It's not just the landing fleet that's being targeted.

Just after 10 o'clock, shortly after receiving the news of the destruction of the landing fleet, a group of unidentified warplanes appeared to the east of the fleet.

Stark gasped when he received the news.

As for those staff officers of the fleet command, including Smith, they were all stupid.

Could it be that the information provided by the CIA was incorrect, and Task Force 41 was not more than 2,000 kilometers away?

However, this fear was quickly dispelled.

Flying from the east was not enemy aircraft, but 12 anti-aircraft fighters from Task Force 52 on Stark's orders.

It's just that the situation is not optimistic, it can even be said to be very bad.

The 52nd Task Force did not reply to the order issued by Stark because it was already targeted by the Liang Xia Navy and did not want to expose its whereabouts by replying to the order.

In the middle of the night of the 12th, to be precise, in the early morning of the 13th, patrol planes of the Liangxia Navy continued to appear near the 52nd Task Force, and according to the tactics drawn up by Stark, the 52nd Task Force had been relying on the early warning planes deployed on the periphery to direct the air defense fighters to intercept them, and did not use air defense warships, and expanded the scope of the perimeter interception, that is, they did their best to hide their own whereabouts.

It's just that when it was almost dawn, an accident happened.

In addition to patrol aircraft from the south, a number of enemy aircraft with faster flying speeds and weaker target characteristics appeared, all from the east.

There was no doubt that it was the reconnaissance plane of Task Force 41.

Worse still, it's not an ordinary carrier-based reconnaissance aircraft.

According to the target characteristic signals obtained by the E-2C, those enemy planes are indeed "Attack-5", but the "Attack-5CZ" electronic attack aircraft of the Liangxia Navy was developed from the "Attack-5", and the RCS characteristics are not much different from the "Attack-5", and it is difficult to distinguish them from hundreds of kilometers away.

The key point is that those reconnaissance planes did not fly straight to the west, but used a Z-shaped turnaround to search for routes.

This is the flight route usually adopted by electronic attack aircraft in the search state.

Because it does not fly straight to the target, there is no problem of directly rushing into the air defense network, and maintaining a long distance can also lure the enemy's air defense radar to turn on.

The key is that electronic attack aircraft such as the "Attack-5CZ" mainly rely on electronic warfare pods, and they are usually hung on heavy load hardpoints under the wings, so they can obtain the farthest detection distance and the best detection accuracy when facing the enemy's air defense positions on the side.

At this time, the 52nd Task Force did not dare to act rashly.

If it is a reconnaissance aircraft, it is not a big problem, after all, when carrier-based aircraft carry out reconnaissance missions, they will carry several large auxiliary fuel tanks to obtain a long enough range, so they usually only carry a special reconnaissance pod, and their ability to carry out electronic reconnaissance tasks is relatively limited.

In fact, most carrier-based aircraft do not have the means to use specialized electronic warfare pods.

Then, when encountering carrier-based reconnaissance aircraft, the flagship can also keep in touch with the early warning planes patrolling the periphery, and make deployments and adjustments at the tactical level.

In front of an electronic attack aircraft, this is self-defeating!

At that time, the E-2C, which was in charge of perimeter vigilance, made a rough judgment on the identity of the enemy planes at a distance of about 350 kilometers, and determined that they were electronic attack planes with a huge threat, and the E-2C was about 600 kilometers away from the "Nuland" and flew at an altitude of about 8,000 meters.

This relative position means that when the "Nuland" communicates with the E-2C, the electromagnetic signals emitted will definitely be intercepted by the electronic attack planes of the Liang Xia Navy. Even at such a long distance, the "Attack-5CZ" can measure the approximate direction of the electromagnetic signal at most, and it is difficult to measure the accurate distance, but for the Liangxia fleet, what is needed to launch an attack is only the general direction of the Nuland fleet.

Don't forget, the Khowaii Islands are just to the south.

Even if Task Force 41 is unable to return to the fleet after the attack, it will be able to fly to the Khowaii Islands or be supported by tankers deployed at naval air stations or air bases. In fact, Task Force 41 may not care about the loss of carrier-based aircraft. Even if all the carrier-based aircraft involved in the attack were finished, Task Force 41 would be able to obtain a nearby replenishment of shore-based aviation.

Don't forget that the shore-based aviation of the Liangxia Navy is actually a carrier-based aviation unit that has gone ashore, and it is all equipped with genuine carrier-based aircraft.

In addition, after the 61st Task Force was attacked, did the Liang Xia Navy have any other options?

