On September 13, 1903, Jilin, the capital of Jilin Province of the Chinese Empire.

The early morning mist has not yet completely dissipated, and in the north of Jilin City, a vast flat land surrounded by high-walled barbed wire, stands dozens of huge light gray buildings, which look like factory buildings, but have no chimneys, and large sliding doors open in front and back.

From thousands of meters in the air, you can see that these buildings are divided into two rows, and there is a large open space in the middle, on which more than a dozen iron towers up to 30 meters high are erected, and many pulleys and other machinery are installed on the top of the towers. Each building has a concrete road leading to one of the towers and another to an open meadow at the other end.

The official name of these buildings is the Aeroplane Maintenance Storage, also commonly referred to as the Airship Storage.

As the fog gradually weakened, the door of an airship hangar marked with the word "01" slowly slid open to both sides, and a group of people, a group of people holding more than a dozen thick ropes, laboriously moved outside the gate, and the gray-white monsters behind the ropes, little by little, piece by piece, piece by piece, slowly revealed their true faces.

The cigar-shaped body of a golden dragon painted on the surface, four double-layer tailfins made of canvas and steel pipes, four steel five-bladed propellers more than three meters in diameter, and a long oval semi-embedded pod with a row of small portholes—this is the Empire's most fearsome aerial weapon, the FTG-3 "Strong Cloud" large attack airship.

The "Qiangyun" airship is powered by 16 helium-filled airbags, which are contained in a rigid casing of the triangular steel skeleton, and the driving force comes from 4 Taiyang Heavy Industries HK-10A 300-horsepower aero engines, driving 4 five-bladed propellers, with a maximum speed of 70 kilometers per hour, semi-enclosed pods, limited to 6 people, an altitude of 6,000 meters, and 2 self-defense machine guns. There is a large bomb bay and two external bomb racks, with a maximum bomb load of 8 tons and a range of 1,600 kilometers when carrying 5 tons of bombs. It was finalized in 1902, and by August 1903 there were 12 boats of this type equipping the troops, each costing an average of about 800,000 yuan (£130,000).

The people continued to drag the giant monster to an open meadow opposite the airship hangar, which also has its official military name - the aerodrome starting field, commonly known as the take-off field, and the open space with a long column of iron towers between the two rows of airship hangars is called the landing field, officially called: the aeronautical landing and recovery field. In the far reaches of the take-off field, there are several criss-crossed flattened runways, and there are also some small warehouses built near the runway, and rows of large birds with double wings spread are parked on the large flat ground near the storeroom. These ugly birds, made of wood chips, iron nails, canvas, steel ropes, propellers, and exposed engines, have to be ashamed of themselves in front of the imposing, beautiful and gorgeous appearance of the large airship, they have no reason to be proud, although they fly dozens of kilometers faster than the airship, but they have many failures, short air time, few people and goods can carry, and once the engine loses power, the plane usually becomes a pile of garbage, and even if all the engines are damaged, the airship can still stay in the air with its own buoyancy, The gas in the airbag is then slowly released for a safe landing.

It is the largest aviation floating base in the Empire, with 26 medium-sized airship hangars and 12 large airship hangars, as well as 4 pairs of runways in different directions, 50 simple hangars and 5 first-class maintenance hangars, an aircraft assembly plant and an aircraft overhaul plant.

The official name here is the Jilin Air Floating Base of the Army, the Ministry of Defense number LAKJ-02, after the general mobilization of the imperial government, the base served as the main standby base of the aviation floating group directly under the command of the Northeast Front Army, and received a large air force.

According to the regulations on the aviation floating forces promulgated in June 1901, the official establishment of the aviation floating forces of the army and navy was to be divided into aviation floating groups, brigades, squadrons, squadrons, and crews, and there were also support units such as aviation floating engineering battalions and service battalions.

The aviation group generally has 2 to 3 brigades, the brigade has more than 2 squadrons, the squadron has more than 2 squadrons, and the squadron has more than 2 crews.

In addition, each army division has a floating balloon company, equipped with three floating reconnaissance balloons and six floating balloons.

