afterglow

Chapter 476: Sea Knight and Barbarian Bull; a link between the past and the future

As if the Atwood had failed to be decapitated, a huge gap was ripped open from the bottom of the ship's bow, leaving only a little bit of the upper part still connected.

The middle part of the ship's hull was also seriously damaged, and the rolling seawater surged in. The fragile civilian cargo ship had no protection ability. Such heavy damage far exceeded its ability to withstand.

Just five minutes later, the Atwood was already tilting significantly.

"We're getting water! We're losing power too!"

"Captain, we can't save this ship!"

The anxious first mate ran over and shouted for instructions.

It has been five years since the captain was transferred to this freighter and he has traveled many times between Batavia-Moresby-Sydney-Honolulu-Los Angeles. The Atwood has carried many memories for him over the years.

After a while, the regretful captain gave the order to abandon ship, "Abandon the ship, put on life jackets and lower the life raft."

He walked to the helm, touched the oak rudder, then took out the logbook from the cabinet next to it, and put the thick book in his hand.

As soon as the instructions were given, the sailors rushed to the deck, took out the life jackets from the box and put them on, then worked together to loosen the moorings of the life raft and throw it into the sea.

Everyone climbed over the railing, crossed their hands on their chests, then jumped, and fell into the sea one after another. After floating up, they swam to the floating life raft...

The cargo carried on the Atwood is aircraft that are in a piecemeal state and are suitable for ocean transportation, and can be quickly assembled at the aircraft assembly plant.

As the cargo ship capsized, 32 cutting-edge P-40B fighter jets and 11 BT-13 trainer aircraft also sank into the dark sea south of the Fiji Islands.

One hundred meters underwater, the submariners inside the Lixia Jia-2 were holding their breath and concentrating, not daring to make any noise.

Everyone's eyes were focused on the sonar soldier, and they were extremely eager.

"Well, it's a sinking sound... gurgling, bubbling, and the steel frame is deforming and creaking."

"It's done!"

"It's not a loss if we can open it once on the way back."

"It looks like it's several thousand tons in size. It's probably going to deliver arms to the Australians."

The submariners kept lowering their voices and cheered, feeling very happy.

The LS-16 fleet paid the price for their carelessness, but in the eyes of the Americans this was just an accident.

No one could expect to encounter an ambush outside the dangerous area where Ming submarines were active. The merchant fleet could not always cruise in a zigzag anti-submarine manner. That would be too slow.

One of the four escorting US destroyers tried to hunt down the Lixia Jia-2, but to no avail.

That night, the Lixia Jia-2 sent a brief telegram, reporting the speed, course, and coordinates of the merchant fleet, and summoned other submarines operating in the Coral Sea to intercept and kill this group of big fish...

Looking at the vast and grand front, there are still many trivial things that happened in the day and night from last night to tonight, too many to count.

In Dutch Harbor in the Aleutian Islands in the North Pacific, the destroyer USS John D-Ford inadvertently triggered a mine as soon as it left the port. It was severely damaged on the spot. The entire ship lost power and lost power. More than 20 people were killed and injured. In the end Towed back to dock by barge for repairs.

These mines were secretly laid by the Qingming No. 3 ocean-going submarine the night before.

Over the waters of Midway Island in the Central Pacific, a Type 32 large seaplane performing an aerial reconnaissance mission was shot down by a US military fighter jet.

On the island of Guadalcanal in the southwest Pacific, more than two dozen Type 36 bombers taking off from Rabaul once again conducted air raids on the airport that was about to be completed.

In northeastern Australia, an Australian motorized patrol trying to reconnoiter the Johnstone area had an encounter with a section of the 120th Regiment of the 40th Division of the Ming Army and was forced to retreat.

In the direction of the South Asian subcontinent, the hundreds of thousands of British and Ming armies with the Brahmaputra River as the dividing line continued to make loud noises but little rain. The British army fired a total of nearly 2,000 artillery shells and dropped more than 200 aerial bombs; the Ming and Southern armies responded with more than 1,800 artillery shells and rockets.

It looked like any other day, as if it were just an ordinary day in the war.

That day, it was nine o'clock in the morning Hawaii time.

The Pacific Fleet, which used to be arrogant, is now filled with a strong sense of defeatism, and some people even proposed to withdraw the fleet to the west coast.

Now that the southern gateway to Hawaii is wide open, the Ming army, which is still sharp, is fully capable of taking the south route, passing through the Gilbert Islands and heading towards Hawaii.

