McCluskey flew northwest for about seven minutes with more than 30 SBDs, and just as he was approaching ten o'clock, he spotted a long white wake left by a warship in the sparkling blue sea.

McCluskey grabbed his binoculars and followed the track, and soon spotted a warship - "It should be a cruiser!" McCluskey said conclusively at the time that the "cruiser" was heading north.

"It was very fast, and the sharp bow split the waves and made a lot of splashes, and I guess it must have been in a hurry to join its friends...... In that case, why don't I follow? Maybe this little wolf can lead me to the whole pack! ”

McCluskey decided to change the course from northwest to due north, unaware that the cruiser he was tracking was actually the destroyer Arashi, who had fallen behind after dropping depth charges on the American Stingray submarine that had spotted Nagumo Tadaichi.

Ten minutes later, McCluskey breathed a sigh of relief as a large expanse of Japanese ships appeared in his field of vision. However, he also faced a troubling problem - fuel shortage. Just flew to the periphery of the Japanese escort ships, Tony. Second Lieutenant Schneider's SBD ran out of fuel and had to abandon the attack and fly south, where it finally landed at sea. The poor ensign and the machine gunner spent three days on a life raft before being rescued by SPY.

Not only fuel, but also oxygen. Edwin. Second Lieutenant Claude reported that he had run out of oxygen, and there were two options before the VB-6 squadron leader, Admiral Best, one was to agree to return the plane that had run out of oxygen, but there was a problem.

It's not just that the attack strength of the attack wave has been reduced. What's more, only his VB-6 squadron carried 1000-pound bombs. SBDs of other squadrons took off earlier because of this. At that time, because the deck was densely packed with airplanes, there was no room for 1,000-pound bombs, and only 500-pound bombs could be installed. Needless to say, the difference in power between a 1,000-pound bomb and a 500-pound bomb is more powerful against large warships or the former.

So after some thought, Captain Best did not agree to Claude's request to return, but ordered the entire squadron to descend with him to fifteen thousand feet (five thousand meters). No additional oxygen inhalation is required at this height. However, the problem of oxygen was solved, but it undoubtedly caused two other problems.

First, Best's fleet not only flew lower than McCluskey. And he ran in front of McCluskey, so that his connection and cooperation with McCluskey were almost non-existent. This also caused the McCluskey order to be never received at all.

Secondly. Reducing the flight altitude still had a relatively large impact on the bomb dropping of the dive bomber, which caused Best's squadron to dive not so fast, and the kinetic energy of the dropped bombs was also low, and the natural lethality was also reduced.

At this time, Nagumo Tadaichi's aircraft carrier had not yet set up a neat formation, and because it had made two ship-to-ship turns in the northeast direction before, the Akagi and Kaga were in the southwest, the Soryu was slightly northeast, and the Flying Dragon was also in the northeast. But it's far away (so it wasn't discovered by the American plane). When two squadrons, VB-6 and VS-6, flew in from the southwest, the first to be spotted were the Kaga and Akagi.

Best divided his squadron into three lines. Attacking the Kaga from the front, right and left would put the enemy aircraft carrier in a flanking position, which would distract its anti-aircraft firepower. This seems to be a good arrangement, but as mentioned earlier, Best has lost contact with McCluskey, and he has not heard McCluskey's orders. At that time, McCluskey ordered Best to attack the Akagi, not the Kaga, which he was targeting.

It can also be seen from this that the attack organization of the US military at that time was still very chaotic. And this chaos has just begun! Why? Because just as McCluskey and Best were accurately diving and dropping bombs, the Red Navy's Ro-2 attack group arrived on the battlefield almost at the same time and immediately launched an attack as well!

Some comrades may ask, according to the calculation of the range and take-off time, why did the Red Navy come so late? There are two reasons for this, the first is that the Red Navy's attack distance is relatively long, so it naturally takes more time. The second is because of the ultra-low-altitude flight, the group got lost halfway, and went around in the wrong place to delay a lot of time.

However, this was not completely meaningless, because the Ro-2 formation of the Red Navy flew almost to the back of the Japanese fleet (northwest), so when they came out from that direction, even the Japanese were inexplicable and unprepared.

At that time, most of Japan's zero battles over the battlefield were concentrated at low altitudes, and they were active in the southeast direction of the fleet (hunting TBD), so they didn't care about protecting the Chrysanthemum of the fleet, so the Ro-2 fleet easily broke into the inner circle of the Nagumo fleet, and calmly sorted out the formation, ready to start shooting targets step by step.

So almost at the same time, two huge groups of planes collided, and the two groups of pilots were caught off guard, and suddenly the sky opened up!

Of course, the Japanese were not much better than the Americans and Russians, and to be honest they were even more surprised, because they could not figure out how enemy planes could come out of the rear of the fleet, and they looked like twin-engine bombers instead of American single-engine fighters and attack aircraft.

