afterglow

Chapter 465 is the first victory; I have been waiting for a long time!

Previously, the carrier-based aircraft formations launched by the three Ming Army light aircraft carriers were actually separated.

The dive bomber formation felt that the torpedo plane formation was too slow, and there were many battleships surrounding the target aircraft carrier. It was unlikely that the clumsy torpedo planes could successfully break through the fire net.

Therefore, 10 Type 18 naval mines dropped to an altitude of 14 meters, Type naval mines approached at an altitude of meters, and Type naval mines went to confront US fighter jets.

More than thirty fighter jets from both sides were flying up and down in this airspace, and they fought each other as soon as they met.

The Wasp released most of the fighter jets in a timely manner, and there were a total of 21 over the fleet.

The Type 2 ship-driven ship has some performance advantages. The most outstanding one is its rolling ability. A Type- ship-driven ship that was bitten by an FA buffalo used an elegant spiral descent maneuver to get rid of its pursuers and turn the offensive.

While the fighters from both sides were fighting fiercely, 18 dive bombers from the Tiangang flew towards the back and top of the Wasp in the face of countless artillery fire.

At this moment, almost the entire TF-31 task force was firing at them. Battleships, cruisers, destroyers, and 127mm high-level dual-purpose guns all raised their barrels and fired into the sky.

The black and gray smoke clouds in the sky made people feel like they were in cumulonimbus clouds, but the shock wave of the explosion shook the plane up and down, indicating that this was a battlefield full of murderous threats!

Planes continued to be shot down, crashing into the sea uncontrollably, or changing directions dragging black smoke... A few minutes seemed as long as hours.

Zhang Yilu, the captain of Tiangang's third team, successfully arrived at the attack position. He loudly asked how many planes were left behind, and the gunner in the back seat also answered loudly that there were about ten planes left.

At 13:01 local time, Zhang Yilu controlled the aircraft and began to dive toward the stern of the Wasp from an altitude of meters.

The Wasp began to turn sharply, but to no avail.

The Chicago Piano is not trustworthy despite the loud thunder and small raindrops. The dive bomber deftly corrected its nose direction as the Wasp turned, shuttled through the intertwined fire net, and dropped the aircraft at a height of only four hundred meters. Aerial bombs.

The loading factor of the Ming Army's standard 250kg armor-piercing explosive bomb is 22%. This is a semi-armor-piercing bomb. It effortlessly smashed through the front flight deck and exploded in the hangar!

The second plane that dived right after the captain was not so lucky. It was hit by three or four rounds of 28mm high-explosive bombs, and its right wing was broken off. Then it plunged into the sea uncontrollably!

The third dive bomber plunged down at an almost vertical angle, but the dropped aerial bomb fell into the sea on the left, exploding a water column tens of meters high.

The fourth one finally scored another hit. The rookie pilot who had just graduated made his first victory and landed the bomb on the middle elevator with amazing accuracy.

"Boom-boom!!!"

The elevator was penetrated instantly, and the aerial bomb exploded violently in the hangar below!

Hydraulic and electrical equipment were shattered all over the ground. Two SB2U Defenders were also affected by the explosion. The leaked aviation gasoline suddenly burst into flames. In just a few seconds, at least twenty people were killed or injured.

The fifth and sixth planes that followed, perhaps due to good luck, both scored hits.

Two 250kg aerial bombs landed a few meters directly behind the bridge and on the mid-flight deck. One of them penetrated the smoke duct and seriously damaged the aircraft carrier's smoke exhaust system.

But there was no such luck in subsequent attacks. The billowing smoke from many places on the Wasp aircraft carrier obscured the pilot's sight, and the remaining 37-type ships failed to hit any of them.

Except for one of the four aerial bombs, which was considered a near miss, the impact points of the other three were a hundred meters apart.

Ten dive bombers launched an attack, and one was destroyed en route, resulting in four direct hits and one near-miss.

Such results were barely considered a passing level during training, but now it was actual combat after all.

Viewed from the sky, the Wasp was completely shrouded in black smoke, mixed with red and yellow flames and flashes of light.

The canopy of the plane piloted by Captain Zhang Yilu was hit by fragments and damaged. A deep gash was cut on his right arm, and blood continued to gush out.

As he took out the first aid kit and bandaged himself, he shouted: "Idiot, look at the waves on the bow of the ship!"

"Huh? Can't see...can't see clearly."

"Get the binoculars!"

The severely damaged Wasp's speed dropped sharply, and only a little of the waves broke through the bow of the ship.

At this time, the ten torpedo planes of the Rikyu Second Team finally approached the fleet.

