On the outskirts of Buenos Aires, on a dim, silent "grass airport", a large Fokker 42D transport plane has been parked on the runway. Pen? Interesting? Pavilion wWw. ｂiquge。 The aft hatch of the INFO aircraft was lowered and placed on the runway floor. Several young men in naval missile unit uniforms are pushing a stowed missile launcher out of the cargo hold of an airplane. This is a large set of equipment, a bit like a 170mm K18 gun mount, capable of folding into a four-wheeled vehicle. A Steyr 5-ton truck was already waiting by the runway, and the driver saw that the missile launcher was being pushed out, so he drove the car to the Fokker 42D. The door opened, and the little Hersman, who was wearing the uniform of a major in naval aviation, got out of the passenger seat, and a captain of the missile corps walked up to the little Hersman and saluted: "Major, you must be Mr. Heinsberg-Hersmann, right?" ”

"Yes." Little Hersmann took out his ID and handed it over, and the other party took it with both hands and looked at it, and then introduced himself: "I am Captain Friedrich of the Navy Missile Corps. Feng. Oberhausen. ”

The Naval Missile Corps was a new branch of the German Navy, and the Commander-in-Chief of the Naval Missile Corps was Admiral Hoffmann (who had just been promoted to the rank of Admiral) who had defeated Halsey in the Battle of Bermuda.

And although Hesman Jr. is not a missileman, the Air Force and Naval Aviation also have plans to equip them with air-launched missiles. So Hersmann Jr. received an order from the command of naval aviation to observe the command of naval aviation. Combat firing of the W-10 Waterfall type ship-to-air (surface-to-air) missile designed by Dr. Thiel.

The W-10 Waterfall missile, a surface-to-air missile capable of supersonic flight, was developed on the basis of the A-series rocket. Its guidance method is very interesting, it is a combination of three methods, divided into three stages: the initial launch, the missile is slow, and the ground operator is visually controlled, and the approximate direction of the missile is controlled. At this time, the missile was controlled with four graphite gas rudders from the nozzle.

In the middle of the flight, two large fire control radars placed on the ground are used to irradiate the target and the missile respectively, and the computer is used to calculate the azimuth difference, and then a radio wave command is issued to the missile, so that the missile flies along the radar beam of the target. At this time, the missile is controlled by the four control surfaces of the bullet tail.

At the end of the missile's flight, the missile is controlled by a radio proximity fuse and an infrared homing head. The missile does not need to hit the target, it only needs to be close to the target and it will explode.

The 3.5-ton bomb body can carry a 250-kilogram warhead that is so powerful that even enemy aircraft can be blown to pieces at a distance of 50 meters.

Another surface-to-air missile, codenamed Rhein's daughter, developed by the German company Rheinmetall and managed by the Air Force Armaments Agency, has also been delivered to Buenos Aires. The combat weight of this missile is about the same as the W-10 "Waterfall", which was also developed on the basis of the A-series rocket.

However, the guidance method is much simpler, and there is only one way, which is for the ground personnel to manipulate the missile into the bomber by visual and radio control. Of course, there are also radio proximity fuses, so you don't have to hit them directly to shoot down enemy aircraft.

Because the guidance method is very simple, the reliability and hit rate of the R-3 "Rhine Daughter" surface-to-air missile during the test launch process far exceed that of the technologically advanced W-10 "Waterfall".

However, the shortcomings of the R-3 "Rhine Daughter" must also be obvious, first, because it relies solely on visual and radio guidance, the launch height is limited (too high to see clearly), only 7000 meters; Second, it is limited in use at night and in climates with poor visibility - not that it cannot be used, but that it is very limited. For example, there must be a searchlight at night to help search for a target, and the missile must be launched after the searchlight is locked, so that it can also hit a target.

……

On the Chilean coast, near Valparaiso Bay, 12 PB4Y-1 (B-24D) bombers lined up on the runway at a "grass airfield" used by the U.S. Naval Air Corps.

These PB4Y-1 models were modified with pylons installed under both wings. On each pylon, an ASM-N-2 "Bat" radar-guided gliding bomb that looks like a glider has been hung.

Joseph Jr., who "jumped ship" from the Army Air Corps to the Naval Air Corps. Patrick. Major Kennedy, at this time, had already boarded the PB4Y-1 bomber with his own crew, which was in the first place.

Because he was the first generation of "guided weapon operators" in the United States, and his father was likely to become the next vice president of the United States, he also went through some "official luck" and is now a major squadron leader in naval aviation.

