Although he was full of confidence in the Air Force, Shi Zhiliang also did not expect that it would be such an ending!

Since assuming the post of commander-in-chief of the Northwest Theater Command, Shi Zhiliang has served as the commander-in-chief of the "Westward Expansion" exercise for five consecutive years, and he has a very profound and comprehensive understanding of the combat effectiveness of the Air Force, especially the ability of the "Expeditionary Mixed Wing," and he also believes in Li Tianling's ability to be born in the future.

It's just that as a veteran with a calm style, Shi Zhiliang is never blindly optimistic.

In his words, too much optimism turns into hubris.

The last thing a soldier should have is hubris.

If I want to say, this is also a major change in the ideology of the imperial soldiers after the Great War.

Before and during the last Great War, no one from the top down of the Imperial Army believed that it would be able to achieve a total victory, thus ending the disputes with the Western powers once and for all, becoming a well-deserved and unique global hegemon, and establishing a world of eternal peace.

After the end of the war, the whole empire learned from the pain.

When reflecting on this, the most discussed topic is whether the empire has the ability to dominate the world and defeat all its opponents in a great war.

Following this line of thought, a movement for change in military thought was thrown out after the war.

Acknowledging the strength of the enemy and confronting one's own shortcomings became a common understanding throughout the empire, which provided the theoretical basis for the military reforms that followed.

Obviously, generals like Shi Zhiliang, who joined the army after the war, were the main recipients of the military ideological reform movement.

Compared with the generals during the war, the most obvious change in the imperial generals after the war is that they are no longer complacent, and they are more receptive to the enemy's strong rhetoric.

But the problem is that Shi Zhiliang never thought of it.

In the air battle that just ended, the Air Force's two "expeditionary mixed wings," to be precise, only four squadrons of 32 fighters, under the command and support of two early warning planes and two electronic reconnaissance planes, not only withstood the onslaught of nearly 100 fighters of the Iraqi Air Force from two directions, but also shot down at least 58 enemy planes.

The only loss was that Li Tianling's plane was on the way back, engine No. 2 stopped in the air, and then engine No. 1 failed due to overheating, and finally crashed in the desert about 40 kilometers northwest of King Khalid Military City, but Li Tianling had successfully parachuted.

The Air Force special forces on the rescue mission had already set off by helicopter and would soon be able to bring him back.

In less than one hour of fighting, nearly 60 enemy planes were cleanly and neatly defeated, and none of them were lost.

This result made Shi Zhiliang unable to believe it, and felt that there was moisture in it.

It is precisely for this reason that after receiving the battle report, he did not ask the staff officer to release the news, but immediately contacted the forward commander, that is, the captains of the two early warning command planes, and the four squadron leaders to re-report the situation of the battle and reconfirm the results of the battle to ensure that there was no problem of false reporting.

The results of the reconfirmation are the same, and more exaggerated, to be precise.

The results of the shooting down of 58 enemy aircraft are able to be demonstrated, either with a radar detected signal or with photographs taken by a photo gun.

In addition, about 20 enemy aircraft crashed into the territory of Saudi Arabia.

The point is that there are at least 16 results that cannot be fully confirmed, that is, the pilots believe that they were shot down, but they have no evidence of the shootdown.

If the pilots had not lied, at least 74 enemy aircraft were shot down.

Indeed, it was the largest single air battle shot down since World War II, or since the jet age.

As for the loss, there is no way to fake it.

Of the 32 fighters participating in the battle, 31 have returned to King Khalid Military City, and the only one that has not returned is Li Tianling's.

At lunchtime, Shi Zhiliang got the report submitted by another wing commander.

At this time, the rescue force had already found Li Tianling and was taking him back.

According to the news sent back by the special forces, this new way out, and the first ace pilot born in the Imperial Air Force after the Polish-Iraqi War, was only slightly injured.

If there are still fighters available, he will be able to return to the battlefield immediately.

Unfortunately, for the time being there are no available fighters.

The engagement was not complicated, and was almost identical to the tactics used in the Westward Advance exercise in the past few years, and it was the most basic tactic.

In the over-the-horizon air combat phase, only two "Battle-11B" tactical units located in the middle of the border line, eight heavy fighters fired three times before and after, and shot down 34 Iraqi fighters. In the combat phase, 8 medium fighters from 2 "Battle-10B" tactical units achieved 9 results. In the end, in that direction, only about 10 Iraqi fighters narrowly escaped.

About 15 minutes late, in the western section of the border, the second air battle began.

This battle is even more suspenseful.