They did not plan to go deep into the fleet, but agreed to besiege one of the battleships together. The target they chose was the Tennessee.

The slow and clumsy Type 36 naval mine is actually not much different from the American TBD Devastator in terms of technology, but is just a little faster.

However, the torpedo performance of the two sides is very different. Unlike the inferior Mk13, the Ming Army's Type aviation torpedoes are quite excellent overall except for the shortcomings of high manufacturing costs.

Mk13的投放高度不能大于20m、速度不能高于200㎞/h，而加装减速稳定木制框架的三三式则可以在至多150m、400㎞/h的状况下安全投放。

"No, sir, the gunfire is too dense!"

"Han Xiaosi and the others were set on fire!"

Every second, dozens of rounds of 127mm anti-aircraft bombs exploded near the aircraft group. This terrifying anti-aircraft firepower shocked every pilot present.

The captain of the Riggong Second Team, who was leading the team, hesitated for a moment and then ordered: "Hit one side! Just hit the side in front of you!"

He judged that the current fierce firepower could not break through, and it would take extra time to split into two groups to attack from the left and right. It was better to just run away after attacking together to reduce the time exposed to artillery fire.

However, the intensive firepower significantly affected the quality of radio communications, and three torpedo planes failed to hear the order.

Still adhering strictly to doctrine, they rounded to the port side of the Tennessee.

During this process, they were attacked by anti-aircraft fire from six directions. It is impossible to describe this horrific scene in a few words. It can only be said that they were completely walking through a blazing web of fire.

The captain and the other pilots were already preparing to launch torpedoes at this time, and they could only watch helplessly those few comrades who were destined to never return.

"Did you hear that?"

"Damn it! Come back quickly!!!"

"It's in place, ready - release."

One after another, the 454mm aviation torpedoes covered with wooden stable frames plopped into the sea from more than a hundred meters in the air, and rushed towards the Tennessee several hundred meters away.

After getting rid of the more than 800 kilograms of stuff, everyone just felt that the aircraft was lighter and much easier to maneuver.

The attack is completed, return!

参战的18架舰轰一共被击落7架、10架舰雷一共被击落5架，而那14架舰驱则要好不少，只在激烈的空战中损失了4架。

another side.

On the bridge of the Saratoga, Lieutenant General Halsey, who was in an anxious mood, was looking at the distance where the sky and the sea meet.

The attack formation launched by the Raider and Yorktown just disappeared from sight at this time. Not long after, a message from the TF-30 Task Force made the atmosphere here instantly become a bit colder.

"...The Wasp was hit by four bombs, the hangar fire was very large, the boiler exhaust system was damaged, and the power was interrupted. We are trying to control the damage...The Tennessee was hit by two torpedoes, and its maximum speed can only reach 17 knots... …”

"May God bless them," a major said softly.

Although everyone knew that the TF-30 fleet was used as a bait, they still couldn't help but lament when they learned of the battle losses.

Halsey clenched his fists and ordered in a deep voice: "If they (the attack formation of the Raider and Yorktown) do not find the Chinese fleet, then search as far northeast as possible before returning."

The first attack ended in vain. Where did the Ming fleet go?

Halsey firmly believed that the Ming army would not turn around and retreat easily. In that case, they would probably turn to the northeast after being discovered.

after an hour.

At 14:21, after flying about kilometers, the attack formation arrived at the predicted sea area.

However, there were a lot of clouds in this area, so they descended to an altitude of 3,000 meters to get a better view.

This formation actually had a big coordination problem. The Raider had been deployed in the Atlantic until it was hastily transferred to the Pacific after the failure of the Battle of Torres Strait.

Her fleet was unfamiliar with Pacific weather conditions and lacked experience operating with other carrier fleets.

攻击编队包括突击者号的VF-4中队和VB-4中队，以及约克城号的VB-5中队和VT-5中队，共17架F2A水牛战斗机、34架SB2U辩护者俯冲轰炸机、14架TBD蹂躏者鱼雷机。

They followed Halsey's instructions and flew northeast, hoping to find their long-cherished target this time.

Sure enough, just six minutes later, a pilot from VB-5 Squadron rubbed his sore eyes and picked up the telescope again. This time he saw a group of small black spots on the sea in the distance.

Overjoyed, he immediately shook his wings to inform others nearby about the situation.

The VB-5 and VT-5 squadrons quickly flew in that direction, and every pilot was excited!

But the problem was that the VF-4 and VB-4 squadrons were flying to meters ahead and to their left, unaware that the Yorktown fleet had already flown away to their right and rear.

It took more than forty seconds for a dive bomber's backseat gunner to notice the situation and hurriedly greeted him.

