“…… Hawkeye 1 called Green Griffin, Hawkeye 1 called Green Griffin, and found a small formation of enemy fighters in a direction of 27 degrees north-east, with a current distance of 100 kilometers and a flight altitude of 6,000 meters. Pen @ fun @ pavilion wWw. ｂｉｑUｇE。 info repeats the coordinate position, the bearing is 27 degrees north-east, the distance is 100 kilometers, and the altitude is 6000 meters. Done......"

To the east of the U.S. Task Force 1 in the Pacific, a twin-engine aircraft with an X-shaped antenna erected in front of its nose is soaring high in the sky under the protection of two IR-39T carrier-based fighters, which is the Irish Navy's first practical carrier-based reconnaissance aircraft, the IA-40. Due to the fact that they have to take off and land on conventional aircraft carriers, their size is significantly smaller than that of common land-based twin-engine aircraft, with a wingspan of only 15 meters, and the use of the most common single-tail design, which means that their flight speed and maneuverability are unusual, but with their appearance on the battlefield at sea and in the air, the traditional mode of observation and engagement has quietly changed substantially. Under good weather conditions, the IA-40 has a maximum detection range of 100 kilometers against air targets and 300 kilometers against sea surface ships.

In the operational command room of the USS Enterprise, the flagship of the US Pacific Task Force 1, Halsey's chief of staff, Colonel McTeer, personally replied by radio: "Hawkeye 1, Hawkeye 1, this is the Green Griffin, the location of the enemy aircraft group has been confirmed, the fighter on duty is going to intercept, please continue to monitor the battlefield situation and keep in touch!" Repeat, the enemy group has been confirmed, the fighters on duty are on their way to intercept, keep in touch! Complete! ”

A male voice with a loving English accent came from the radio: "Hawkeye 1 received." Continue to monitor and stay in touch. Complete! ”

Putting down the radiophone, McTeer turned his head to look out the porthole, as the sea was still stormy, but that didn't stop the U.S. and Japanese navies from engaging in the first air and sea battle in Philippine waters since 1939. The U.S. Navy is determined to win with all its elite, while the Japanese have only used some of their capital ships, and even if they lose this naval battle, their situation will not fall to the bottom all of a sudden, but with the current chaos in Japan, the negative impact of the defeat may be doubled.

A moment later, Halsey, who was "watching the wind" from the observation platform on the bridge, returned to the combat command room, and before he stopped, he shouted loudly: "The rain is lightening, and the victory or defeat of this naval battle is likely to be decided in the next half hour." ”

McTeer raised his hand and looked at his watch: "In about a quarter of an hour, our attack formation will reach the sky above the Japanese fleet, hoping that this punch will directly knock the enemy down." ”

Halsey grinned, "Then it's up to our boys to play!" ”

"The first wave of enemy attack aircraft has also arrived." In response, McTeer reported that "three squadrons of Wildcats have gone to intercept the enemy group flying from the north-east, and their duty positions will be replaced by a squadron of Hellcats and a squadron of Irish fighters in five minutes." ”

Halsey waved his hand and said: "Those Japanese planes are like bees, one wave will come to the next, and killing those Japanese aircraft carriers is the fundamental solution to the problem." Then again, the Irish AWACS aircraft sent to assist in the operation was not shot down, was it? ”

McTeer shrugged his shoulders and said there was no news yet.

Halsey said helplessly: "Although this kind of AWACS is very effective, they are too fragile themselves, as long as the enemy pays attention to and tracks its whereabouts, send a novice to easily shoot it down!" ”

McTeer responds with the opposite logic: "It's like a lookout who doesn't know anything about combat, and although it's vulnerable, it can play an amazing role." Look! A pilot, a radarman, and a communicator may become the key team that will affect the victory or defeat of this sea! ”

Halsey was silent for a moment: "Fortunately, the Admiralty has issued a tender plan to Douglas, Curtis, Northrop and Boeing to purchase carrier-based early warning aircraft, hoping that they can develop an early warning aircraft with excellent performance for the US Navy as soon as possible, so that we will not lag behind European countries too much." ”

The "fragile guy" that Halsey and his fleet chief of staff were talking about, the IA-40, one of the three carrier-based early warning aircraft carried by the Irish Navy aircraft carrier "St. Patrick", codenamed "Hawkeye II", was quietly examining another battlefield at a distance of more than 500 kilometers from the US fleet: a huge attack formation composed of more than 200 carrier-based aircraft went straight to the Japanese Kurita fleet, and the Japanese fighters that took off to intercept them looked imposing, but the number was only more than 50. Obviously, this thin air defense line could not prevent the US carrier-based aircraft group from flying over the Japanese fleet, and then launched a fierce attack on the Japanese ship group with the three main aircraft carriers as the core......