"John," Kennedy Jr. turned back to his navigator as the plane's engine began to cough and roar, "it's all up to you tonight." ”

"Don't worry," said a name named John. Sergeant Tyny said, "There's a radio signal to point the way, and we won't get lost." ”

"What's going on? Can you say that? "Little Joseph. Kennedy was curious about the "radio signal" and asked.

"Absolutely." "It's the Argentine democracy fighters who are doing us a favor...... However, they can only help us find Buenos Aires, and we have to find the location of the military port ourselves. ”

Juan. Peron's authority in Argentina was not yet very solid, and there were many people and groups who opposed him, some of whom cooperated with the Americans and set up large radio stations that could guide bombers.

"That's great!" When Kennedy Jr. praised the Argentine fighters for democracy from the bottom of his heart, the airport tower heard the signal for the plane to take off. Kennedy Jr. began to maneuver the plane to glide down the dimly lit runway, the motor thundered, and the plane took off. , flew into the misty sky under the moonlight.

The plane rumbled through the cold night sky and over the tall, steep Andes Mountains, where Kennedy Jr. and his crew sat in the dark, rickety cabin.

Before the plane crossed the Andes, the intercom kept blaring, and there were people talking about light-hearted topics, and some people mentioned Kennedy Jr.'s father, saying that he was too much of a gentleman to shoot a bullet with a pistol in New York, and that he was going to vote for Truman and Kennedy in the presidential election.

But as soon as the plane crossed the Andes, the crew of Kennedy Jr.'s bomber group (about 40 PB4Y-1s) was silent. Kennedy Jr. felt the air in the cabin tense as well.

Because the Andes Mountains are the dividing line between the two sides in terms of air supremacy, west of the Andes, air supremacy is in the hands of the U.S. military, and east of it belongs to the European-New Asbanian coalition. Although it was night, everyone knew that the Germans had very powerful night fighters.

At this time, a series of "Didi" sounds sounded in the "Didi......" communication machine, which was the navigation radio wave emitted by the radio station of the Argentine freedom fighters. As long as the aircraft can receive this "drop" sound, it means that it has not deviated from its course.

"We're on the right track." "We'll be in Buenos Aires in about an hour and a half. ”

The plane continued to fly forward, because the German He219 would appear at any moment, so everyone was on the lookout for the night air raid tonight without full escort, because the P61 fighter jets on the escort mission had a limited range and could not reach Buenos Aires. Moreover, in night air combat, the role of escort fighters is not very large, because most of the night fighters are twin-engine heavy aircraft, and they have no ability to fight, and they all have the energy tactics of hitting and leaving, and there is no possibility of P61 and He219 catching and killing. In this case, the role of the escort is very awkward, and the task of volleying is relatively easy to complete.

"It's time to see searchlights and anti-aircraft fire." I don't know how long it took for the voice of the navigator Tyny's to sound. It turned out that the plane had already reached the sky over the city of Buenos Aires.

"Nothing," said Captain Kennedy Jr. "It's pitch black...... John, will you have a fork in the road? ”

"No way, we're following the radio signal." Tyney said.

The sound of "Dididi" is still coming.

"Maybe the Germans' radar is broken?" Tenny added, "We haven't been attacked along the way, which is not normal. ”

"Maybe the Germans have brought back to Europe both night interceptors and radars." Co-pilot Victor. Kieren said.

"Will it?" As soon as Kennedy Jr.'s words fell, dozens of bright and dazzling beams of light suddenly flashed on the ground.

"Searchlight!" Tyny shouted, "Looks like we've found Buenos Aires!" ”

"Throw flares!" Kennedy Jr.'s plane was the leader of the entire brigade, so the bomb bay carried flares, which could be used to determine their specific location through the bomb lighting.

At the same time as the flares were dropped, a PB4Y-1 to the right of Kennedy Jr.'s landline was locked onto by the searchlight beam.

"Anderson is going to be out of luck now!" Kennedy Jr. knew the pilot of the plane very well, and when he saw his plane locked by the beam, he was nervous for him.

But after a while, the imaginary fierce anti-aircraft artillery did not fire. Kennedy Jr. was wondering when his co-pilot shouted again.

"Enemy planes! At 9 o'clock in the lower left, two jets were spotted! ”

Jet plane?

Kennedy Jr. was startled, and quickly turned his head to look down, only to see two orange-red flashes rising at a very fast speed, pounced on the PB4Y-1 bomber piloted by Second Lieutenant Anderson.

"Oh my God, this speed ......" Just when Kennedy Jr. was surprised by the high speed of this "plane", they were already rapidly approaching their targets, and one of them was very close to the PB4Y-1 bomber piloted by Second Lieutenant Anderson, and suddenly turned into a huge fireball!