At this time, the experimental air warning radar carried by the Ziwei Zuoyuan had discovered the uninvited guest, and a small but abrupt waveform appeared on the oscilloscope.

The ten Type 37 carriers on alert in the air began to try to merge, and the flight decks of the five aircraft carriers immediately became busy. Everyone was hoping to race against time to release a few more fighter jets.

Seeing that he had been discovered, Lieutenant Colonel Ives, the commander of the Yorktown Air Group who personally led the team, asked his colleagues to send a brief telegram.

"Enemy fleet discovered, five aircraft carriers and a large number of destroyers. Attack begins."

Ives was born in a family of auto mechanics in Houston, Texas. He was an energetic and hot-tempered man who could fly a plane from dawn to dusk, but obviously not everyone had such a good spirit.

Ives has always treated his subordinates with harsh standards, so much so that the pilots of the Yorktown, who were accustomed to being lazy and comfortable, were complaining in private, and even planned to jointly write a letter asking for the replacement of the commander.

At 14:30 local time, the second formation of the A- special agent fleet sounded the battle alarm.

Ouyang Zhanghua was still talking calmly and unfinished, "Bo Xia Jinbo and the others have also been discovered. It is expected that they will reach the sea off Tarawa in five hours. Now they can give the Americans a hard time."

Song Zhongkai has led the first formation to the southeast, and the entire fleet is heading straight for Tarawa Atoll at a speed of 21 knots.

Once there, bombarding the Tarawa base and airport or intercepting the US battleship formation can greatly disrupt the opponent's deployment.

"Pass my order, and each ship will make its own decision to maneuver; the Chaling maintains its current course and releases a burst of smoke; this ship advances four and turns to the thirty-fifth direction." Ouyang Zhanghua ordered.

"As ordered!"

The two armored carriers and the three light carriers all turned in unison, so that the stern of the ship faced the direction in which the US military aircraft group was flying.

During this period, a total of 16 Type 26 ship-driven aircraft were scrambled into the air, and there were already Ming army fighter jets protecting the fleet in the air.

"I've been waiting for a long time, but it's finally here."

"Brothers, get ready! Have a good drink when this is over!"

"Does this count?"

The Ming army sailors were already gearing up, and many of them were eager to give the incoming US aircraft a hard lesson.

Anti-aircraft guns of different calibers are pointing diagonally towards the sky. The cannon magazines have been installed, and the shells of the large-caliber anti-aircraft guns have been placed on the fuze tester by the loader. They can be automatically adjusted after the firing director has completed the calculation. Timed fuze.

The Ming army pilots in the sky were quite surprised. They found that there was a serious disconnect between the US military attack formations, and the two teams were separated by several kilometers.

This is undoubtedly a good opportunity to give them a head-on blow!

As a result, more than twenty Type 37 shipwrecks swarmed up and dived and fired at the TBD torpedo planes that were like living targets.

The U.S. torpedo planes were forced to huddle together for warmth, but the formation was soon disrupted by Ming fighter jets flying up and down freely, and the entire fleet was torn into three parts.

The hot 12.8mm and 7.36mm tracer bullets shredded the fuselage skin of the torpedo aircraft like fire whips, and many aircraft were riddled with holes and fell out of control into the sea.

The TBD ravagers do not live up to their name, they are exactly the party being ravaged.

Some of the Sanqi-type ships were driven to attack the SB5U defenders of the VB-2 squadron, and three of the latter were shot down or damaged one after another.

At this time, the VF-4 squadron of the Raider finally arrived, forcing the Ming army pilots to give up the unilateral interception, and the two sides soon engaged in a melee...

Lieutenant Colonel Ives knew that it was not advisable to disperse forces under such circumstances. He ordered half of the aircraft to attack the nearest Ziwei Zuoyuan, while he led his team to attack the slightly farther away Ligong.

"boom!"

A 128mm anti-aircraft fragmentation bomb almost missed the group of aircraft, and the explosion of fireworks swallowed one of the bombers.

It disintegrated on the spot and turned into countless fragments scattered.

As the distance got closer, the twin 38.4mm anti-aircraft guns also opened fire.

A single shot of the deadly shell can tear off the SB2U's wing, and its power is far beyond the comparison of small-caliber anti-aircraft guns.

The expressionless Lieutenant Colonel Ives had no time to pay attention to how many planes were still following behind him. He flew over the Rikyu and put down the stick to start a dive.

Facing the fierce anti-aircraft firepower, any maneuver at this time is meaningless. Speed ​​is the best response!

【Picture】

(End of this chapter)