By the beginning of September 1903, the Northeast Front Command directly under the jurisdiction of the aviation floating group under the jurisdiction of the 1st Aviation Group, the 1st and 2nd Floating Group, the independent 91st Aviation School Shooting Squadron, the 1st Aviation Engineer Battalion, the 1st, 2nd, 3rd and 4th Floating Engineer Battalion, the 1st Aviation Service Battalion, and the 1st, 2nd, 3rd and 4th Floating Service Battalions.

The 1st Air Group includes the 1st Aviation Reconnaissance Group, the 1st Aviation Bombing Group, and the 88th and 89th Aviation Reconnaissance Squadrons. The 1st Aviation Reconnaissance Group is equipped with 30 "Cangfeng" single-seat reconnaissance planes, the 2nd Air Bombing Group is equipped with 30 "Qingfeng" light bombers, the 88th Aviation Reconnaissance Squadron is equipped with 10 "Huofeng" two-seat reconnaissance planes, and the 89th Aviation Reconnaissance Squadron is equipped with 10 "Gale" reconnaissance and liaison planes. The standby base is in Jilin.

The 1st Floating Group includes the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd Attack Groups. The 1st Attack Group is equipped with 12 "Qiangyun" large attack airships, and the 2nd and 3rd Attack Groups are each equipped with 12 "Ziyun" medium attack airships. The standby base is in Jilin. The first departure base is in Qiqihar, the second departure base is in Mudanjiang, and the third departure base is in Manchuria.

The 2nd Floating Group includes the 4th Assault Group and the 1st and 2nd Reconnaissance and Varnishing Groups. The 4th Attack Group is equipped with eight "Qingyun" light attack airships and is based in Jilin. The 1st Reconnaissance and Correction Shooting Brigade is equipped with four "Shengyun" reconnaissance airships and four "Shengyun J" artillery school-shooting airships, and its standby base is in Manchuria. The 2nd Reconnaissance and Correction Shooting Brigade is equipped with four "Pingyun" reconnaissance airships and four "Pingyun J" artillery school-shooting airships, and the standby base is in Mudanjiang.

The 91st Separate Aviation Varsity Squadron is equipped with 10 "Sunny Breeze J" artillery collation aircraft. The standby base is in Mudanjiang.

A total of 80 aircraft and 60 airships were involved.

In fact, each field army under the command of the Northeast Front is also equipped with air float groups of varying sizes in order to provide close air support to the front-line troops. The deployment of the aviation floating groups directly under the direct jurisdiction of the field armies is as follows:

* Aviation Floating Group under the Direct Administration of the Command of the Praetorian Field Army:

It has jurisdiction over the 2nd Aviation Reconnaissance and Bombing Group, the 10th Floating Reconnaissance and Shooting Brigade, the 86th Aviation Reconnaissance Squadron, the 92nd Independent Aviation Squadron, the 2nd Aviation Engineer Battalion, the 2nd Aviation Service Battalion, and the 5th Floating Service Battalion.

The 2nd Reconnaissance and Bombing Group is equipped with 10 "Cangfeng" single-seat reconnaissance planes, 10 "Huofeng" two-seat reconnaissance planes, and 10 "Qingfeng" light bombers. The standby base is in Aihui.

The 10th Floating Reconnaissance and Shooting Brigade has four "Shengyun" reconnaissance airships and four "Shengyun J" artillery school-firing airships. The standby base is in Nenjiang.

The 86th Aviation Reconnaissance Squadron is equipped with 10 Gale reconnaissance and liaison aircraft. The standby base is in Nenjiang.

The 92nd Separate Aviation Varsity Squadron is equipped with 10 "Sunny Breeze J" artillery collation aircraft. The standby base is in Aihui.

A total of 50 aircraft, 8 airships.

* Aviation Float Group directly under the command of the 1st Field Army:

It has under the jurisdiction of the 3rd Aviation Reconnaissance Group, the 93rd Independent Aviation School Shooting Squadron, the 25th Floating Reconnaissance School Shooting Squadron, the 3rd Aviation Engineer Battalion, the 24th Aviation Service Company, and the 25th Floating Service Company.

