"Have you read Li Zongren's telegram?"

When Li Zongren was surrounded and suppressed by more than 100,000 Indian coalition troops before his foothold was stable, Yang Qiu had already secretly come to the Wolf Mountain base with Yue Peng, Air Force Commander He Ning and others.

Located in Wolf Mountain, northwest of Baotou, the Wolf Mountain Base is the largest comprehensive military experimental base in China, mainly used for experiments of various new weapons and new tactical exercises. After the outbreak of the war, it became the main confrontation training base of the Air Force, and the ace pilots were transferred back to teach young people the experience and technology of dealing with aircraft such as the Zero War, BF109, and IL2. The navy and air force have also set up an air combat simulation field here for the actual combat confrontation between the air force and the navy, exploring new tactics, and tempering troops.

Recently, it has taken on a new mission, which is to serve as a training base and tactical training ground for long-range strategic bombing of the Japanese mainland. Every day, dozens or hundreds of bombers take off from here to conduct bombing training or fly 1,600 kilometers to bomb the range located next to the Taklamakan Desert. In charge of this task is Lieutenant General Xu Huansheng, who has smashed eggs at the British army in the Saudi statehood operation and has experienced several air battles. As the first units to bomb the Japanese mainland, the General Staff and the Air Force were determined to devote 30 long-range bomber groups totaling 3,540 bombers. So far, however, only 10 brigades have been trained, and the rest are still waiting to be formed after the factory is delivered.

The reason why there are few is that the Air Force's bombing mission in Central Asia has not yet ended, and the southwest Pacific and the Persian Gulf have also dragged a considerable number of bombers, so there are actually not many bombers that can be deployed on the mainland. In particular, the H-7, a four-engine large bomber, is difficult to manufacture, and can only be replenished with 330 planes per month, which is still the result of compressing the H-5 medium-range bomber to 280 planes per month. Even if the Air Force and the three major aviation companies work closely together to reduce the production of various types of transport aircraft to 150 per month, there is not much room for improvement. A year after the outbreak of the war. China's industrial capacity has reached its peak, and even if the 100,000 small factories plan is completed, it will be impossible to go further without two or three years of accumulation.

If it weren't for the pre-war stockpiling of thousands of transport aircraft, I am afraid that today it would face a shortage due to the reduction in production. Therefore, in order to intensify the intensity of air attacks, in the case of a short-term breakthrough in bomber production, not only 2,000 Snake Bombers were converted into Snake B fighter-attack aircraft, but also efforts were made to produce simpler dive bombers and H-10 front-line attack aircraft. In the later period, it was the latter, although the maximum combat radius was only 430 km. However, it has a two-ton external capacity, and can also be equipped with twin rapid-fire guns, which is affectionately called "bomb trucks" by soldiers

Even if there are only 10 brigades for the time being, when more than 1,000 bombardment planes are lined up, the scale is extremely terrifying. And only in such a global war. Only then can we see the scene of a large training base gathering thousands of fighters.

Yue Peng, Yang Qiu and others strolled through the early morning group, and the fragile positions were covered with canvases on both sides, like war eagles like soldiers being reviewed, making him raise his head slightly at the age of sixty and smile slightly: "I've seen it." Nehru, Rana Divi and Iida Shojiro moved quickly, and as soon as they came up, they used heavy troops, wanting to take advantage of Li Zongren's unstable foothold. Kill it clean. However, the three armed forces belong to different groups and have their own intentions, and it seems that the scale is large, but it is actually difficult to reconcile. Just survive the three-plate axe. We can find ourselves firmly established in the subcontinent. ”