What's more, they have never seen this kind of bomber painted with white five-star before, is it a new twin-engine medium bomber of the United States? Minoru Genda thought at the time that it might be a B-26 that took off from Midway. So he was not particularly worried: "The B-26s can only bomb horizontally at medium and high altitudes, which is not a particularly big threat to the fleet, and the only thing that worries me is that the large number of bombs they drop will disrupt the air defense formation of the fleet, and I am afraid that it will create opportunities for other torpedo machines." ”

But immediately Minoru Genda began to be dumbfounded, because these "B-26s", which can only do horizontal bombing, actually began to dive, even if the angle of the dive is not particularly ideal, but it is indeed a dive, which makes him really unable to figure it out: "Is the beautiful animal crazy?" ”

Of course, he was still not particularly worried at this time: "Dive bombers are a real threat. But according to the results of previous battles. I think that the enemy's pilots have limited capabilities and technology. This can also be seen from the angle from which they enter the dive, and it is estimated that their bomb delivery accuracy is limited......"

At that time, Minoru Genda was most worried about the fact that his Zero Battle could not quickly climb to the height to solve these troubles, even if the enemy's ability was limited, he could not let the enemy act recklessly. Minoru Genda hoped that the anti-aircraft artillery fire of his fleet would drive away the enemy planes, and at least buy some time for a zero war.

It's just that to Minoru Genda's surprise, it was the enemy who got time for the zero war, and the two groups of dive bombers collided head-on, except for a very small number of SBDs and Ro-2s that had already begun to dive. The vast majority of Ro-2 and SBD pilots were busy hiding from their allies.

The chaos frustrated both the American and Soviet pilots, who had never been told that there were other allies on the battlefield attacking at the same time, and after the chaos, the scrambled Americans and Soviets had to re-assemble and communicate on the radio.

It's just that this communication is a bit painful, the two sides don't understand the language, and they have to use the interpreter on the aircraft carrier as a link, which brings additional time consumption. After finally reaching an agreement, Zero War has climbed back into the sky, and the previous sacrifice of TBD was in vain!

Minoru Genda was genuinely relieved, and only a few enemy planes made a dive. The threat is not great. And he felt that the enemy had actually messed up with himself with a great advantage, which was definitely blessed by Amaterasu. So the Imperial Kingdom will win!

But soon Minoru Genda was not happy, and Nagaga Takasa Nagatani, who flew the Kaga, recalled: "Two bombers followed the sunlight and used the cover of intermittent clouds to dive towards us, which caused great trouble for our anti-aircraft firing. ”

Communications staff officer Miya Naval Major Shozo was standing on the flight deck not far from the control tower, and the screams of the dive bombers were getting closer and closer, making him lose his soul. The admiral fell to his stomach on the deck, and the aerial bomb that flew diagonally almost grazed the edge of the deck and fell into the sea. A few seconds later, there was a roar from the sea, and the hull of the ship was violently pushed, and a towering column of water poured cold on the people on deck.

Another pilot, Akira Santani, recalled: "I was sitting in the cabin preparing to take off, and then I heard a loud bang, and the raging waves crashed against me, sweeping away a lot of people......

Thankfully, the first three bombs were missed, and the most recent one was a near-miss, as it exploded underwater and shattered part of the Kaga's bulkhead, causing water to flood some of the compartments and leak some heavy oil, but overall the damage was not significant.

Genda on the Akagi glanced at the disappearing column of water with palpitations, and if it was a little bit more than that, the Kaga would be miserable. And this good fortune also made him thank Amaterasu again for his blessing, thinking that the next step would be a catastrophe and that there would be a blessing in the future.

It's just that what Minoru Genda didn't expect was that the real catastrophe was yet to come! Just after the first wave of three SBDs missed, the Ro-2 of the Red Navy rushed down to drop bombs, and these Ro-2s dived to an altitude of 300 meters before opening the magazine to drop bombs, and two 500-kilogram aerial bombs were thrown out, and then the pilot drove out of the nursing rudder and tie rod, until it was almost 50 meters high before it was dangerously leveled.

And just as the Red Navy pilots leveled down, a jet of water appeared behind their fuselage, followed by a deafening explosion. All of the portholes of the Kaga were shattered in the explosion, and in the words of Miya Shizumizu, "it rained glass." And when he looked up at the bridge, he was deeply shocked.

A 500-kilogram bomb accurately hit the bridge of the Kaga, and the square iron box was blown open, the bridge was badly deformed, and all the officers inside were shattered. That's not all, what's even more terrifying is that Sanya Still Water can see that there is a huge hole near the bridge on the starboard side of the flight deck, and thick smoke and black smoke are spewing out of the hole!

All of a sudden, the flight deck and hangar of the Kaga were in flames, and the planes were tilted upside down, and the fuselage became a smoking flue, or it was spewing flames and spitting smoke.

The next two bombs that fell did not hit. Miya Shizusui took advantage of this moment and hurriedly ran to the bridge, and he found that the captain Okada Osa was standing there with blood all over his face and looking up at the sky in a daze, as if he had been stunned by the explosion. Miya Shizusui immediately reported to Osa that the passage below had been blocked by fire, and that most of the crew was trapped in the cabin below. In addition, the power supply was also completely lost!

