Chapter 616 – The Steam Catapult Goes Up

If the truth be told, Alan Wilson hated the weather in London very much, even if it was seldom foggy at this season of the year.

There was nothing wrong with it, even though the rain had been falling steadily since early morning, and anyone who had been reckless enough to spend a minute or two outdoors would have been drenched to the skin. Hundreds of working people were hiding under black umbrellas as they drove toward the factories. The pouring rain was more like a marching band Tim hilarious, celebrating the occasion with drums and trumpets playing a mishmash of exhilarating marches.

With perhaps only a few minutes to spare, an hour at the most, Alan Wilson had spent the night plus the extra time of the day adjusting to the initial jet lag, and he now understood deep down that going to work 10,000 miles away was not an easy task.

Weather aside, the sight was simply as he had longed for. Though he had lived here long enough to know it well, in his mind London would never have anything to do with sunny days.

Perhaps Britain’s ability to start the colonial era also had something to do with the vagaries of the weather on the mainland. Alan Wilson thought he could wait for the weather to turn, but the day was doomed to disappointment as the sun sank behind thick black clouds and the sky quickly darkened. The pouring rain and the deepening night showed that God was not listening to the cries of a district flunky.

The rain didn’t affect Pamela Mountbatten in the slightest; as long as the man was around, she wasn’t affected by the incessant downpour and was even thankful that God was aware of her long wait and had to give something in return.

In the midst of this time of heavy rain, Ellen Wilson’s life can be described in a very elegant words, without leaving the house you can browse the big world, to put it bluntly, the bedroom, the bathroom, the kitchen ……

This makes Allen Wilson a bit of a hidden worry, the current age group he is not too worried, but what if it comes to the age of power?

“My dear, I’m not very good with my hands, but it also seems to me that you’re a little tired.” Pamela Mountbatten came out of the kitchen with a cut of sausage to refresh her man.

Alan Wilson smiled and thanked him, “Don’t say, I really should replenish it, after all, in the future, my body is a matter of two people, I can’t be too careless about it.”

“It’s good that you know!” Pamela Mountbatten smiled lightly, her change was visible to the naked eye, because the man returned, the whole person was glowing.

Pamela Mountbatten wore her heirloom aristocratic attire like it was a valuable piece of jewelry that had to be forced to be appreciated, not only because it was beautiful in its own right, but also because it had been treasured and passed down for generations.

“How did you feel about the trip to Japan?” Pamela Mountbatten asked as she cleared the table, “The POW issue is all taken care of.”

“There’s not much to say about that part of Japan, that’s a problem Americans should be concerned about.” Alan Wilson picking his teeth don’t care to say,: “In the future Japan is the problem of Malaya, and we should think about what local emerging industries are worth investing in.”

To say that Japan and the United Kingdom have a place what place can be connected, that is the two island countries, there is not a bit of similarity left. Undeniably, because Britain is also an island nation, it has long been the envy of Japan.

This envy was not limited to a certain time, even in the twenty-first century Japan envied Britain, wasn’t there still a voice that wanted to join the Five Eyes Alliance?

After clearing the table, the topic also turned from politics to personal issues above, the two men and women already together began to plan for the future, the first thing is to set the date, which Alan Wilson is no comment, if Pamela Mountbatten wants to, tomorrow’s marriage is also possible.

Only he can not say so, the same also said some of their own ideas, Pamela Mountbatten said that the wedding in London can not be too high-profile, is nothing more than the father’s colleagues in the military, the mother’s friends in the business community, because of the relationship with the royal family, the aristocracy is also to be invited, taking into account Alan Wilson’s work, Whitehall colleagues can not stay out of the picture.

Alan Wilson was all smiles, very pleased with Pamela Mountbatten’s move to invite the military, the business community, the aristocracy and Whitehall, but not to prepare for a big deal, except that he did not know where this definition of not making a big deal was located, and everything was okay.

Eventually he realized that it could actually be done, just don’t let the media notice. It wasn’t unfeasible when you thought about it that way.

“It could actually be split into two, we could have the more festive ceremony in Sarawak, which is also your territory.” Alan Wilson made a whimsical suggestion, he didn’t know if it was in line with the British tradition, anyway, in the previous life, it was normal for long-distance relationships to have a wedding in each of their hometowns.

“It’s not impossible!” Pamela Mountbatten asked rhetorically, “but our connections are all on home soil, who will we invite then?”

“That’s a problem, so let’s keep it on the mainland!” Alan Wilson looked out the window uncertainly, “I hope there’s a good day on the day. I’ve always been very disappointed with the climate on the mainland.”