After being intercepted by four "Battle-11B" in two rounds, and a total of 15 fighters were shot down, the remaining Iraqi fighters all turned to escape.

Because Iraqi fighters quickly flew out of the no-fly zone, the wing commander commanding the battle gave the order to withdraw the troops.

Based on the calculation of 58 enemy aircraft shot down, 49 were shot down by medium-range air-to-air missiles outside the line of sight, and only 9 were shot down by combat missiles.

As for the aerial artillery, there was not even a chance to use it.

This is the first time in the history of air warfare that medium-range air-to-air missiles have played a leading role, and the first time that over-the-horizon air combat has surpassed in-line air combat.

The air battles outside the line of sight, which have been blown by the air forces of various countries around the world for decades, have finally come to fruition.

It's just that the problem is also very prominent.

In this battle report, which was submitted directly by the wing commander, the performance of two medium-range air-to-air missiles was highlighted, and the "KK-12" was called for the complete replacement of the "KK-6" with the "KK-6" as soon as possible.

The reason is that out of 49 results, 42 belong to the "KK-12"!

The KK-12 achieved 6 times more results than the KK-6!

The key is that 12 heavy fighters have launched a total of 56 "KK-12A", with a single hit rate of 75%.

And what about "KK-6F"?

40 were fired, only 7 enemy aircraft were shot down, and the hit rate was less than 17%.

How big the gap between the two missiles is, it can be said at a glance.

According to the evaluation of the wing commander, if it were not for the fact that enough "KK-12A" was equipped in advance, the battle in the combat phase would inevitably be more dangerous, and losses would definitely be inevitable.

In fact, the Iraqi pilots who were later captured through interrogation can also prove this.

The tactics adopted by the Iraqi Air Force are to make up for the lack of combat strength with numbers and do its utmost to bring air combat into the combat phase.

To put it simply, as long as there are enough fighters to withstand the "three-plate axe" of the Liangxia Air Force, they can gain a superiority in strength in combat air combat.

In fact, during the Polish-Iraqi War, the Iraqi Air Force used this tactic against the Polish Air Force equipped with F-14A, and it also achieved good results.

In a dogfight air battle, the side with the advantage of troops will definitely be able to take advantage.

It's a pity that times have long been different.

Moreover, the air combat during the Iran-Iraq war has long been recognized as the use of the most untechnical tactics in the use of the world's best fighter jets.

As a result, after successive head-on attacks, the remaining Iraqi fighter pilots were so frightened that they did not dare to fight at all.

In the second battle, it was because he felt that there was no chance of victory, and the rear commander gave the order to retreat.

At that time, on the southern side of the border, there were actually only 8 fighters.

If there is no retreat, let the remaining 30 fighters continue to assault, and they will definitely be able to gain a force advantage in melee air combat.

Unfortunately, the Iraqi pilots were already scared.

This proves from one side that electronic interference plays a decisive role.

The commander of the Iraqi Air Force never had accurate information on the battlefield and was not aware of the situation on the other side, so he was unable to make accurate judgments.

It is not even clear how many fighters the opponent has, and where the fighters are located, it makes no sense to be undefeated!

After lunch, Shi Zhiliang went to the hospital to visit Li Tianling, who had just been rescued by the special forces.

In the military city, there is a well-equipped military hospital, which can not only accommodate the former patients, but also treat and treat all kinds of wounds.

Li Tianling only scratched his forehead when he ejected, and there were several bruises on his body, which were not even minor injuries strictly speaking.

However, he could only stay on the ground for the time being.

Shi Zhiliang just let him recuperate with peace of mind, and did not say that he might return to the battlefield, provided that he went to get a fighter jet.

After that, Shi Zhiliang returned to the combat command center.

After instructing the staff officer in charge of public opinion propaganda to draft a press release as soon as possible, he called Ding Zhennan, who was in charge of planning tactical operations, the number one hero of the battle, to the office.

Although he takes into account air combat operations, Ding Zhennan belongs to the army and is a captain.

He had only graduated from the military academy the year before last, and with excellent grades in the top ten of the Imperial United Military Academy that year, he was assigned to the Northwest Theater Command as a staff officer.

In that year's "westward expansion" exercise, Ding Zhennan's outstanding performance attracted Shi Zhiliang's great attention.

Last year, he was promoted to lieutenant.

Then in the "Westward Advance 149" exercise, he got more opportunities to perform, and did not disappoint Shi Zhiliang, and once again proved his talent with his actions.

In addition, he was exceptionally promoted for his outstanding performance in the exercise.