Even before the advent of those electronic attack aircraft, Task Force 61 had already been attacked for the first time, and one aircraft carrier had been heavily damaged.

Obviously, the Liangxia Navy has no way out.

As long as the 52nd Task Force is discovered, even if it needs to suffer huge combat losses, the 41st Task Force will attack as soon as possible.

In fact, this may be the reason why Task Force 41 arranged for electronic attack planes to carry out reconnaissance missions.

Prior to this, almost a whole night, the Liangxia Navy dispatched hundreds of patrol planes, but none of them were able to break through the outer air defense network of the Nuland fleet.

To find the Nuland fleet, the only means of reconnaissance were to be used.

As a result, before dawn, Task Force 52 went into radio silence and shut down all radio equipment, including the radio.

To be precise, it is actually to let the radio station only receive the signal.

Fortunately, arrangements were made for such situations when the mission was deployed, mainly to let the patrolling AWACS make their own decisions.

Actually, this is also the most troublesome part.

The next interception operation proved that the Liang Xia Navy dispatched not only electronic attack aircraft, but also carrier-based early warning aircraft!

Immediately after the discovery of those electronic attack aircraft, the E-2C in this direction summoned air defense fighters and guided them to intercept them.

It is a pity that when the air defense fighter tried to approach, it was locked by the radar of the Liangxia fighter.

That is, those Liangxia fighters were operating outside the detection range of the E-2C.

The point is that there must be a "Finger-6C" behind it.

The reason is also very simple, the "Zhan-9B" will not let the fire control radar work all the time, and the electromagnetic signal emitted by the fire control radar will be intercepted by the AWACS aircraft at a distance of several hundred kilometers. Only with the support of their own early warning aircraft can fighters timely and accurately illuminate incoming enemy planes with radar.

Needless to say, the results are true.

The F-14B failed to force out the electronic attack aircraft, but instead turned to evacuate after being irradiated by the Battle-9B, avoiding engaging them in an unfavorable situation.

In fact, there are only 4 F-14Bs operating here.

Not to mention that it is all over, even if only 2 aircraft are lost, it will lead to a hole in the air defense network. Liang Xia's fighter jet was not launched, perhaps just waiting for an opportunity.

All in all, those 2 electronic attack planes are like maggots to the bone.

As a result, Task Force 52 was unable to respond to Stark's orders, and did not dare to carry out orders immediately.

The reason is also very simple, as long as there is a hole in the outer air defense network, the whereabouts of Task Force 52 will be exposed, and then it will be attacked.

In the circumstances, this was an inevitable result.

The key is that the E-2C operating in the eastern part of the fleet must turn back before 9 o'clock, otherwise there will be no way to return to the aircraft carrier.

But the problem is that under the surveillance of electronic attack aircraft, the AWACS aircraft turned back to home, which is tantamount to exposing the direction of the fleet.

Send AWACS aircraft over in advance?

The 52nd Task Force needs to take care of 4 directions, but there are only 2 aircraft carriers, and there are only 6 AWACS aircraft available, so there are no redundant AWACS aircraft available.

According to the arrangement, the replacement AWACS aircraft will not take off until 8:15 a.m. and will arrive at about 9:15 a.m.

In other words, the previous AWACS aircraft had to continue to use radar to monitor enemy planes operating in the east for 15 minutes before returning home.

Turn off the radar?

For the "Zhan-9B", which has a maximum speed of more than Mach 2.5 and can reach the fastest speed in 3 minutes, it can fly 500 kilometers in 15 minutes!

Even the "Attack-5" can fly more than 200 kilometers.

Obviously, around 9 o'clock, the 52nd Task Force will reveal its whereabouts, and then it will be attacked by the Liang Xia fleet.

Well, naturally, the fighters had to be left to carry out the tasks of the air defense of the fleet.

I can't keep it myself, what can I do to cover Task Force 51?

It's just that the situation hasn't gotten to this point.

At around half past eight, those Liang Xia fighters suddenly turned and flew away!

Probably because there was no chance to break through, or because the fuel was about to run out, when the 52nd Task Force was already preparing for air defense operations, the two electronic attack planes that had been hovering at the edge of the E-2C detection area suddenly turned around and quickly flew out of the detection range of the AWACS aircraft.

After that, the AWACS aircraft also commanded two F-14Bs to pursue, but did not encounter the Liangxia fighter.

As such, by 9 o'clock, Task Force 52 sent 12 F-14Bs to support Task Force 51 in accordance with Stark's order.

It's just that the tension is not over.