The 3rd Aviation Reconnaissance Group is equipped with 10 "Whirlwind" single-seat reconnaissance aircraft and 10 "Firewind" two-seat reconnaissance aircraft.

The 25th Floating Reconnaissance Squadron is equipped with two "Shengyun" reconnaissance airships and two "Shengyun J" school firing aircraft.

The 93rd Independent Aviation School Shooting Squadron is equipped with 4 artillery school firing aircraft each of the "Fire Wind J" and "Sunny Wind J".

A total of 28 aircraft, 4 airships. The standby bases are all in Manchuria.

* Aviation Float Group directly under the command of the Second Field Army:

It has jurisdiction over the 87th Aviation Reconnaissance Squadron, the 96th Aviation Reconnaissance Squadron, the 23rd Floating Reconnaissance Squadron, the 27th Aviation Service Company, and the 26th Floating Service Company.

The 87th Aviation Reconnaissance Squadron is equipped with 10 "Whirlwind" single-seat reconnaissance planes, and the standby base is in Fujin.

The 96th Aviation Calibration Squadron is equipped with four "Cangfeng" single-seat reconnaissance planes and four "Huofeng J" artillery firing planes. The standby base is in Raohe.

The 23rd Floating Reconnaissance Squadron is equipped with two "Feiyun" reconnaissance airships and two "Shengyun J" schoolship airships. The standby base is in Fujin.

A total of 18 aircraft and 4 airships.

* Aviation Float Group under the Command of the 3rd Field Army:

It has jurisdiction over the 4th Aviation Reconnaissance Group, the 11th Floating Reconnaissance Squadron, the 97th Aviation Reconnaissance Squadron, the 4th Aviation Engineer Battalion, the 3rd Aviation Service Battalion, and the 6th Floating Service Battalion.

The 4th Aviation Reconnaissance Group is equipped with 10 "Whirlwind" single-seat reconnaissance planes, 10 "Cangfeng" single-seat reconnaissance planes, and 10 "Huofeng" two-seat reconnaissance planes. The standby base is in Dongning.

The 11th Floating Reconnaissance Squadron is equipped with two "Feiyun" reconnaissance airships, two "Shengyun" reconnaissance airships, two "Shengyun J" artillery school-firing airships and two "Pingyun J" school-firing airships. The standby base is in Hunchun.

The 97th Aviation Reconnaissance Squadron is equipped with four "Gale" reconnaissance and liaison planes and four "Qingfeng J" artillery firing planes. The standby base is in Hunchun.

A total of 38 aircraft and 8 airships were carried out.

In total, the Northeast Front was equipped with a total of 214 aircraft and 84 airships, while at that time there were a total of 280 combat planes and 90 combat airships belonging to the army in the country.

In addition to the Northeast Front, the rest of the army's aviation floating combat units are organized into two aviation floating groups, one of which is directly under the central headquarters and serves as the general reserve of aviation floating forces, and the other group is attached to the Mongolian Front to enhance the reconnaissance capability of the front army in the vast theater environment.

The specific configuration of these two aviation float groups is as follows:

The base camp directly under the jurisdiction of the aviation floating group (general reserve): under the jurisdiction of the 5th Aviation Reconnaissance and Bombing Group, the 98th Aviation Reconnaissance School Shooting Squadron, the 100th Special Aviation Squadron, the 21st Floating Reconnaissance School Shooting Squadron, the 5th Aviation Engineer Battalion, the 4th Aviation Service Battalion, and the 31st Floating Service Company.

The 5th Aviation Reconnaissance and Bombing Group is equipped with 10 "Cangfeng" single-seat reconnaissance planes and 20 "Qingfeng" light bombers.

The 98th Aviation Reconnaissance Squadron is equipped with four "Firewind" two-seat reconnaissance planes and four "Qingfeng J" planes.

The 100th Special Aviation Squadron is equipped with 5 Gale GL two-seater liaison aircraft and 5 Qingfeng L three-seater liaison aircraft.

The 21st Floating Reconnaissance Squadron is equipped with two "Pingyun" reconnaissance airships and two "Pingyun J" schoolship airships.