After personally inspecting the docks of Pearl Harbor, Chester Nimitz, who had just been promoted directly from rear admiral to admiral, boarded the battleship Colorado.

He officially took office as Commander of the Pacific Fleet on the stern deck of the ship and immediately delivered a speech to the officers and soldiers present.

"...We lost the previous two naval battles, at Torres and at Tarawa, but the outcome of the war has not yet been determined. Our duty is to fight together and get through this difficult time."

In fact, according to Chester's temperament, he didn't want to make a long speech at all. At most, he could explain the future direction in a few words and let everyone in the fleet strengthen their belief.

However, there was already a large group of reporters here who were looking for a stunt, so he had to compromise.

From the appearance point of view, Chester is not as media-focused as Marshal Mai. He does not like to be in the limelight, dresses more casually, and lacks iconic words and actions that can impress people.

His speech was also as plain and straightforward as boiled water.

The reporters who wanted to hear some heroic words were disappointed. Shouldn't the newly appointed commander cheer for the demoralized fleet officers and soldiers? How could a demoralized army possibly win?

Such a non-sensational speech was far below expectations. A reporter from the Daily News complained: "The commander is a very frank man, but he doesn't seem to know how to motivate his subordinates."

When he first arrived, Chester was very cautious and restrained. He was not recognized by others. There were more than twenty naval admirals more senior than him. In a sense, he could be regarded as the American version of a one-time military commander. A lucky favored minister.

When describing the newly appointed commander to his colleagues, Lieutenant Colonel Irvin of the Naval Air Force described Chester in a disappointed tone as a timid, talkative, and passive old man.

At dinner time that day, a surprising news came out.

"Have you heard? The old man wants to abandon Wake Island and Midway Island. He also wants the Saratoga to complete repairs as soon as possible to prepare for the Chinese attack!"

The officers who were dining were all surprised when they heard this. The hand holding the fork froze and the chewing mouth stopped.

From the outbreak of the war to the present, the US military has been continuously transporting reinforcements to Midway Island and Wake Island to consolidate defense. Nowadays, these two important islands have gathered considerable forces, with a total of about 3,000 people, more than 70 aircraft, and more than 50 artillery pieces.

Admiral Chester Nimitz believed that it would be impossible to face the Ming Navy in a short period of time because the Saratoga needed to be repaired and the Enterprise needed to rest. During this period, the Ming army could attack Midway and Wake Island unscrupulously.

In that case, these troops will be wasted - they cannot effectively stop the Ming army, and they cannot delay it for a few days. For example, the US military garrison stationed at Tarawa Atoll a few days ago only insisted on holding on to the Ming army's Second Marine Brigade. for more than thirty hours.

Therefore, it is better to abandon the defense of both, shrink the troops, concentrate all efforts on the defense of Oahu, Hawaii, and leave only a small number of aircraft on the two islands to monitor the movements of the Ming army.

On this point, most people agree.

Facts have proven that after losing sea and air superiority, it is impossible to defend the island.

But "seize the time to repair the Saratoga and prepare for defense" surprised the officers.

Some people immediately questioned this - the Battle of Tarawa planned by Admiral Hasband-Kimmel had already ruined three aircraft carriers, and now both the Saratoga and Enterprise are extremely valuable.

If the two remaining aircraft carriers are also sunk in the battle, the long window period will allow the Ming Navy to do whatever they want. This war will be almost hopeless. It is better for everyone to pack up and go back to the mainland for vacation now.

Major General Spruance also held objections. He was more rational and felt that the current approach was the best option.

First, our own aircraft carriers are at an absolute disadvantage in terms of numbers; second, our own carrier-based aircraft cannot effectively destroy enemy armored aircraft carriers.

To sum up, even if our own side successfully ambushes to seize the opportunity and sinks or severely damages many enemy aircraft carriers, it will be unable to break through the enemy's armored aircraft carriers, which will put our own side into a crisis of being counterattacked at any time.

Although there were many opponents, Chester's idea received strong support-Vice Admiral Halsey, commander of the aircraft carrier group, strongly agreed.

Angrily, he publicly denounced the cowardice and lectured: "Is this still the Pacific Fleet? War is not a game for cowards! If you want to win this war, you should not lack courage."

In history, William Halsey was called "The Bull" for no reason. He was a hot-tempered guy, with a very fierce glare and a positive and radical style.

One of his famous sayings further reflects his character - "Kill Japs! Kill Japs! Kill more Japs!"