Not long after these fighters were dispatched, the reconnaissance planes of the Liangxia Navy flew back and appeared in three directions at the same time. As if they had guessed the location of the 52nd Task Force, or had a rough judgment, these reconnaissance planes were attacking from the northeast, east, and southeast at the same time.

Fortunately, all of them were ordinary reconnaissance aircraft.

However, this is enough to prove that Task Force 41 is to the east of Task Force 52, and is eager to find the Newland fleet operating in that direction.

In fact, the AWACS planes and fighters operating on the periphery are enough to prove that there is a Nuland fleet nearby.

At about 9:15 a.m., the first air battle began.

The scale is not large, and when the F-14B intercepted the reconnaissance plane of the Liangxia Navy, it was attacked by the "Zhan-9B", and then the two sides were separated by more than 100 kilometers and each launched several long-range air-to-air missiles. Because they didn't want to suffer unnecessary losses, after the reconnaissance planes of the Liangxia Navy turned to withdraw, the F-14B took the initiative to retreat and did not entangle with the "Zhan-9B", and the two sides did not enter the visual range from beginning to end.

As a result, Task Force 52 remained silent.

The point is that no one can guarantee that behind those reconnaissance planes and fighters, there are no electronic attack planes with electronic warfare pods.

Theoretically, the 41st Task Force has a total of 24 Attack-5CZ.

The most that had arrived before was only 8.

There are 16 more electronic attack aircraft available, even if it is divided into two batches, each with 8 units, which is enough to put 2 in each direction.

In fact, the "Attack-5CZ" usually performs tasks in a two-plane formation, and basically does not act alone.

Judging from the situation at that time, it is very likely that the Liangxia fleet has adjusted its reconnaissance tactics and tried to make a rapid impact through reconnaissance planes and fighters to bring the Nuland fleet into a combat state. After the air defense warship activates the radar, it will be detected by the electronic attack aircraft following behind.

If anything, this is not a special tactic either.

As a result, despite the dispatch of anti-aircraft fighters in support of Task Force 51, Task Force 52 did not break the radio silence.

However, it is certain that Task Force 52 was not attacked.

In the words of the lead pilot, Task Force 52 will certainly break its silence before it is attacked, so as long as it is still silent, it is not attacked.

It's just that it's far from sitting back and relaxing.

Task Force 41 is definitely to the east of Task Force 52 and is already in combat mode, searching for Task Force 52 with all its might. According to Stark's tactics, Task Force 52 would be able to hold out for a few hours at most, until about 2 p.m. to be exact. That is, carrier-based aircraft carrying out perimeter air defense tasks will have to return to their homes before then, and loopholes will appear in the fleet's perimeter air defense network.

As long as Task Force 41 maintains a sufficiently high level of reconnaissance, Task Force 52 will certainly be spotted.

Among other things, the 41st Task Force has 3 aircraft carriers, and the 52nd Task Force has only 2.

Moreover, Task Force 41 is also able to rely on shore-based aviation units deployed in the Khowaii Islands.

As expected, the patrol planes that were dispatched last night will be able to make another sortie again in the afternoon at the earliest, and according to the search operations carried out by Task Force 41 in the morning, the scope of the search area will be narrowed, and there will be a greater probability of finding Task Force 52.

Theoretically, there is no need to find Task Force 52.

As long as the Liang Xia Navy continues to narrow the search area, then before evening, it will be able to guess the general location of Task Force 52 based on previous search operations, even if it is not too precise, enough for the carrier-based aviation to launch an attack, at least know which direction to let the attack aircraft group fly.

In other words, Task Force 52 will be able to hold out until the evening at most.

After that, they will be attacked.

Whether it can withstand it depends not only on its own performance, but also on whether the 51st Task Force can provide timely support.

The reason is also very simple, the dozens of F-14Bs of the 52nd Task Force have been dispatched at the highest intensity, and after tossing and turning throughout the day, even if the fighters can still rise into the air, the pilots will be exhausted, and the combat efficiency will inevitably be greatly reduced, and the 51st Task Force will definitely need to provide support.

In fact, this is also the main news brought by the pilot of the lead plane, or that the 52nd Task Force sent 12 fighters over, that is, it is hoped that Stark will return the favor and provide cover for the 51st Task Force after surviving the difficulties, helping it survive the disaster.

Stark did not refuse the request made by Task Force 52, but he did not agree to it.

The reason is that Task Force 51 has not yet survived.

In Stark's words, as long as it can hold out until the evening, Task Force 51 will definitely send fighter jets to provide cover for Task Force 52.

Until then, the 51st Task Force will definitely have to be the most important.

It's just, can it really last until the evening?