Just when the great leader of Japan, Takeda Heng, made up his mind to move to the South Seas, there was a fiery atmosphere in the headquarters of the Chinese Navy's South Sea Fleet in Zhanjiang Military Port. Chen Shaokuan and Bai Siwen, who rushed from Nanjing, as well as Feng Yundong, commander of the Nanyang Fleet, and Li Zhilong, chief of staff of the fleet, who had been sitting in Zhanjiang (they were the parties involved in the Zhongshan ship incident in history; they first studied at the Yantai Naval Academy at this time, and then transferred to the Naval Academy on Changzhou Island in Guangdong, and have been serving in the Wehrmacht Navy since graduation), as well as several naval staff officers with the rank of colonel and lieutenant colonel are conducting war games around the nautical chart platform.

Chen Shaokuan and Bai Siwen played the commanders of the Nanyang Fleet in the war games, while Feng Yundong and Li Zhilong simulated the commanders of the Japanese Combined Fleet. On the chart, the blue model of the warship symbolizing the Chinese Navy is chasing behind the red model of the warship symbolizing the Japanese Combined Fleet -- although there is not much actual combat experience, none of the senior Chinese admirals present think that the Japanese fleet will dare to go head-to-head with the Nanyang Fleet. They still know how strong the air combat capability of the more than 700 J-4E Dragon Eagle carrier-based fighters (bombers) of the Nanyang Fleet is.

In fact, the U.S. 18th Task Force had already used the J-4E Dragon Eagle to fight the Japanese Type 93 and Type 96 ship fighters, and the latter was beaten to the ground, as if it had no strength to resist at all. The only thing to worry about now is probably the Japanese "Red Army Warriors", and the expressions of the Chinese naval officers present are a little solemn when they think of the group of crazy people who drove planes full of explosives to crash into warships. And as to how powerful this suicide plane is, these Chinese naval officers also have different opinions.

Colonel Liu Ylou, an aviation staff officer of the Nanyang Fleet, who had fought hundreds of battles with Soviet pilots in the Siberian and Central Asian theaters. Not at all dismissive of Japanese suicide planes. In his opinion, the Type 93 fighter with a modified suicide aircraft has long been an obsolete product, and it is really simple to use the J-4E Dragon Eagle against them. And he didn't think the Japanese were willing to let really good pilots fly suicide planes - they didn't have many good pilots. Even if they are all sent to die, they may not be able to gather 500 suicide planes. As for the kind of suicide planes piloted by rookie pilots, it is even less worth mentioning, so the suicide planes of the Japanese will not pose much threat to the 8 motherships of the South Sea Fleet at all.

However, Rear Admiral Li Zhilong, chief of staff of the Nanyang Fleet, held the opposite view, and he once served as the captain of the aircraft carrier Yingzheng, and he knew that the aircraft carrier with thin skin and stuffing was simply a weapon that could not be attacked. The Zhongshan-class also has some considerations, and the Yingzheng class, which has a full load displacement of only 20,000 tons, cannot be touched at all, and only a suicide plane crashes into the flight deck, which may be able to make the entire aircraft carrier ineffective. Therefore, he did not advocate allowing the Nanyang Fleet to enter the deep sea of the Western Pacific Ocean and pursue the Japanese fleet. In particular, it was opposed to allowing the main forces of the South Sea Fleet to approach the Philippine Islands or the Mariana Islands, which were controlled by Japan. At present, the main task of the Nanyang Fleet is to cover the landing in Kitakyushu and ensure that the southeast coast of China is not harassed by the Japanese fleet.

"Chief of Staff, the Navy is an offensive service. Not a branch of the military for defense! If we want to ensure that the landing in Kitakyushu and the southeast coast are not harassed by the Japanese fleet, the best way is to completely annihilate the main force of the Japanese Combined Fleet! Liu Yilou stared at Li Zhilong and retorted loudly. For this chief of staff of the fleet, who has basically never been on the battlefield, Liu Yilou really looks down on him, and feels that the other party's courage is too small. The thinking is also too conservative.

