At about 3 o'clock in the morning, the officers and men on the "Accompanying Beijing" and "Longjiang" were busy.

However, it was not until two hours later, at about 5 a.m., that the "Suzaku," which carried out the first round of reconnaissance missions, flew away from the aircraft carrier one after another.

At this point, it was less than an hour before dawn.

Although night flight training has been carried out in the past few months, and most pilots have mastered the ability to take off and land on aircraft carriers, through repeated exploration, even old birds like Shenpu have to admit that it is too difficult to find the enemy fleet at night.

The key point is that the officers and men on the battleship can easily spot the incoming reconnaissance plane.

The reason is also very simple, the roar of the plane is very loud, and at night, even if the flight altitude exceeds 5,000 meters, it will be heard by the officers and men on the battleship.

It is precisely because of this that Zhou Yongtao arranged the investigation operation after dawn.

In Shenpu's words, fighting at night has exceeded the limits of human beings' own capabilities and cannot be solved through training and other means.

Well, one can only count on technical means.

There are already companies and scientific research institutions doing research, and there are several solutions, but the progress is very slow, and it is far from practical.

It was only after the last reconnaissance plane was lifted into the air that Zhou Yongtao returned to the commander's bridge.

As usual, the staff officer on duty prepared breakfast for him.

"It's all arranged, and if Cunningham is nearby, I'm sure I'll get the news within two hours."

Bai Zhizhan nodded, and glanced at the lunch box in Zhou Yongtao's hand, meaning to hurry up and eat, don't talk so much nonsense.

Zhou Yongtao was very knowledgeable, because he had to give a briefing to the pilots on the attack mission later.

If anything, he was a little overexcited.

Last night, after several repeated referrals and discussions until midnight, Bai Zhizhan and Zhou Yongtao agreed that the probability that Cunningham would take the Bran fleet north to Muahai was much higher than that of Sri Lanka, because the Bran authorities might not waste their precious forces in Sri Lanka.

In addition, Cunningham may not go directly to Muahai, and is likely to wait for an opportunity north of Magas Island.

The point is that after going to Muahai and joining up with the "Ark Royal", his whereabouts will definitely be exposed, and there will be no sneak attack on the 11th Task Force.

Also, there will be a strategic passivity.

The reason is also very simple, Bran's army retreated directly to the Kibu Fortress, which is equivalent to giving up the Van Luo region, or even the entire Van Yan Yang.

The Bran kingdom has retreated, will the Nuland navy still venture in?

Even if the "Endeavour" has already entered the Fanyan Ocean, it will go to Austria and be incorporated into the Southwest Guia Fleet to prepare for the next combat operations in this direction.

After that, Bran's army was able to hold the Kibu fortress at best.

Without the support of the Nuland fleet, even if the Imperial Navy sent all the aircraft carriers back to the Guia Ocean, the Royal Bran Navy might not be able to control the Mua Sea.

Crucially, Bran's army may not be able to hold the Kibu Fortress.

Judging by the battle of Shiquan City, in the face of powerful aviation, there is no fortress that cannot be attacked.

The advent of carrier-based aviation is tantamount to announcing that the days of building a fortress to control a sea are over, as was the case in the past.

In front of aviation, a strong fortress, nothing more than a grave for the defenders!

What's more, the Reich has the most powerful strategic aviation in the world, with thousands of long-range bombers, and so much ammunition that it simply can't be used up.

To put it mildly, the Imperial army could have used the bombers deployed on the northern shore of the Mua Sea to make the Kib fortress the next Lion Springs city through non-stop high-intensity bombardment, destroy the enemy ships in the Mua Sea with aviation, and protect the route through the Mua Sea to Posha Bay.

It was precisely for this reason that Cunningham would certainly aim to annihilate the Eleventh Task Force.

Only by annihilating the 11th Task Force and seizing the sea supremacy and strategic initiative can we increase the number of troops in Sri Lanka, or defend Sri Lanka, so as to gain more time to consolidate the Kib fortress and strengthen the military presence along the Mua Sea and Posha Bay.

So, how can the 11th Task Force be annihilated in one fell swoop?

This is also the key to Bai Zhizhan and Zhou Yongtao's belief that Cunningham will lead the fleet north after entering the Fanyan Ocean.

Fundamentally, the 11th Task Force has only two fleet carriers, and the carrier-based aircraft on board can only launch two attacks in a row.

Considering the harsh climate in the southwestern Fanyan Ocean, the problem of insufficient carrier-based aircraft will be even more prominent.

For example, after arranging two waves of attacks, it may not be possible to leave enough air defense fighters.

All in all, if we fight in the coastal waters close to the Xuan Continent, we will be able to rely on the support of shore-based aviation to make up for the shortcomings of our weak combat capability.

However, another possibility cannot be ruled out.

After entering the Van Yan Ocean, Bran's fleet parted ways with the Newland fleet, Cunningham went north, and Spark took the Newland fleet east to Austria.

The reason is that no matter how you fight, after losing Lion Spring City, the Bran Kingdom will lose the sea control of Fan Yanyang within a few months.

In a sense, the Kingdom of Bran has been defeated in the Van Yan Yang.

From the standpoint of the Newland Federation, since it can't hold the Fanyan Ocean, it's not worth continuing to waste troops, let alone risk the only fleet aircraft carrier.

In addition, after the Imperial army took Shiquan City and opened the gate to enter the Fanyan Ocean, they would return to the division and fight in the Guia Ocean.

The reason is also very simple: to march into Fanyan Ocean just to seize Posha Bay.

Because of the rapid capture of Lion Springs City, the imminent acquisition of four large aircraft carriers, and the strong strength of the Army's strategic aviation, in the eyes of the Nuland authorities, the imperial top brass will be full of confidence in taking Posha Bay, and will also start the combat operation of entering the Khowaii Islands in advance.

Even if it is more difficult to attack the Khowaii Islands, they will choose to march into the southwestern and eastern seas.

Don't forget, the Nuland Federation is the number one rival of the Liang Xia Empire, and only by defeating the Nuland Federation can it achieve a complete victory.

The longer the delay on the ocean, the more difficult it will be to achieve victory in the Guia.

In this way, it is all the more necessary to transfer the "Endeavour" back.

If you want to say it, Lian Xusheng is really powerful, and the strategic aviation under the command of Li Yunxiang is not a vegetarian.

The current good situation is first of all due to Lian Xusheng and Li Yunxiang, as well as Du Kang, who has been on the front line, but it has little to do with Bai Zhizhan.

It's just that whether or not we can continue to expand the victory depends on the white end of the war.

According to the above analysis, Zhou Yongtao made careful arrangements for the first round of reconnaissance operations in the early morning.

2 aircraft carriers, a total of 32 "Suzaku" to carry out reconnaissance missions. Twenty-four of them flew westward, with a focus on searching for offshore waters close to the Xuan continent, particularly the route to the Magas Strait. The other eight flew south, focusing on the northern seas of the westerly belt.

As for which fleet to attack first, it was decided by the results of reconnaissance.

The principle is also very simple, whoever is found first will be the first to attack.

The only thing that is certain is that although this battle will be dominated by anti-aircraft carriers, the Bran aircraft carriers pay special attention to defense, and almost all fleet aircraft carriers are equipped with armored decks, and the horizontal protection performance is not below the battleship, which requires the use of 500 kg aerial bombs.

Of course, these things are arranged by Zhou Yongtao, and there is no need for Bai Zhizhan to worry about it.

。 m.