He once recorded in his memoirs: "Many of my ancestors were navigators and adventurers. They advocated freedom and violence, liked strong drinks, spoke rudely, and were unwilling to be restrained."

True to his story, one member of the Halsey family was even a pirate ship captain in the 18th century.

As a boy, William Halsey was a troublemaker, getting into fights and often coming home covered in blood and bruises.

At first, his grades were poor when he was studying in medical school, and his personality probably made it difficult for him to become a qualified doctor. Later, after entering the Naval Academy, although his grades were still poor, he became a popular rugby player.

It was at that time that Chester Nimitz met him. Who knew that time would pass and the two would be fighting side by side here again forty years later.

What's interesting is that William is three years older than Chester, and he is a senior in the older generation with more experience and experience. His father is also a naval captain. In every aspect, William is better than Chester.

It is a very dangerous situation for the commander's qualifications to be shallow and unrecognized, but President Franklin does not care about these, or it is too urgent to care about them now.

Careless William Halsey likes to do things by intuition and do whatever comes to mind. It is undeniable that he is very talented, but such a person is only suitable to be a general!

On the contrary, Chester Nimitz has very good self-control, careful thinking, and calm personality. Such talents are suitable for strategizing and winning thousands of miles.

It is said that when a new official takes office, he sets off three fires, but Chester only set off two.

One was to evacuate the defenders at Midway Island and Wake Island, and the other was to work all night to repair the Saratoga.

From a macro perspective, a series of changes around March of the 40th year of the Zhichang Period connect the past and the future. This is an important node in the early and middle stages of the war.

The first naval and air battle allowed the two armies of China and the United States to understand each other more deeply and directly.

Both sides realize the importance of discovering the enemy first, and reconnaissance and search are the top priority; in addition, the penetration of dive bombers is extremely difficult to defend. They are the key weapons to defeat the enemy, and they should strive to develop more powerful dive bombers.

The U.S. military found that conventional 500-pound and 1000-pound semi-armor-piercing aerial bombs were unable to effectively destroy the Ming Army's armored aircraft carriers. The Naval Ordnance Bureau urgently issued a task to develop a 1600-pound heavy-duty armor-piercing aerial bomb.

The Ming army realized that the survivability of ordinary wooden deck aircraft carriers was not good, especially the light aircraft carriers. The intensity of war will only get higher and higher, and strong armored aircraft carriers should be the general trend.

Strategically, thanks to the hard work of its own navy in the Battle of Tarawa, the Ming Dynasty could still maintain its offensive posture.

The United States has to make every effort to defend Hawaii. The Army's 7th Infantry Division has assembled in Seattle and shipped ships to further enhance Hawaii's defense capabilities.

Australia was determined to regain lost ground. With the training of a new batch of troops formed two months ago, the strength was considerable. Marshal Mai also agreed to launch an offensive when the 1st Infantry Division arrived in Sydney.

March 3 is a holiday for working women.

"Well, I heard that the place is inaccessible, full of miasma, and there are also tuó dragons. I don't know how long it will take to come back..."

Now that it was time to say goodbye, Xia Xiaoshi couldn't help but read a few words.

In the small front yard of the mansion, Zhou Changfeng gently pinched the delicate nose of his infant daughter.

Hearing this, he raised his eyes and said to his wife with a smile: "What's the point of that poem? Three hundred and sixty days a year, most of them are marching on horseback. Thinking on the bright side, transportation was inconvenient in ancient times. After the expedition, it may be possible It will take a year or two to come back, but now it’s pretty good.”

"Well, Zhou Kexing, you must be careful."

"No general has died in our army so far. Don't worry, I'm definitely not the first, hahahaha."

"..." Xia Xiaoshi curled her lips, rolled her eyes and said, "What you said is really unpleasant."

Zhou Changfeng, who was smiling, took out his sword, flicked the blade, and then sheathed the sword, "It should be Solomon's sand next time I come back."

Xia Xiaoshi looked slightly blessed and said nothing.

The first regular transport fleet to Moresby this month has already set sail at the beginning of this month. One of the ships is equipped with recoilless rifles and camouflage items issued to the 1st Marine Brigade.

The airport on Guadalcanal has been completed, and planes are arriving from New Caledonia one after another. Some Ming army reconnaissance planes reported being intercepted by enemy planes.

The operation to eliminate the U.S. troops entrenched on the island will be carried out at an appropriate time in the middle of the year. As the chief officer, Zhou must be in place.

(End of this chapter)