"Port torpedo!" The shouts from the lookout post caused the officers in the bridge to panic, and the captain who was controlling the rudder did not say a word, and slammed the rudder to the end with steady force. Pen @ fun @ pavilion wWw. ｂｉｑUｇE。 ｉｎｆｏ

Lin Luo, who was standing next to the side of the ship, bit his lip tightly, and looked at the fighters of the two sides in the sky with a somewhat pale face. When he saw the battleships emitting thick black smoke and flames on the sea in the distance, Lin Luo's mood was extremely angry.

During the Hawaiian campaign with the U.S. Navy, the two sides engaged in several large-scale fierce battles one after another, and the Ming Navy made several intelligence errors in judgment.

The most recent was when the Pacific Fleet Command kept sending cables showing that Halsey's fleet remained in the waters off the Hawaiian Islands. This made Lin Luo make a wrong judgment and returned to Hawaii at full speed without warning. I didn't expect to be ambushed by Halsey on the way.

In fact, Halsey and Spruance, as excellent naval commanders, made decisive decisions, which caused a lot of trouble for the Ming Navy. It is not entirely a mistake in judgment and analysis by the command of the Pacific Fleet. It's just that those generals who sit in the office still have an unshirkable responsibility.

The rapid turning of the battleship at high speed drove a strong centrifugal force, so that Lin Luo and other Ming officers and soldiers had to hold on to the handrails next to them to fix their bodies. It wasn't until a few splashing white tracks sped away from the flagship that the ship regained its balance.

"Has Han Dongwen's attack begun?" At this time, the Second Air Fleet had already encountered the second wave of attack by Halsey, and the attack had come to an end. Although the most powerful defensive posture was urgently made, the Second Air Fleet, which was on the inferior and passive side, still suffered heavy losses in the attack.

This is because he received a warning telegram, so he made a timely deployment of resistance. If no warning had been received, it would have been highly likely that the 2nd and 3rd Air Fleets would have been unprepared by Halsey's assault group.

There are no anti-aircraft fighters and no anti-aircraft formations. Once all the aircraft carriers in the fleet are destroyed, the entire Pacific Fleet of the Ming Navy can be finished.

The performance of the Americans' fighters is not much worse than that of the Ming Dynasty. The technical and tactical level and quality of the pilots are also very high. Coupled with the combat methods that are not much different from the Ming Navy. Even if Lin Luo had released almost all the fighters before, he could not completely resist the fierce surprise attack of hundreds of fighters.

The quality of the US Navy pilots at this time was not the same as those science college students recruited by the Japanese Navy in the later stages of the previous war against Japan, who could only fight with their lives.

Under the heavy blow of hard support, Lin Luo's hopes of turning the tables were all placed in the counterattack launched by Han Dongwen.

"Just received a telegram." The sweaty chief of staff responded: "The attack aircraft group of the Third Air Fleet has flown over the heads of the Halsey fleet and is now fiercely attacking it. ”

Lin Luo's body loosened slightly, and then he squinted his eyes, and there was a hint of hatred in his eyes, "Blow them up!" ”

While Lin Luo was struggling to support himself, Halsey's life was not easy.

Originally, Halsey thought that his plan was flawless. He single-handedly used Sun Tzu's art of war to the extreme. Even when he flew out of the attack group, he was still in an absolutely dominant position. It's like sitting at a table with four aces in front of you.

However, just as Halsey was about to show his cards and turn his face, the seemingly chaotic cards on the opposite side suddenly changed. First, the Third Carrier Squadron, which had been left in the waters off Hawaii as a camouflage, was eaten by a surprise attack, and then its own position was revealed. Then the Ming army on the opposite side launched a strong counterattack against him!

The Ming Navy, which was originally a bad hand, suddenly turned over a straight flush!

Halsey's original plan was to release two waves of attack planes to destroy all the fleet carriers of the two Ming Navy in one go. As long as the aircraft carrier is lost, the remaining Ming warships are all dishes on the plate, and he can eat whatever he wants. However, the Ming army on the opposite side reacted very quickly, not only did they soon discover his traces, but also the group of attack planes he released was also strongly blocked.

In fact, due to the lack of support from the forward bases, the 57th Task Force, which sailed from the west coast with full loads, had already suffered a lot of losses at this moment. After all, it was with the powerful Pacific Fleet of the Ming Navy that fought several large-scale fierce battles one after another, even if the warships basically had no losses. However, many of the sortie carrier-based aircraft were shot down.

Coupled with the fact that two Lexington-class aircraft carriers were left to serve as camouflage near the Hawaiian Islands, Halsey's power had already been weakened. During the attack on the Second Air Fleet, the complete resistance of the Ming Navy forced Halsey to devote the second attack wave to the attack on the Second Air Fleet, thus giving up the attack on the Third Air Fleet.