India is not the main battlefield of the Republic of China, and the purpose of sending troops is to prevent the PKI from becoming bigger, so Yue Peng's words are quite relaxed. Even Air Force Commander He Ning, who accompanied the inspection, did not think much of the combat effectiveness of the Indian army, and said: "The chief of staff is right. In fact, the Japanese army was more difficult. Although the Soviet army of the PKI had strong combat effectiveness, in fact, the combat effectiveness of the Soviet army was based on abundant ammunition. India's industrial capacity could not support the Soviet military system, and they also had to face the trouble of adapting to the soil and water. As for Nehru, he was actually the weakest, and he was also afraid of the PKI, so he hooked up with the Japanese army. In our opinion, their weakest is the sky! Churchill probably wouldn't have asked us for help if he hadn't been held back by Germany. His words were right, because the British army was too afraid of being landed on the mainland, so they deployed all the 1,000 H-6s that China had eliminated and sold in the early days in the mainland and North Africa. Now Britain and Germany can no longer stop strangulation in the air, their own production is insufficient, the United States itself is also making military preparations, and the number of bombers sold is too small, so the huge India has only 150 Hurricane fighters. Even if Churchill was willing to invest more, as long as there were 1,000 planes, the repeated bombing alone would be enough to overwhelm India, which has poor air defense strength.

Yang Qiu heard a little taste, and asked with a smile: "It seems that our Air Force Commander is planning to do a big job in India?" ”

"Wait for Li Zongren and the army to gain a firm foothold first." He Ning is not very good at talking and communicating, and after becoming the commander-in-chief of the Air Force, he spent almost all his time on military and air force projects, so he spoke and chatted very directly. Even in front of Yang Qiu, he did not shy away from it: "This place in India is humid and stuffy, and the logistics requirements for aircraft are very high. ”

Bingwen, who came with him, also had deep feelings about the tropical weather: "Yes, the tropical weather is too troublesome. There is also news from Guam that the non-combat attrition is three or four times higher than that in the northwest, the frequency of aircraft sorties is less than half that of the northwest, and even the engines of our ships often fail due to heat dissipation. ”

After listening to everyone's opinions, Yang Qiu turned to the U.S. political situation and asked, "By the way, how many days are left to vote in the U.S. election?" ”

"Vote in a week, and the results in 10 days." Thinking of Yang Qiu's announcement of Halsey's visit to Guam, Bingwen felt funny: "Roosevelt was very angry with you this time, and the opposition was constantly denouncing it, and he had an illness a few days ago. If this continues, it will be difficult for him to be re-elected. ”

"Don't underestimate him, maybe he's deliberately showing weakness now and looking for an opportunity to fight back." Yang Qiu didn't dare to underestimate Roosevelt. Although his election in the parallel world was not as bad as it is now, it was not much better, and in the end, he didn't win the game?

Yue Peng agreed with Yang Qiu's words, Roosevelt could be re-elected for two consecutive terms and suppress domestic forces, how could he not have a little hole card? So his face gradually became serious: "A few days ago, Gu Weijun told me that the US Navy has fully launched the third batch of shipbuilding plans. Following last year's first order of three Essex-class, seven more orders were added, and six 30,000-ton new battle cruisers were purchased in one go (the Alaska class was initially positioned as a battle cruiser by various countries. The budget was adopted at the end of July 1940, and orders were placed in September), twenty-four light and heavy cruisers, ninety-six Fletcher-class destroyers, and fifty-two other ships, and two North Carolina-class battleships were also close to delivery. On the Army side, the M3 tank has been finalized and mass production has begun, the new M4 tank has already begun to be developed, and it is said that at least two of the T34s we sold to the United Kingdom have been secretly transferred to the United States for use in the design reference of the M4. The aircraft are on the fastest schedule, with the exception of the already mass-produced B-17 bombing. The B-25 bomber has also been finalized and can be delivered as soon as early next year, and recently began mass production of the B-24 bomber and the A-20 Boston attack aircraft, which are similar in appearance to China's H-7. At present, the total number of bombers of various types retained by the US military has exceeded 2,000. The production of a number of small aircraft, such as the P-40, F4F and dreadnought dive bombers, has also been expanded several times, and more than 10,000 training aircraft have been ordered in one go!