Right here as he spoke. Another Ro-2 swooped down. Once again, the dropped bomb hit the deck of the Kaga accurately. Then another SBD dropped a bomb that actually got through the breach in the previous explosion, followed by three loud roars, and the Kaga suddenly let out a wail, and the whole hull began to tremble incessantly, and the click of metal deformation pierced the eardrums of every Japanese soldier.

"Ship must be abandoned immediately!" Miyaya still water shouted presumptuously. However, Okada just shook his head like a senile dementia, and it took a long time for him to squeeze out a sentence: "I want to stay on the ship!" ”

By this time, the Kaga had begun to tilt, and Miya Shizumizu hurried off the bridge. He tried to get in touch with the cabin crew through the pilot's reception room, but when he turned back for the last time, he found that the bridge was no longer there, and Okada Osa had also disappeared.

At this time, the planes parked in the Kaga hangar also began to catch fire and explode, because they had already been filled with fuel and torpedoes or bombs, and under the scorching heat, the explosion was really a matter of time.

Takahisa Amaya later recalled: "It is inevitable that people will die, maybe dying in this fleeting flash is also a relief, and if there is a bomb, then it will fall on my head!" ”

It's just that in the end, it was the command of the Kaga that fell on his head. Because shrapnel from the third bomb hit a fuel truck near the bridge, the burning explosion killed all the few surviving officers, including Okada Osa (and completely razed the bridge to the ground). Tenya became the highest-ranking officer on the ship. He did his best to direct the extinguishing of the fire, hoping to save the criminal warship.

But this hope was soon dashed, and the last bomb dropped by SBD completely penetrated the board of the Kaga, destroying all the boiler compartments inside, and it was impossible for the Kaga, which had no power or power, to extinguish the fire. What's more, the previous bombs also cracked a large number of hulls, and the sea water poured in, and it was only a matter of time before it sank.

At the end of the Kaga, Mitsuo Fuchida was preoccupied with preparing to send the second wave of attack planes on the Akagi, so he did not notice the attack on the Kaga, and he ordered the fighters to take off as soon as they were ready. And at this moment, the observation post shouted loudly: "Dive bombers!" ”

Mitsuo Fuchida then raised his head and looked out of the porthole, only to see three SBDs rushing straight down, seemingly coming straight towards his position near the bridge. Just as he recognized that it was SBD, he saw three black dots fall from the plane and swayed towards the Akagi.

I have to say that Mitsuo Fuchida is still very smart, and seeing that the situation is not good, he immediately carefully climbed behind a bulletproof shield and held his head to dodge.

It was Best and the other two wingmen who launched the attack on the Akagi, and some comrades may have questions, didn't it say earlier that Best went to attack the Kaga? Why did you come to the Akagi again at this time?

It all started with the aerial chaos, where Best, huddled with McCluskey and the other three Ro-2s, soon discovered that if he continued to dive towards the Kaga regardless of it, he would have to crash into his own men first. In desperation, he could only pull the lever urgently, and swooped towards the Akagi from the gap.

At the time, Best was diving at an almost 90-degree angle, and he could see from his sights that a Zero was taking off from the Akagi, and he dropped the bomb from a height of 2,500 feet, and concluded that the bomb he dropped hit "slightly ahead of the centerline" and drilled a four-foot-square hole in the deck.

In his book, Mitsuo Fuchida says that the first bomb hit, but when Prange interviewed him, he changed his story and said that the first bomb missed. Prange recalls Mitsuo Fuchida saying in broken Japanese-style English: "It landed in the sea on the outboard side of the starboard side, boom...... Exploded in the sea, and the sea water roared up. ”

Minoru Genda also remembers the scene when the column of water set off by the explosion fell on the bridge - everyone was drenched, and their faces turned purple, but at the same time he said that Nagumo Tadaichi and his staff were "shocked but not panicked".

The first bomb missed? It didn't matter, the second bomb landed near the elevator in the middle of the deck of the Akagi, blowing it up like a postmodern work of art and falling into the hangar with all twists and turns. At that time, Mitsuo Fuchida judged that the third bomb might be more fatal, so he quickly rolled on the ground with his head down, pressed his face against the deck, and crossed his arms to protect his head.

In fact, the impact of this bomb was not as deafening as the previous one, it was concentrated on the edge of the port side flight deck, and the Akagi's later damage record described the bomb as: "Fatal wounds, several holes." ”

However, for the next period of time, there was a terrible silence, and after the two bombs hit directly, Genda felt that there was not much vibration on the ship, and he felt a little strange. Suddenly, this naturally optimistic guy thought that this was the blessing of Apayasu - the bombs of the Americans were duds.

He thought, "It's a shame that the Akagi was shot." But it doesn't matter, we won't fail, because we still have the Divine Protector! ”

It's just that he was really naïve, because at this time the deck of the Akagi was full of planes full of bombs and fuel, and there were planes loaded with torpedoes and fuel waiting to be lifted in the hangar. To make matters worse, the 800-kilogram bombs that had been unloaded had not yet had time to be returned to the ammunition depot. These treasures stacked together are enough for the Akagi to be scattered...... (To be continued.) )

PS: Bow and thank you to the simple Duanfang, the king of mending knives, the boy who loves to read is not young and Comrade Juventus!