606 Oahu

Yamamoto Fifty-Six sat in his seat, looking at his huge naval fleet from the battleship Nagato. This time, the combined fleet of the Japanese Navy almost came out in full force. There were as many as 8 aircraft carriers alone, and an unprecedented 8 battleships. There were countless cruisers and destroyers. the Hawaiian Islands.

This is the last desperate battle of the Japanese navy. If the Americans do not surrender after the Battle of Hawaii, the Japanese will have to passively wait for the Americans to counterattack. Yamamoto knew that Japan no longer had the power to land in the United States. Even if it managed to scrape together hundreds of thousands of people, it would be impossible for the United States, whose territory was similar to that of China, to be overthrown by the patchwork of hundreds of thousands of people.

Thinking of this, the commander of the United Fleet couldn't help standing up, and heaved a long sigh. He still remembers what he said to himself when he declared war on the United States. At that time, when he evaluated the war situation, he replied to his chief: "There is no problem for a year and a half, but no matter how long it takes."

Now, from May 2 to mid-August, his fleet was showing signs of fatigue. After more than three months of war, most of the United Fleet's forces did not get the rest they deserved, and the Japanese army, which was blooming and victorious everywhere, was also dispersed into countless forces, which could not be concentrated at all.

The Japanese army has more than 2 million troops on the Chinese battlefield, including a full 750,000 Kwantung Army deployed on the border of the Soviet Union. These Japanese troops did not dare to leave the border area in one step, because there were also more than 700,000 Soviet Red Army on the opposite side staring at the Japanese in China. At the same time, in the direction of the long Chinese counterattack, the Japanese had to retain more than 700,000 defensive troops. After all, the squadron is not what it used to be, and it still has a certain combat effectiveness at this moment.

Japan has a total of 177 division numbers in China, and the standard Japanese Class A division has a strength of nearly 30,000. That is to say, the deployment of Japanese troops in China has begun to shrink seriously, and many second-line troops cannot be fully staffed at all. , Even part of the C-type divisions were sent to the Chinese battlefield to fill up.

The divisions of the Japanese army are so weird to the extreme. It stands to reason that a Japanese Class A division is actually a division of the same army. Therefore, in many cases, a Chinese division cannot beat a Japanese division, because the divisions of the two sides are different. Same. Japan's divisions are similar to those of the United States. The top Class A division has 28,000 people. It is inevitable that the combat effectiveness is stronger than a division of the Kuomintang army.

But then again, if it is a C-level division, then the division may only have 15,000 people, and there may be a shortfall. If it is such a division, it is conceivable how effective it is. Well, many C-level divisions don't even have enough artillery, and it's reliable to deal with Chinese guerrillas, but it's just a joke to use it for frontal battles.

"Send a report to General Nagumo Chuichi, let him start preparing to attack the U.S. military field airport on Oahu Island! After two waves of air bombing, release the landing force and start to forcibly land on the first island!" Yamamoto let go of the melancholy in his heart,

The order to attack began. It is not easy for them to win this battle. At least on Oahu Island, there are still a large number of US Army planes that can take off to face Japanese fighter jets.

Therefore, the Japanese navy came out in full force this time in order to be able to use its superior carrier-based aircraft to completely destroy the US combat system on the Hawaiian Islands and gain more advantages for the Marine Corps' landing operations.

The rest is to wait anxiously. Yamamoto needs to confirm the effect of the air strike on the Oahu military airport before issuing further combat orders. Everyone waited in silence, watching the hands of their pocket watches move little by little. About an hour and a half later, General Chuichi Nagumo sent back the results of the air strike: "Honorable Marshal, the air strike was successfully carried out and 110 American fighter jets were destroyed. Air supremacy is still being contested."

Yamamoto's heart jumped slightly, which meant that the United States took off its own plane ahead of schedule and intercepted Nagumo's plane. Otherwise, the result of the battle should be even greater. It seems that the US radar system can already participate in actual combat as an early warning, which is definitely not good news for the Japanese navy.

"Your Excellency the Marshal? Your Excellency the Marshal? General Kurita called to ask if the battle plan is on schedule?" An officer asked softly, covering the phone with his hands. His words interrupted Yamamoto's restless thoughts, so the commander of the Japanese Navy's Combined Fleet finally decided to gamble again.

