Chapter 418 Mizuho, You Are Also a Guide
Time goes back five minutes to the Seto Inland Sea.
The sky was clear at this time, and the afternoon sun was even a little dazzling. The soldiers looked from a high altitude to the sea level in the distance, with a field of vision covering a full thirty-five kilometers.
This level of visibility is definitely one of the favorable conditions for launching an air strike.
"Finally found it! The little devil is really good at hiding!"
"Captain Liu, I really need to rely on your experience at this critical moment. Having an old man in the family is like having a treasure. Old comrades are really trustworthy!"
Hearing the praise from his co-pilot, the corners of Liu Yudi's mouth unconsciously raised a slight arc, and anyone could see that he was in a good mood.
"Okay, let's wait until we get home to talk about this kind of things. Attention, all crew members, get ready for battle!"
The reason why the aircraft fleet that raided Zhudao Island did not choose to close the door and beat the dogs was naturally to avoid the anti-aircraft artillery groups around the anchorage, thereby reducing the losses of the troops in this operation.
The enemy's homeland was not Western Europe, and there were no various resistance groups and guerrilla groups providing escape routes similar to the Comet Line.
The Eighth Route Army's navy is still in its infancy. It does not have the abundant capital of the Ugly National Task Force to dispatch Catalina water rescue planes during battles to rescue pilots who have fallen into the water in time.
Once comrades are shot down in action, the best outcome that awaits them is death.
For the Eighth Route Army Air Force, which is not too wealthy, the above situation must be avoided as much as possible. This is why the deputy general staff and his team decided to release the First Fleet to fight.
Of course, there are certain risks in this decision.
After all, the Seto Inland Sea has long been known as Asia's Little Mediterranean. If the enemy fleet sneaks away based on its familiarity with the terrain, all previous efforts will be in vain.
so!
The headquarters has added an insurance policy to this operation, and that is Comrade Liu Yudi.
As one of the current and future core figures of the Eighth Route Army Air Force, although he does not have McCluskey's "nose" that specializes in Nagumo Chuichi, nor does he have the miraculous sixth sense of Iwamoto Tetsuzo.
But this senior commander is very familiar with the Seto Inland Sea. He has simulated air raids on Hashira Island for thousands of days and nights. Coming here is like returning to his own back garden.
In addition, the comrades were able to successfully find the main surface ships of the Japanese First Fleet, and they would also like to thank the aircraft sent by the Mizuho seaplane carrier.
Just like the Arashi destroyer in the Battle of Midway, the Type 94 water reconnaissance aircraft that left the fleet to investigate the enemy's situation played the role of leading the way in this battle.
With the enemy "helping" to narrow the search space, it is naturally effortless to locate the main force of the Japs.
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While the two were talking, the comrades could already visually see the surface ships of the First Fleet. Looking at the battleships surrounded in the center of the formation, Liu Yudi said with some dissatisfaction:
"Tsk, it's such a pity that the flagship this time is not Yamato."
"If we can catch that big fish, Yamamoto Shichijohachi and Benzi's top naval officials will have to go to heaven where they are."
After a moment, he adjusted his emotions and commanded in a deep voice over the communication channel:
"Attention all crews, we are about to arrive at the battlefield. I will be in charge of the entire operation. I will report any emergencies in a timely manner."
"When everyone enters the battlefield, the fighters of the First Air Division do not need to escort at high altitudes. Your mission is very simple, that is to launch an attack first and gain the opportunity for the bombers and torpedo fleets to drop bombs."
"Don't be nervous, don't be afraid of wasting ammunition, just follow the training courses in the aviation school!"
In a battle between a fleet of aircraft and a fleet, the order of attack of each type of fighter aircraft is very important.
For example, A Chou in the Battle of Midway. Although their aviation sank several aircraft carriers in the battle, because each squadron did not have strictly coordinated tactics, all thirty-six torpedo planes were eventually destroyed.
In order to reduce casualties as much as possible, Liu Yudi decided to let fighter jets enter the battlefield first in this operation, giving priority to attacking the power supply system and command system of the battleships Nagato and Mutsu.
Of course, machine guns strafing anti-aircraft emplacements and rockets washing superstructures are also essential links.
As long as the enemy's air defense capabilities can be further weakened, the relatively bulky torpedo planes and bombers can be given opportunities to attack, thereby increasing the success rate of the overall attack.
After receiving the order from the battle commander, the Mosquito and Lancaster bombers of each squadron immediately set up an attack formation according to the pre-arranged combat plan.
In order to prevent the bomb from being unable to be dropped due to the failure of the hydraulic device, the bomber detachment carrying the goblet even opened the magazine in advance, and only sent warmth when the time was right.
"The first group, enter the combat position!"
"The action begins!"