"Yalou. Don't forget that the Japanese also had three Akagi-class battlecruisers and two Kaga-class battleships! Li Zhilong glared at Liu Yilou and asked another key question. Our J-4E with 500 kg of armor-piercing bombs is enough to deal with Japan's Soryu-class aircraft carriers, but I'm afraid that the firepower of battlecruisers and battleships is still insufficient, right? Our Cantonese class is even more of an opponent for them, so we cannot fail to take into account the threat of Japanese capital ships. ”

The Chinese Navy has always been the main aircraft carrier, and there are currently five Zhongshan-class aircraft carriers and ten Yingzheng-class aircraft carriers in service, and three more Zhongshan-class aircraft carriers have been launched, and most of the outfitting has been completed, and it is expected to conduct sea trials in 1936, when the Chinese Navy will have 18 aircraft carriers. Become the second largest naval power in the world after the United States! In addition, China's new generation of 50,000-ton aircraft carrier "Runzhi" class has also begun to complete the overall design. Construction is planned to begin after the end of the World War.

However, the main ship force of the Chinese Navy is not worth mentioning, and until now, it is still 6 Guangdong-class battle cruisers supporting the market. It may seem that it is no less than the 3 Akagi-class and 2 Kaga-class in Japan, but it is certainly not the case when it comes to fighting! The Cantonese-class battlecruisers were not used for naval battles at all, but for escorting aircraft carriers and supporting landing operations. Their 9 280mm guns are enough to deal with heavy cruisers and beachhead defensive positions, and the anti-aircraft fire is strong enough, and the armor protection is also strong in the war patrols of countries around the world. But it's a bit of a bit inadequate to meet a big guy of 40,000 or 50,000 tons like the Akagi-class and Kaga-class. In the Battle of Okinawa more than 3 years ago, six Guangdong-class ships grabbed the T-shaped position, and used 54 280mm to press the Kaga battleship, and finally barely inflicted a "heavy blow" on the opponent, but it was still far from sinking. If this time, the three Cantonese ships of the Nanyang Fleet meet the three Akagi-class and two Kaga-class ships of the Japanese, they will not be able to sink the account with a cannon shot on the other side.

Even Chen Shaokuan was a little worried about these 5 Japanese capital ships, he looked at Feng Yundong, as if he wanted to know how the other party was going to deal with it, but Feng Yundong hadn't spoken yet, but Liu Yilou replied: "Isn't it just 5 capital ships, don't let them get close?" Now that radars have been installed on our large warships, it is impossible for the Japanese fleet to approach quietly even at night, and the speed of the Zhongshan-class, Yingzheng-class, and Guangdong-class is very fast, as long as the opponent can be detected in advance, it will definitely be able to escape. ”

"What Yalou said makes sense, the five capital ships of the Japanese are not a threat to us." Feng Yundong nodded and affirmed Liu Yulou's opinion. "The main threat comes from suicide planes. However, the 11 Canglong-class aircraft carriers can carry more than 800 carrier-based aircraft in the sky, even if they are all suicide aircraft, our more than 700 J-4s are enough to deal with it. So the main risk now is the Japanese airfield on the Ryukyu Islands. Only by destroying them all will our Nanyang Fleet be able to operate around the Ryukyu Islands with confidence and boldness. ”

Since the Battle of Okinawa, the Ryukyu Islands have become an island chain that the Japanese Navy has "blockaded" China, and the Japanese have not only built naval fortresses, ports, and airports on the main island of Okinawa, but also built airports and ports on the larger islands of the Ryukyu Islands, such as Ishigaki Island, Miyako Island, Tokunoshima Island, and Amami Oshima. It looks a bit like a chain at the gate of China's southeast coast, but the Chinese navy and air force have never taken Japan's defense of the Ryukyu Islands seriously, because China's air supremacy in the coastal areas has always been firmly in China's hands.

Without powerful aviation, it is useless to rely on a few broken airfields!

For example, Chinese bombers deployed in the southern part of the Korean Peninsula go to Japan every day to drop bombs. However, Japan's Type 96 land offensive did not dare to take off from Okinawa to bomb Taiwan and Shanghai. If you really have the courage to go, you probably won't be able to come back.

"Are you just moving around the Ryukyu Islands?" Bai Siwen seemed to hear another meaning in Feng Yundong's words, and hurriedly asked.