A total of 46 aircraft, 4 airships. The standby bases are all in Changping, Beijing.

* The 85th Aviation Reconnaissance Squadron, the 99th Aviation Reconnaissance Squadron, the 112th Floating Reconnaissance Group, the 30th Aviation Service Company, and the 29th Floating Service Company are under the jurisdiction of the Mongolian Front.

The 85th Aviation Reconnaissance Squadron is equipped with 10 "Cangfeng" single-seat reconnaissance aircraft.

The 99th Aviation Reconnaissance Squadron is equipped with four "Firewind" two-seat reconnaissance planes and four "Qingfeng J" calibration planes.

The 112th Floating Reconnaissance Squadron is equipped with two "Pingyun" reconnaissance airships.

A total of 18 aircraft, 2 airships. The standby base is all in Kulen (Ulaanbaatar).

In addition to the Army, the Navy also had its own aviation floating forces, the Marine Corps had 10 floating balloon companies, and the Navy Command and the Sanyo Fleet each had an aviation floating group directly under their jurisdiction, and by the end of August 1903, the specific configuration of each aviation floating group of the Navy was as follows:

*Air Float Group under the Command of the Navy:

It has jurisdiction over the 1st Aviation Reconnaissance and Bombing Group, the 2nd Aviation Reconnaissance and Bombing Group, the 3rd Floating Reconnaissance and Bombing Group, the 10th Naval Engineering Battalion, the 1st Naval Aviation Service Battalion, and the 1st Naval Floating Service Battalion.

The 1st Aviation Reconnaissance and Reconnaissance Calibration Group is equipped with 10 "Sting" water reconnaissance planes and 10 "Stinging J" calibration planes. The standby base is in Weihaiwei.

The 2nd Aviation Reconnaissance and Bombing Group is equipped with 10 "Thunder" water reconnaissance aircraft and 10 "Qingfeng" light bombers. The standby base is in Dalian.

The 3rd Floating Reconnaissance and Bombing Group is equipped with two "Feiyun" reconnaissance boats, two "Shengyun" reconnaissance airships, and four "Qingyun" light attack airships. The standby base is in Weihaiwei.

A total of 40 aircraft, 8 airships.

*Air groups directly under the Beiyang Fleet:

It has the 3rd Aviation Mixed Brigade and the 4th Naval Aviation Service Company.

The 3rd Aviation Mixed Brigade is equipped with 10 "Whirlwind" reconnaissance planes, 8 "Stingden" water reconnaissance planes, and 8 "Stingden-J" calibration planes. The standby base is in Qingdao.

A total of 26 aircraft.

* Ocean Fleet Air Float Group:

It has the 4th Aviation Mixed Group, the 10th Floating Air Squadron, the 5th Naval Aviation Service Company, and the 11th Naval Floating Service Company.

The 4th Aviation Mixed Brigade is equipped with eight "Thunder" water reconnaissance planes, four "Denden" water reconnaissance planes, and four "Denden J" water calibrators. The standby base is in Baoshan, Shanghai.

The 10th Floating Air Squadron is equipped with two "Feiyun" reconnaissance airships and two "Qingyun" light attack airships. The standby base is in Baoshan, Shanghai.

A total of 16 aircraft and 4 airships.

*Air Group directly under the Central Government of the South Ocean Fleet:

It has under the jurisdiction of the 5th Aviation Mixed Brigade and the 6th Naval Aviation Service Company.

The 5th Aviation Mixed Brigade is equipped with eight "Thunder" water reconnaissance planes, four "Denden" water reconnaissance planes, and four "Denden J" water school firing planes. The standby base is in Zhanjiang.

A total of 16 aircraft were listed.

In total, the Navy is equipped with 98 combat aircraft and 12 combat airships.

Now let's go back to the LAKJ-02 Army Jilin Aviation Floating Base, and by the way, the number LAKJ-02 means Army (L) Army Class A Aviation (K) Floating (K) Base (J) No. 2.