Judging from our statistical comparison table, in the first half of this year alone, the total output value of the United States has reached 20 times that of 1937! That's three times as many as last year! If we only look at the aviation industry, even if we have not yet entered the wartime mobilization mechanism at this moment, the production of various types of military aircraft is already 60% of ours. According to Pei Zuyi, they came up with statistics based on the total amount of American industry, the number of machine tools and equipment in stock, the processing capacity and the number of workers, once the United States entered the wartime mechanism. Every year, at least more than 100 ships, 20,000 tanks and armored vehicles, more than 500,000 trucks, 70,000 artillery pieces of all types, 60,000 aircraft of all types, and 2 million guns of all kinds will be obtained in larger scale and total than the combined size and total amount of our and Britain's! There is also news that the Lend-Lease bill proposed by Roosevelt has actually been passed in principle within the US Congress, and it will be promulgated and implemented after the election. So to speak. Even if Roosevelt loses his re-election, he will no longer be able to stop the determination of the United States to enter the war! The reason why the candidates on both sides frequently stated that they would not involve the United States in the war, and also made a big fanfare that they would punish Halsey and Kimmel was purely to please the voters. Not the real mind of the U.S. government. ”

"So where will the United States fight first after entering the war?" He Ning asked.

Yue Peng shook his head: "I don't know." No detailed information on this is available. Judging from the speed of troop mobilization, the army is definitely the slowest, so if I choose, I will definitely continue to support the United Kingdom, and will not invest in the army before Europe is completely eroded, but let the Marshall Islands and Truk be the first to open a gap in the southwest Pacific. There is a possibility that the Solomon Islands will be able to fight because it can close the Australian access, but Rabaul may not be desperate. The defenses of this place are too strong, and their soldiers have not yet been tested by a big battle, so they will not fight such a battle of great intensity at once.

However, the current situation may not be as simple as the United States thinks, from the European side, the landing of German troops in Britain should be far away, even if the Soviet Union sells dozens of warships, the German navy is not a match for Britain. The good thing was that the British Navy had to draw more fleets from the Mediterranean back to defend its homeland, and with German submarine warfare, Cunningham's Mediterranean Fleet was practically difficult to threaten the Italian Navy. That's why Churchill secretly begged us to let the Third Fleet cooperate. Chen Shaokuan reported to me yesterday that by half a month at the latest, Zhu Binhou would be ready to cooperate with Cunningham and attack the Italian Navy.

Hitler had already called Franco twice, promising to conjoin Gibraltar after the war and to hand over Morocco to Spain in exchange for his entry into the war. From this point of view, it should be that Raeder's plan for the Greater Mediterranean has been accepted. Churchill was also persuading Franco to be neutral, and last month he also provided Spain with $40 million worth of supplies and loans, ostensibly to help Franco recover the economy and improve people's livelihood, but in fact he wanted to use money to hold him back. But if we destroy the Italian Navy in one fell swoop, I'm afraid Hitler will not be so good-tempered and reasonable with Franco. For Germany, once it loses its maritime power in the Mediterranean, a large colander will appear in the belly of Europe. The United States is so actively preparing for war, he must be able to feel it. Now Stalin on the Eastern Front is better than a hound, and he has plenty of time to cut off Gibraltar before the United States intervenes! Once the war breaks out to Spain, I am afraid that the US government will first have to invest in North Africa with its army.

The rest of Europe is also largely clear, Finland has become neutral, Sweden has favored Germany, and the Balkans are desperately building up their armaments to guard against German and Soviet invasions. Now the most comfortable is Italy, Mussonieri's offensive in North Africa is fierce, Wavell is already short of troops, if there is another problem in Iraq. He certainly won't be able to hold on. There are also indications that Mussolini has mobilized more than 20,000 troops to the Greek border, presumably in an attempt to annex Greece before Germany and then get a piece of the Balkans. Greece and Turkey hold the Black Sea and are in a critical position, so Britain has begun to persuade Greece and Turkey to enter the war and strike directly at Ukraine and the Caucasus from the Black Sea.