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Facts have proved that although the Japanese's first fleet lacks actual combat experience, their daily training is really in place.
As soon as the air defense siren sounded, all the soldiers on each surface ship were already in place, looking like they were ready to fight the enemy to the end.
"Two o'clock! Enemy plane is coming!"
"The anti-aircraft artillery team is on full alert! Shoot down all those damn little guys in the air!"
"Boom! Boom! Boom!"
After the Type 3 incendiary pellets exploded into bright sparks in the air, a reasonable number of Type 89 127mm anti-aircraft guns and dozens of Type 96 artillery pieces opened fire, forming a seemingly endless air defense fire network.
But the result of the battle is really hard to describe.
The two Nagato-class battleships were indeed great weapons when they were born, but with the brutal growth of the aviation industry in recent years, their poor air defense capabilities have become their biggest weakness.
As the main force of air defense, the Jiuliu Artillery is only equipped with a ring sight.
Its astonishingly slow turning and tilting speed, and its firing rate, which is only slightly faster than that of a handheld machine, cannot produce any decent barrage at all.
There is no problem with the 127 gun caliber. The data on paper can definitely support the fleet's long-range outer air defense.
It's a pity that this thing doesn't have a VT fuze, so in many cases in air combat, you can only hear a sound. By the time the Japanese had calculated the fuse, the Mosquito had already flown to nowhere.
As for the Fuso-class and Ise-class, the four Iron Bastards can basically be regarded as the tuition for the Japanese navy to catch up with the world's top navies.
At this point in time, they have already reached the age of retirement.
The reason why these four old battleships are still in service is simply because the Japanese have no money in their pockets, so they can only make repairs and keep them in active service to support their establishment.
Facing the seemingly powerful layers of dark clouds, the fighting hero Wang Tianbao drove his Mosquito fighter and led his wingmen into the Japanese ring formation.
Both of them are ace pilots who have experienced hundreds of battles, and the outermost destroyers and light cruisers cannot stop their strong entry.
"Boom! Boom! Boom!"
The dull sound of western artillery sounded in the low altitude, and a series of blood mist instantly rose on the deck of the Nagato battleship, and the scattered meat flying in the sky covered the wall behind.
For those Nine-Liu Shencan cannons that don't even have a gun shield, as long as the fighter pilot is accurate enough, a long burst of fire can send the Japanese to see the locusts.
The wingman who followed him was not to be outdone. When he broke into the enemy formation, he also fired a wave of small combos. While using the cannon, he also shot out all the rockets in the belly and under the wings.
It is worth mentioning that this time the Air Force Division not only carried the 82mm Red Sun Type 1, but also carried new air-launched rockets developed by the Weapons Experimental Research Bureau.
As the first weapon developed by Wen Rusulin after returning to China, the overall power of the 132mm Red Sun Type 2 is quite similar to that of Tiny Tim.
Its special warhead can effectively threaten the heavily armored command towers of various surface ships.
After a set of combined punches, a fire suddenly ignited on the lower left side of the ancient tower-style bridge, where the Nagato's communication command post and air rangefinder were located.
The former is the communication center of the entire battleship, responsible for scheduling various wireless and wired communications.
The latter provides ranging, calculation and firing command, and is equivalent to the eyes of many anti-aircraft artillery positions.
After these two important organs were hit, the Nagato battleship's anti-aircraft firepower was significantly weaker. Those anti-aircraft artillery positions that were quite cooperative at first immediately became scattered sands fighting for themselves.
"Damage control! Here's the damage control team! Come put out the fire!"
Amid the hoarse roars of the Japanese junior officers, a group of sailors holding water pipes hurriedly came to the bottom of the bridge.
But just as they were preparing to put out the fire, Wang Tianbao drove a Mosquito fighter from the southwest and once again launched an attack on key locations such as the armored command tower, combat bridge and power distribution room.
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"Captain! It's too dangerous here! Return to the command tower quickly!"
Seeing twin-engine fighter jets grazing at low altitudes, the Japanese officers on the battleship bridge of the Nagato battleship began to persuade their captains to leave the front-line battlefield.
Facing the kindness of his subordinates, Hero Yano just waved his hand disdainfully, and then retorted while giving instructions:
"The observation view from the command tower is not good, which is not conducive for me to control the overall situation. What's more, the captain's situation cannot be too safe, otherwise the soldiers will think that I am a coward!"
"A true warrior must have the courage to face the enemy! He is just a villain in the sky, not worth mentioning!"
"Besides, it is a small probability event that the bridge is directly attacked. Looking at this world war, only the Prince of Wales led the British."
Before the old devil finished speaking, he saw a rocket with a tail flame. As if it had eyes, it flew straight towards the battleship bridge where it was.
"boom!"
Hero Yano died. (End of chapter)