In doing so, Halsey strengthened the attack and inflicted heavy losses on the Second Air Fleet. But they also put themselves in danger. It's just that he has already bought and left at this moment, and he can't make any changes at this time.

When the attack aircraft group of the Third Air Fleet of the Ming Navy flew over the fleet, Halsey could only close his eyes in pain.

Because he firmly believed that he had not exposed the target before the attack, he immediately released most of the fighters in his hand in order to concentrate. This directly led to the weakening of the air defense of the fleet. Coupled with the excellent quality of the Ming army's fighters and the superb quality of the pilots, the 1st and 2nd Aircraft Carrier Squadrons of the 57th Task Force under the command of Halsey were almost completely wiped out.

At 1:27 p.m., all the fighting was over.

By the time the Second Attack Wave launched by the Third Air Fleet of the Ming Navy under the command of Han Dongwen flapped its wings and left far away, Halsey's fleet had already lost all its aircraft carriers and a large number of other ships.

"Leave a few destroyers to salvage the overboard crew, and we retreat." Having already transferred his own fleet command to the temporary flagship of the heavy cruiser HMS Bremerton, Halsey gave the order expressionlessly.

According to the unwritten rules between the navies of various countries, ships that salvage overboard crew members are generally not attacked. Of course, it can only be a small number of small boats.

"Where to retreat?" Jin Laili looked at the burning warships around him with a complicated expression, and the sailors who were desperately struggling to survive in the sea, and the grief and indignation in his heart were overwhelming.

I glanced at it again, and there was a violent sound not far away from the explosions. On the deck of the gradually sloping battleship, sailors of the former flagship aircraft carrier USS Franklin were constantly being jumped into the water. Expressionless, but with a sad look in his eyes, Halsey turned and walked into the bridge, "To Johnston Atoll." ”

Halsey did not go to Hawaii, although Task Force 59 under the command of Fletcher was there. But Halsey had no intention of joining Fletcher. What is the use of a fleet without aircraft carriers, even if it is gathered together.

Halsey also did not choose to sail directly east back to the west coast, as it was impossible for his ships to travel those long distances without logistical support. He had to go to a logistical supply point to replenish himself before leaving.

In the Pacific Ocean, only Johnston Atoll and Kiribati are currently in the hands of the U.S. Navy.

Halsey had actually sentenced himself to death for the Hawaiian campaign. Although he also inflicted heavy damage on Lin Luo's Second Air Fleet, it didn't make sense to fight the Ming Navy with the Hawaiian Islands as a logistical support just by relying on the only four remaining aircraft carriers in Spruance's possession, which had been silently on the radio without any news.

In this case, Halsey could only choose to preserve the living force as much as possible and prepare for the next resistance to the Ming army's attack on the American continent.

That's right, Halsey believes that after this defeat, the U.S. Navy can no longer compete with the Ming Navy for maritime supremacy in the Pacific. Failure to control the Pacific means a complete loss of the maritime battlefield. Now the mainland of the United States has directly faced the Ming Dynasty's soldiers!

After the end of the naval battle, the news was transmitted everywhere, and naturally a few families were happy and a few were sad. The U.S. Pacific Fleet was in a gloomy fog, and Nimitz's emergency meeting turned into a memorial meeting. Everyone smoked in silence, and the atmosphere in the room was like attending a funeral, a funeral for the U.S. Navy.

"Although we were defeated this time, we still have warships and loyal officers and soldiers. Everyone needs to regroup and prepare for the next challenges. Nimitz's words were pale, but he didn't know what else he could say.

The American shipyards did have a lot of warships, and they were not short of manpower. But everyone knows that they have already been defeated at sea, and this defeat is decisive.

"Let's go about our own business." After a moment, Nimitz waved his hand helplessly, "I will personally go and explain to His Excellency the President." ”

Compared with the gloomy Americans, the Ming Navy was jubilant.

On the evening of the 10th, a grand celebration took place in the underground headquarters of the Pacific Fleet Command on Oahu.

With the destruction of the 57th Task Force, the most powerful in the hands of the US Navy, the US Navy, which had lost nine aircraft carriers in a single day, was no longer able to continue fighting. Now there is only one way out before the Americans, and that is to escape as soon as possible.

Although the Ming navy also suffered great losses in this battle, they firmly grasped the strategic initiative. The U.S. Navy's desperate attempt ultimately failed. And after the Ming Navy strongly suppressed the US Navy, they could threaten the US mainland anytime and anywhere. This has unparalleled influence on the eventual course of this war.

At this time, whether it was the U.S. Navy, which was mourning more than dying, or the Ming Navy, which was jubilantly celebrating the great victory, all of them intentionally or unintentionally forgot a fleet that still existed on the battlefield.

And this forgotten fleet is the 58th Task Force under the command of Spruance! (To be continued.) )