Promoted to 2 levels in two years, which is very rare after the war.

If you want to say anything, what has made Ding Zhennan actually a military reform.

The key, that is, the Imperial United Military Academy.

This ace military academy of the empire was born less than 30 years ago, and the empire only created this military academy after the Great War.

The purpose of the academy is to cultivate all-round command talents!

To this end, the Joint Military Academy does not recruit students from the civilian sector, but recruits outstanding cadets from the three first-class military academies, namely, the Army Command College, the Naval Academy, and the Air Force Flight Academy, for three to five years of professional training, as well as for continuing education and training services for officers and men on active duty.

In addition, the lecturers and instructors of the academy are all senior officers from the front-line troops, and the rotation system is adopted to ensure that the teaching team always stands at the forefront of military theory, imparts the accumulated experience and summarized theories to the students, and leads the development trend of military theory.

Although it has only been 30 years, the Imperial United Military Academy is already recognized as the best military school in the world.

Of course, those who enter the Joint Military Academy are the best among the military.

Although there is an emphasis, all trainees must be proficient in joint operations.

It's just that personal ability is also important.

There is not much to say about the previous exercises, but this one is the most convincing.

Before the start of the war, Ding Zhennan clearly mentioned that the Iraqi army would never sit idly by and would launch a large-scale counterattack in the early stages of the war.

It's not that Iraq's generals are confident, it's related to the Empire behind the scenes.

Obviously, Ding Zhennan's judgment has become a fact.

Crucially, he firmly believes that three "expeditionary mixed wings" can defeat the Iraqi Air Force and ensure that the no-fly operation is enforced.

In doing this analysis, he emphasized only one point.

Iraq is nothing but a regional power, and it is not qualified to argue with the empire at all, and it is simply overkill to use the tactics used to deal with the Western Continent group in the "Westward Expansion" exercise.

It is precisely because of this that Shi Zhiliang only called in three "expeditionary mixed wings", so as to free up more capacity, or more precisely the throughput capacity of the airport, to transport other, but also more critical, equipment and materials, such as maintenance equipment necessary for long-term combat operations.

Facts have once again proved that Ding Zhennan's judgment is correct again.

In fact, the no-fly tactics also came from Ding Zhennan's hands.

Divided into two phases, first set to 100 kilometers, and then expanded to 300 kilometers after having enough troops, it was actually Ding Zhennan's idea.

At that time, Shi Zhiliang also expressed concern about this, feeling that such a deployment was too risky.

But now it seems that Ding Zhennan's arrangement is not wrong.

"We have to adjust our deployment as soon as possible, so that all three wings are ready for ground strikes, and at least half of the fighters are on standby on the ground." After closing the door, Ding Zhennan said that it was open. "After this arrangement is made here, I will go to the temporary stronghold of the Marine Corps."

"Need to be in such a hurry?"

"After suffering a loss in the air, you can only make a fuss on the ground. As things stand, we should be more worried about Hussein's anger. ”

Shi Zhiliang frowned, and his expression was also very low.

In fact, the most prominent thing about Ding Zhennan is that he has a political vision that far surpasses that of ordinary soldiers, so he can always look at problems from a strategic height.

"After the battle at noon, the Iraqi Air Force will not recover until tomorrow at the earliest. If I'm not mistaken, the Baghdad side will put their hopes on the night, thinking that they can launch a surprise attack at night. If Hussein felt compelled to take the risk, it would have been tonight. ”

"We only have 2 battalions."

"Two of the most elite battalions!"

Shi Zhiliang is still worried.

"We don't need to worry about Iraq invading Saudi Arabia in a big way, after all, there is no air supremacy, and the Manman advisers will calm Hussein down. What we really need to worry about is a military adventure for political purposes, such as inducing the Saudis to launch a counterattack through an invasion, or asking us to provide more reliable security guarantees, such as deploying more combat troops before a formal counteroffensive. ”

"Drag it down?"

"At the moment, dragging it out may be the best outcome Hussein can strive for."

Hearing Ding Zhennan say this, Shi Zhiliang immediately understood.

"Okay, you can arrange it now."

"I'll be back tomorrow morning if I need to." Walking to the door, Ding Zhennan seemed to think of something, and turned back to Shi Qiliang and said: "If you can, it is best to deploy the air defense system in advance and prepare for a missile attack, after all, Hussein has not many cards to play." ”

Shi Zhiliang let out a sigh before nodding and agreeing.

He didn't forget about this incident, but he didn't think about whether to adjust the deployment, and after Ding Zhennan reminded him, he also felt that it was indeed necessary.