more, the naval academy, ports, bases, and related auxiliary forces serving the fleet, such as shore artillery units, Marine Corps, etc., are all being organized in an orderly manner. Each of them costs money. According to Yang Yuting, "military expenses are all given to the navy."  It¡¯s not enough¡±¡ª¡ªThis guy is just making sarcastic remarks. Anyway, the Air Force has thrown a lot of money at him.

    "I can't help it. The situation is too big. The Navy is paying for decades of debt! However, our efforts in the basic field will be repaid tenfold in the future. I guarantee that in five years, when we slow down  After this momentum is passed, the investment in the navy will increase tremendously, and my ideal of building a powerful navy will never fade away!"

    That¡¯s all it can do. Fortunately, although the navy¡¯s funding is only half of that of the air force, it does not mean that the navy has been left out in the cold. In Zhang Hanqing¡¯s heart, a powerful navy is still one of the symbols of China¡¯s strength.  No matter how weak China's current naval power is, an existing naval fleet is necessary.

    As the famous U.S. naval strategist Mahan concluded, an unknown fleet, "so long as it exists, even if weak, is a constant threat to the more or less open interests of the enemy. They do not  He knew when he would be attacked and had to limit his actions until the fleet was destroyed or subdued."

    In later generations, only the navy is an international branch of the military. It is responsible for the first choice of visits to show goodwill and expand overseas interests, and is recognized as a "mobile land".

    If it weren¡¯t for the weakness of the navy in future generations, how could China¡¯s South China Sea Islands allow coastal ASEAN to run rampant?  How can the treasure island of Taiwan remain outside the country for a long time and keep the door open to those close to it?  How could China spend a lot of money to purchase four "modern-class" destroyers that it knew would soon be eliminated but still had to meet its urgent needs?

    Past experience guide for the future.  It's just that the front and back seem a bit reversed.

    Since the Sino-Japanese War of 1894-1894, China's naval image has plummeted in front of the world, and its power development has also taken a big step back.  What lies before the under-construction navy is: Should the Chinese navy follow the path of giant ships and cannons and dare to catch up with the great powers of Britain, the United States, and Japan, or should it take another shortcut and fight so-called "asymmetric warfare"?  Zhang Hanqing from later generations wisely chose the latter.

    It¡¯s very simple. China¡¯s current situation is exactly the same as that in the early days of liberation: a lack of machinery, equipment, and talents to build large ships.

    Not to mention far away, even if the Chinese Army introduces GermanyThere is not enough strength for large-scale naval warfare, and there is a lack of preparation for small-scale raids. It is a state of "high or low".  The Nanjing government concentrated its warships in the narrow waters of the Jiangyin section of the Yangtze River, which made them easy targets for Japanese aircraft. After the war began, there was a tragedy of all sinking or being bombed.

    Some people who defended the Kuomintang authorities only attributed the Chinese navy to being wiped out without even a single naval battle with the Japanese army. They only attributed this to backward equipment and did not reflect on the guiding ideology of naval construction and operations.

    In fact, using backward equipment to resist the enemy can lead to special fighting methods. This is common in the history of world naval warfare. Being unable to go to sea and scuttling or waiting to die is a great tragedy that future generations will sigh in retrospect!  (Remember the website address: www.hlnovel.com
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