In a couple of months into the fall, London would be in the midst of a new round of haze that would make the name of the Fog City true.

The London smog incident is a landmark event in Britain’s determination to divest itself of heavy industry, and the event seems to be next year, so as the commissioner of British Malaya, he is already eagerly preparing for a round of home-grown industrial transfer.

Now the development of British Malaya is he begged grandpa and grandma begged over, and after next year will be completely different, that will become the consensus of the British political circles.

The weather in London after September possesses unpredictability, so Alan Wilson believes that it is best for the two to finalize things before September, and if Pamela Mountbatten thinks it is not enough, then the negligence can be added back in Sarawak. British Malaya was summer all year round, so they could maneuver whenever they wanted to.

“Good!” Pamela Mountbatten nodded, and the two settled on the idea of focusing on London, and then making up for it in Sarawak if it wasn’t successful enough, one for the main case and one for the record.

Long night, hard to sleep, Alan Wilson had to make a consideration of her choice.

Pamela Mountbatten’s own temperament is high, the sky has broken outside the window, the morning sky is clear and cloudless, there is not a trace of yesterday’s rain, she understood that the only feasible way for her is the last thing she wants to do.

A large pile of sheets reeked of sweat, perfume, and the lingering scent of clouds and rain. Next to him, Pamela Mountbatten lay asleep, her hair spread out on the pillow. Sunlight streamed in through the window.

Alan Wilson wanted to wake up but hadn’t, and the little farewell ended with both of them drifting off to sleep, exhausted and gasping for breath.

Now he can finally, do something that will benefit the country and the people, personal problems are naturally very important, but it is not easy to come back to a trip, there is nothing wrong with doing your best for the empire.

For example, first find General Mountbatten to talk, Mountbatten also know that this time Allen Wilson back, and his daughter to discuss the issue of marriage, in the heart of the face he has taken Allen Wilson as a family.

Two people chatting, Mountbatten also talked about a thing, the Royal Navy’s “Triumph” aircraft carriers carried out the first ever angled deck flight experiment, the effect is very satisfactory. It should be noted that the beveled deck was not built separately, and that the angled landing area was painted on top of the through deck, with little or no modification to the hull itself.

“It would be better to build it separately if possible.” Alan Wilson spoke up as he listened.

“Admiral Mitchell, Commander of the Naval Reserve, has still recently come up with a new thing that he would like to get a financial allocation from the Navy.” General Mountbatten mentioned a recent move by a subordinate.

Originally Allen Wilson didn’t take it seriously, but after hearing Mountbatten’s explanation, he asked uncertainly in return, “That is to say, it’s a kind of boosting device that utilizes steam to catapult an airplane, a steam catapult.”

“You could say that!” Admiral Mountbatten nodded, “But currently, as you know, we have no plans for the construction of new aircraft carriers.”

“Honorable Secretary of the Sea, don’t we have two Malta’s nearing the end of their construction cycle!” Alan Wilson spoke up, addressing his esteemed father-in-law, “If it improves the combat effectiveness of the Royal Navy, it can be installed straight away.”

Steam catapult installations were inspired at first, by hooking up a steam turbine to an aircraft carrier’s catapult, and slowly improving it at a later stage. Like any other steam device, it was done by generating a large amount of high pressure steam, storing that high pressure steam in a large cylinder, and when needed opening the piston and letting it go to push the power plant, of course all of this was done with highly crafted designs and calculations.

Of course, the disadvantages of steam catapults also have, steam catapults are not only very expensive, the installation of those technical requirements of precision and complexity, of course, the general cost of expensive things, the maintenance of these are expensive, but also a waste of labor power.

And aircraft carriers are supposed to be at sea all year round, steam catapults require huge amounts of fresh water to provide power, whether it is carrying or storing is a big trouble.

The so-called savings are a false proposition, now that there are two Malta class carriers about to enter service, how much can the addition of a steam catapult raise the cost of a guy that big when he’s built?

“What if it’s like a tilted deck that can dramatically increase the combat effectiveness of the Royal Navy, wouldn’t that be a good thing?” Alan Wilson wagged his finger and did the math.

“There’s a point to that!” Mountbatten was the Fourth Sea Minister, this matter was indeed something he could support, and finally sighed, “Well, I hope that before I go to the Mediterranean Fleet to become the Commander, this matter will have a good outcome.”

Alan Wilson raised an eyebrow, this Versailles language is then very mellow, very much in line with Mountbatten’s own temperament.