"The battle begins!" He picked up the phone and gave an attack order to the battleship fleet he was in at the same time. This fleet is composed of 8 Japanese battleships. Land on Kauai to gain a base from which to attack Oahu.

Outside the window of Yamamoto's command tower, two huge twin-mounted main gun turrets have been slowly pointing to the starboard side, and behind Yamamoto, the two twin-mounted main guns at the stern have gradually been in place, and 8 straight and slender guns The pipe has crossed the gunnel line and is adjusting the angle of elevation bit by bit.

With the shooting data provided by the seaplane that has already taken off, it is estimated that Kauai Island in the distance has entered the effective range of its own cannon. Admiral Yamamoto Fifty-Six solemnly issued an attack order with his hands behind his back. Japanese uttered an extremely clean vocabulary: "Shoot!"

The officer standing in front of the megaphone nodded respectfully and replied: "Hi!" After the answer, the officer immediately conveyed the firing command to the four huge turrets in the same solemn tone: "Fire!"

A few seconds later, on the 4 huge main turrets at the front and rear of the battleship, 8 artillery pieces fired back and forth, spraying out bright tongues of flame. The roar of the 410 mm caliber cannon is deafening and majestic to anyone. In order to avoid damage to the hull, the salvos were actually fired slightly sequentially, so that the vibration caused by the firing was relatively slight, but Yamamoto could still feel the warship trembling under his feet amidst the sound of gunfire.

Not far behind the battleship Nagato, the giant ship Mutsu sailing on the same course has also prepared its 8 huge artillery. Less than 10 seconds after the flames erupted on the battleship Nagato, the Mutsu also fired and fired the first round of salvo.

The Japanese battleships following behind also fired one after another, and the shells fell on Kauai Island like raindrops. This is almost the largest naval artillery attack on land in the history of human warfare. The Italian-French joint fleet that the Germans relied on last time was only full of 6 battleships. This time, the Japanese fleet exceeded the size of that time with only battleships.

This does not include the naval guns of various calibers on the 10 heavy cruisers that are approaching the bombardment not far away. Although there are no carrier-based aircraft on the Japanese aircraft carrier to join, the trouble caused by these giant guns to the Americans is unparalleled.

The United States has deployed about 4,000 officers and soldiers on Kauai Island. These troops are deployed in three directions for defensive operations-the side close to Oahu Island is almost undefended. After all, it is impossible for the Japanese to choose between the two islands. Places spread out their landing fields. So about 1,000 American soldiers faced bombardment from the Japanese Navy, dumbfounded by the horror before them.

A huge cannonball is enough to lift up half of the football field's sand, with a huge shock wave and sound, shaking the whole earth. All the American soldiers held their weapons and cried on the battlefield, but no one could come to rescue them. A heavy machine gun position was directly hit by shells, and none of the dozen or so American soldiers inside was spared, and even a few of them could not even find their bodies.

"Damn Japanese! What a surprise attack on us!" An American soldier held his helmet with both hands, squinting his eyes to avoid being buried in dust and sand, and cursed loudly. Beside him, an American soldier was already crying. He yelled loudly for his mother, but it was covered by a huge explosion. Many American recruits had been frightened to collapse by such terrible shelling.

On a defensive position near the sea, an American regiment leader was grabbing his walkie-talkie and reporting the current situation loudly: "Yes! The Japanese are shelling, I believe they will land in an hour, and then fight It's going to be harder. I need support, any support!"

The Americans were not idle either. As the battle progressed, an American infantry team of more than 1,000 began to use assault boats and barges to reinforce Kauai Island. The plane was shot down, and from time to time, Japanese fighter jets swooped down to attack the Americans crossing the sea.

The interception of Japanese aircraft caused heavy losses to the US reinforcement operation. About 150 American soldiers were sunk along with their small boats between the two islands. But the remaining 850 troops made it to Kauai and strengthened the garrison there. These men also carried a large amount of ammunition, and they were determined to defend American territory and fight the Japanese to the end.

The U.S. Army Aviation Corps fought bravely and caused a lot of trouble for the Japanese. Although the U.S. lost 200 planes including the losses at the airport, the Japanese were also shot down a full 40 planes. This made the cautious Yamamoto Fifty-Six Almost gave up the landing operation that was not launched. The battle continued, and the U.S. headquarters on Oahu sent a telegram requesting support to the U.S. Navy, and Nimitz's fleet was converging on the distant ocean.