"We chose the Ryukyu Islands as our main battlefield. If the Japanese want to lure us to the Philippines or the Mariana Islands, they will have to come up with some bait that we can look at. Feng Yundong smiled, revealing a confident expression. It's a big deal that we lose a few aircraft carriers, as long as we can swallow all the main forces of the Japanese Combined Fleet, it will not be a loss! ”

The practice of the Wehrmacht has always been to respect the opinions of front-line commanders, and Feng Yundong, commander of the Nanyang Fleet, is now the front-line commander. So he made up his mind to fight his opponent near the Ryukyu Islands. Chen Shaokuan, Bai Siwen and others only have support. The next few people discussed and deduced again, and then took out the preliminary battle plan. The first is to ask the Air Force to assist in the war, dispatching at least 300 Ju.88 and 150 J-3D to bomb Japanese airfields on the Ryukyu Islands, and eight aircraft carriers of the South Ocean Fleet will also participate in air raids. After the destruction of the Japanese airfield in the Ryukyu Islands, the Nanyang Fleet would break through the Ryukyu Island chain from the waterway between Okinawa and Miyako Island and enter the Pacific Ocean, but would not stay away from the waters of the Ryukyu Islands, but would cruise along the Ryukyu Islands. Organize a Japanese combined fleet to break through into the East China Sea. At the same time, the submarine sub-fleet of the South Sea Fleet will also devote at least 80 P-class or S-class submarines to the Ryukyu Islands, Sanan Islands, Bungo Waterway, Naruto Strait, and the waters around Osaka Bay.

This draft battle plan was refined and named Operation Hammer. And it was quickly approved by the Ministry of Defense. A bombing aviation division was transferred from the Korean Peninsula to airfields in Shanghai, Taiwan, and the Zhoushan Islands. Beginning on 28 February, the plan was to launch more than 1,000 sorties a day of Air Force Warhawks to launch a series of indiscriminate bombardments against Japanese military targets on the Ryukyu Islands. A Ryukyu task force, consisting of 18 tank landing ships, more than a dozen cargo ships, and a number of light combat ships, also began to assemble in Shanghai, assuming a posture of preparing for a landing on the Ryukyu Islands. It was not a bluff, but it was ready to cuddle the grass and beat the rabbit, and as long as the Nanyang Fleet won the decisive battle at sea, the combat operation to land on Okinawa Island would immediately begin.

The Nanyang Fleet was busy preparing for a passionate collision with the main force of the Japanese Combined Fleet in the Ryukyu Islands, and the Japanese Front was not idle, although half of the combat ships of the Japanese task force were transferred, and the number of planes assigned to the Japanese Front was reduced by more than 1,200. However, preparations for landing in Kitakyushu are still in full swing. First of all, the large airport on Izaki Island was completed and put into use in early March, and the pier on Izaki Island was completely restored. Nearly 600 J-3D, J-4E, J-1, J-1 and a small number of Ju.87 Stoke dive bombers from a bomber aviation regiment and a combat aviation regiment of the 5th Air Division of the Chinese Army were stationed on Izaki Island on March 2. On the same day, three Cantonese-class battlecruisers of the Japanese task force of the Chinese army began shelling important targets along the coast of Kitakyushu, and fighters taking off from Isaki Island also attacked Kitakyushu and Shimonoseki fortresses with bombshells.

On 4 March, four marine divisions of the Chinese Army, escorted by the Chinese Navy's Japanese task force, began landing operations codenamed "Pedal No. 1" on the Ashiya Coast, the Shin-Matsubara Coast, the Hatatsu Fishing Port, the Kanesaki Coast, and the Genkaitan Sea in Kitakyushu, escorted by the Chinese Navy's Japanese task force.

"Boom! The "Boom ......" thunderous roar continued to echo over the beaches of Fukuoka Prefecture in northeastern Kyushu, and the smoke filled the empty and flat beach.

Hold on to the beachhead. The soldiers of the Japanese Red Army and the Red Guards, who were ready to give the violent invaders a taste of it, suddenly had a very, very deep understanding of the word cannon fodder, without the support of the Red Navy fleet and the air cover of the army and naval aviation. Even the heavy artillery of the coastal batteries did not react. For these rookie Red Army and Red Guards who stuck to the beachhead trenches and did not experience any battles and deaths, they were cannon fodder that were ruthlessly abandoned, and the riotous warships and planes that constantly swooped down from the air to drop bombs were really terrible, as if they were not weapons stored in this world, but the scythe of death from hell, wielding them wantonly, harvesting lives in large areas!