"Alright, guys, it's time for the Japanese to see how good we are! Team K, you attack from the front, Team M, follow me from the right flank! Team P waits for the right moment in the back, and once we tear through the Japanese fire, you attack from the weakest position of the enemy's firepower! Remember, blow them up with a rocket before you dive to drop the bomb! ”

In the forward cockpit of a "Helldiver", U.S. Navy Captain Nick Besler passionately lays out tactics to his wingman over the radio. As one of the three main carrier-based aircraft of the US Navy, although the flight performance of the "Hell Dive" has been criticized, fortunately it has good bombing performance -- unlike previous carrier-based bombers, the "Hell Dive" is designed with a built-in bomb bay, which can carry a 1,000-pound aerial bomb, and can carry aerial bombs or rockets of the same weight on the pylons under the wings, which is enough to severely damage any ship except the battleship.

In addition, due to the use of mature metal skin technology and perforated air brake flaps, the fuselage stability of the "Hell Diveker" during dive has been enhanced, unlike the Japanese warship explosion that must be equipped with additional ailerons to maintain stability, and the honeycomb structure of the wing and powerful fuselage structure make the survivability of the US dive bomber much higher than its opponents in the Pacific.

The three squads of "Hell Dives" formed their own formations, and they quickly flew in a straight line from thousands of meters before the rocket was launched, and then fired hundreds of unguided rockets at the Japanese aircraft carriers on the sea. At this moment, there was a roar like rolling thunder, and the anti-aircraft fire of the Japanese ships exploded in front of them in a pile of black smoke, and the air wave set off by the explosion quickly made these American bombers tremble.

"Oh my God! Look, Evans' plane has been hit, it's falling! God bless ......"

Exclamations rang out over the radio communication channel - no sooner had the attack begun than one of the bombers of Besler's squadron was hit by the large-caliber anti-aircraft guns of the Japanese ships. For a single-shot bomber, a large-caliber shell exploding at close range was extremely deadly, and the unlucky plane suddenly fell in a spiral towards the sea. If you get closer, you will find that the canopy has been completely smashed by shrapnel, and the bloody scene in the cabin is even more horrific.

The anti-aircraft shells fired by the Japanese ships were still roaring in their ears, and the fighting spirit of the American pilots seemed to be shaken by the casualties. At the critical moment, Captain Besler shouted: "The brave are invincible!" Warriors of the United States of America, it is time to make the enemy fearful! Come on! ”

With that, the captain took the lead in piloting the bomber to dive down on a Japanese aircraft carrier. When viewed from the air, it resembles a surfboard with modest lines, surrounded by waves of water from rocket explosions, and behind its butt, a long, curved streak of water forms a large S......

In the process of diving, the "Helldiver" became faster and faster, and the clumsy goose had transformed into a sharp dagger at this point. The distance was rapidly approaching, the target was rapidly enlarged, and the silhouette of the Japanese ship was becoming clearer and clearer in the line of sight, and the muzzles on it were constantly dancing with yellow flames like striking a match. Closer to home, Captain Besler could already see every detail of the flight deck, the stationary carrier-based aircraft, the fast-moving ground crew, and the frantically jumping cannon flames on both sides of the deck......

"Offensive ......"

Captain Besler roared like a cowboy on horseback, and the moment he released the bomb, the whole person's mood became as relaxed as the plane, but then, as the pilot quickly pulled up the control stick, the plane and the pilot were subjected to tremendous acceleration, and the pilot and bombardier were naturally pressed to the seat. After overcoming the initial physical reaction, he turned his head to look out of the cockpit with difficulty, and during the previous high-speed dive, the lowest point of the bomber did not seem to be much higher than the mast of the Japanese aircraft carrier, and this also allowed the American pilot to observe the large aircraft carrier built by the Japanese after the last war at an unprecedented close range: its lines were stiff and imposing, and the straight-through flight deck was wider than that of the American aircraft carrier; It is powerful and domineering, and the anti-aircraft artillery deployed on the side is densely packed......

The biggest feature of dive bombing that distinguishes it from horizontal bombing is the high hit rate, and when the captain looked back a second time, several bombs were already blasting huge columns of water just a few steps away from the Japanese aircraft carriers, and these white mushroom-shaped objects almost surrounded the battleship. Although it failed to hit the target directly, according to the operational standards of the US Navy, this is already a relatively ideal bomb, and the huge power of the bomb is likely to greatly oppress the hull of the enemy aircraft carrier.

The follow-up dive bombers were still making a brave dive, and not far away, a group of torpedo bombers also took advantage of this opportunity to rush towards the Japanese aircraft carrier at a height close to the water. Seconds later, Captain Besler watched as the black torpedoes left the plane and gracefully crashed into the sea, then pulled up white, faint water marks on the surface. The Captain was so happy with such a dense attack - what kind of luck would it take to escape so unscathed?

(End of chapter)