Turkey's position is critical, and we should also take the initiative as soon as possible, and it is best to let Gu Weijun or Shi Zhaoji go once. Even if you can't convince them to go to war, make a commitment to ensure their national security! to further deepen the relationship between the two countries and expand our influence in the region. I also prepared Bai Chongxi that if the Soviets really wanted to cooperate with Italy, he would immediately seize Baghdad. If Greece fails. If Turkey is also flanked, we will suspend the bombing of the Japanese mainland, first bomb the Baku oil fields, and paralyze the Soviet Union! On the contrary, there is no need to fight a decisive battle in the Persian Gulf so quickly, and it is completely possible to take action after cleaning up Japan and depending on the attitude of the United States. ”

"I have already told Qin Zhangshu to wait for Li Zongren to gain a firm foothold. We will give him full support in obtaining a stable air base in eastern India as soon as possible. In this way, when the Chagos base is built, the Third Fleet can land in the Andaman Islands. Regarding the island, there are the Andaman Islands, unless the United States goes to fight Rabaul. Otherwise, the entire southwest is a pot of broth that we cover and stew casually, and drink it whenever we want. Drink it whenever you want! Yue Peng's speech was fast, but very clear. After talking about the international situation. Turning back to the Indian battlefield, his hands were still firmly put up and down, and his ambition to integrate Asia through the world war was clearly revealed.

Yang Qiu smiled, and just as he was about to speak, Xu Huansheng chased after him with several jeeps: "President, Chief of Staff, the test flight is about to begin." ”

"Let's go, let's go see the test flight first." Yang Qiu's visit this time was to participate in the finalized test flight of the Air Force's new bomber. Today, when air power is becoming more and more important, whoever can master more advanced aviation technology will master the future. Therefore, he is very concerned about the aviation industry, when the country's economy and infrastructure are not perfect, he first built the three major aviation groups and competitive frames, and then spent decades focusing on key technologies such as engines and materials, which has achieved today's fruitful results. Even if the manufacturing volume is not comparable to that of the United States, at least the quality can keep pace or even lead.

Because the main base was occupied by bombing training, the test flight base was moved to the No. 3 backup airfield, which was 10 kilometers away. After the jeep drove into the experimental apron, the first thing that jumped into the eye was a 46-meter-long, 69-meter-wide wing, a total height of nearly five floors including the tail, and six engines, similar in size to the famous B-36, but the engine was a giant aircraft with conventional blades laid out forward. Not to mention the other officers, even Yue Peng was startled when he first saw this plane, and pulled He Ning and asked, "What kind of plane is this?" Can it fly? ”

"Of course you can fly." He Ning's eyes narrowed with a smile. Recently, the Air Force has been equipped with new equipment one after another, and even he, the commander-in-chief, has been overwhelmed. However, this plane is so special that he was very impressed, and introduced: "It can also carry 300 soldiers or 35 tons of cargo!" Seeing Bingwen's eyes glowing next to him, he deliberately quipped: "Don't think about your navy, it's still verifying the machine." It is mainly used to test China's large aircraft manufacturing capacity, and to carry out new engines and various new technology experiments. However, it is now equipped with a turboprop engine with only 2,500 horsepower, so it needs to use four sets of rocket boosters for takeoff. We're working with several companies to get the engine up to 4,000 horsepower so it can take off autonomously. ”

It seems that in order to let the president and everyone see clearly this giant verification machine, which weighs 65 tons and is enough to shock the world, the jeep drove very slowly. When the vehicle approaches, everyone needs to crane their necks to see the full picture. After bypassing the demonstrator aircraft, which was designated YZ-28, a dozen more test and test aircraft parked here appeared in front of them. Half of them are turbojets, some with nose intake, some side intake, some with engines hanging under the wings, and odd looking demonstrators with three, four, or even six engines. At the far end of the apron, there are several Airbus and other companies bidding for the new transport aircraft of the Air Force, and sending new transport aircraft for testing, some like C-123, some like C-124, two like C-119, and one like C-130, anyway, all have various shapes.

But they all have one thing in common: they all use two new engines, turbojet or turboprop, which is also a subtle sign that China is using the war to accelerate the transition to the jet age. However, none of them were the main attraction to the president and the chief of the general staff, when the tractor pulled a silver shiny, installed four 2500 horsepower turboprop engines, similar to the Tu 95, slightly larger than the B29, the bomber in the standard Air Force livery entered the runway, Yang Qiu's eyes lit up.

This is the real strategic bomber.