Everyone was lying at the bottom of the trench. No one dared to raise his head unless he wanted his life. The only thing left on the long stretch of Fukuoka Beach is the incessant roar and the wails of death.

There was no return fire, only a one-sided wanton slaughter that seemed to have no end. Shells of all calibers and bombs of all kinds rained down, and it seemed that they were unwilling to spare every Japanese here, and the fortifications that had taken months of painstaking construction were already in tatters, and the splatters of mud and sand were falling on their faces. It has the meaning of filling in the trenches of the Japanese army!

"Qiu Yongjun. Qiu Yongjun! ”

Based at the headquarters of the Fukuoka Independent Wing in an abandoned temple near Ashiya Beach, the captain of the Kanda Wing shouted loudly for his chief staff officer. "Why didn't the batteries on the hill of Confucius Temple open fire?"

"Comrade Wing Commander, they were suppressed by the violent naval guns and aircraft, and they didn't dare to open fire!"

"Baga! Go and call them and tell them that if they don't fire again, the Fukuoka Independent Wing and the Fukuoka First Red Guard Detachment will be wiped out! Hearing that the Fort of Kongdaiji Mountain did not dare to fire for fear of exposing the target, Kanda's eyes were about to pop out, just as he angrily smashed the map table with his fist. Someone behind him suddenly shouted: "Shelling! Hide! ”

Before the words fell, a loud "boom" was heard. A 280mm large-caliber shell fell not far away. The whole earth seemed to tremble, and the air waves swept over everyone's heads, and the inside of the reinforced temple hall was suddenly filled with smoke and dust, and the five fingers could not be seen.

"Report casualties, are there any casualties?" The captain of the Kanda Wing shouted loudly, and after hearing everyone's answer that there were no casualties, he rushed to the observation port and looked out with a telescope.

On the sea, dozens of warships of all sizes have been lined up in an artillery formation, especially the three Guangdong-class battle cruisers led by them are even more powerful, and the 18 280mm naval guns are all aimed at Luya Beach, and the large-caliber shells seem to be hitting as if they don't need money! Their main targets were Japanese trenches on the beach, and under Kanda's watchful eye, a few shells hit the target accurately, and hundreds of Japanese soldiers were blown into the sky in the blink of an eye.

At this moment, hundreds of square-headed boats suddenly appeared on the sea in the distance, dragging the white waves slowly towards the beachhead.

"Logged in! They're going to the beaches of Kyushu! ”

"Order everyone to get ready for battle!"

"Sue sù mortar positions ready to fire!"

"Go and call the Kongdasi Mountain Fort again and ask them to fire immediately!"

Kanda shouted, and one order after another was conveyed, and the shouts of officers and political cadres immediately sounded in the trenches where they had only been beaten and did not fight back, and the soldiers and Red Guards only gritted their teeth and braved the falling shells to enter the combat positions.

"Let the destroyer come forward, pay attention to the enemy's shore artillery, and tell the air force to suppress it!"

Inside the bridge of the battlecruiser Canton, Bo Fuping could not hide the excited expression on his face, and gave orders loudly.

What unfolded in front of him was a magnificent scene of a landing battle, although he had already received information that the main Japanese army had withdrawn from the coastal positions of Kitakyushu, as if some conspiracy was being planned, but so what? In the face of absolute strength, any intrigue is not worth mentioning!

Didn't the Japanese want to lure the enemy deeper? Well, then let's see what they can do against an armored army that has landed in Kitakyushu!

"Commander, look, that's our Airborne Forces and bombers!"

Following the direction of a staff officer beside him, Bo Fuping looked into the air and saw only a blackened group of bombers, transport planes, and fighters flying over the head of the battlecruiser Canton, heading towards the hinterland of Kyushu Island and the western part of Honshu.

Bo Fuping smiled slightly, and his eyes turned to the landing battlefield that had already started, the Japanese army's long-hidden artillery finally fired, and several huge water columns were raised around the destroyers and landing craft close to the coast...... It is believed that the air force will soon solve the exposed Japanese artillery positions, and it seems that the Japanese firepower is very weak, it should be a 150mm cannon, which cannot threaten the armor of the Guangdong-class battlecruisers at all.

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