At this time, the clouds were fully opened, the fog was all gone, and a clear blue crystal was gently revealed above the base, and the sunlight passed through the crystal, which no longer contained a trace of viciousness, only gentle as water, lightly sprinkled on the gray roof, the turquoise grass, and the golden dragon - at this time, dozens of golden dragons had appeared on the grass on the shiny hard shell of the airship.

The 12 "Qiangyun" large attack airships were lined up, with the first part turning north-northwest to take off in the wind, while the 24 "Ziyun" medium-sized attack airships were spread out in front of the gate of the other row of airship hangars, like cigars on the production line. Under their bellies, pinches of ants moved slowly around, and the ants tugged at some tiny silk threads to keep the bow of the airship in the right direction.

Several ants are gathering on the highest building of the base - the floating command platform, pointing at those giant cigars, and the ants also have names, respectively called Zhong Xiahuo, Jiang Zichang, Xia Lin, Guo Zhifei, Fang Yongyang, Han Lin, Qiu Ming, Speaking of identity, Army General Zhong Xiahuo is currently the commander of the Northeast Front Army, Army Lieutenant Colonel Jiang Zichang is currently the adjutant of the commander of the Northeast Front Army, and Army Corporal Xia Lin is the guard of the commander of the Northeast Front Army, Army Major General Guo Zhifei is currently the chief staff officer and acting chief officer of the aviation floating group directly under the Northeast Front Army Command; Army Colonel Fang Yongyang is currently the captain of the 1st Attack Group of the 1st Floating Group; Army Colonel Han Lin is currently the captain of the 2nd Attack Group of the 1st Floating Group; and Colonel Qiu Ming is currently the leader of the 3rd Attack Group of the 1st Floating Group.

The ant with the highest rank, Army General Zhong Xiahuo, crossed his waist, held a cigar cigarette in his mouth, pointed to the big cigar in front of him and shouted, "Is the 1st Floating Group all here?" ”

Major General Guo Zhifei nodded respectfully behind him and said, "General, it's all here, 12 Qiangyun and 24 Ziyun." ”

"It's already fully loaded with ammunition as I requested!"

"Yes, General, each airship is loaded with 250 and 500 kg bombs with a maximum bomb load, and with the current wind direction, there is no problem in flying a round trip of 780 km."

"Have you conveyed my fighting spirit to your men?"

"Yes, General, do as you teach."

Zhong Xiahuo glanced at Guo Zhifei and turned to Colonel Fang Yongyang, the leader of the 1st Attack Group.

"If I'm not mistaken, the 1st Strike Brigade is your unit?"

Fang Yongyang put his feet together, his black cowhide boots clicked, and he replied loudly: "Yes, general." ”

"Then Captain Fang, if you see the port of Vladivostok full of Russian warships, how will you act?"

"Attack the battleship with all your might."

"What if the main forces of the Russian fleet are outside the harbor?"

"Bombing docks, barracks, warehouses and other shore targets."

"What if half of the main forces of the Russian fleet are in the harbor and half in the harbor?"

"Attack the half of the Russian fleet in the harbor with all your might."

"Very well, you are ready to go, remember, you are the former enemy supreme commander of this operation, and you must be responsible for every order you give yourself!"

"Yes, General!"

Fang Yongyang waved his tiger arm, saluted with a tough movement, and then strode off the command platform and rushed to his No. 101 "Qiangyun" attack airship.

Zhong Xiahuo turned to Colonel Han Lin, the leader of the 2nd Attack Group.

"You're the commander of the 2nd Assault Group?"

"Yes, General!"

"Last time, you commanded 18 Purple Clouds to bombard the outer positions of Hailan Bubble."

"It's the Milyuchak support point, General."

"Yes, I know this," Zhong Xiahuo impatiently took off the cigar on his lips, "You are the first deputy commander of the former enemy in this operation, if Colonel Fang has an accident, you will be the supreme commander, of course, I hope no one will have an accident." Remember, the main purpose of this operation is the warship, and if you see a warship that is not moving, you will blow it up, but aim well, and nothing will hinder you for the time being. That's it, you can go. ”

"Yes, General!"

Han Lin followed, waved and saluted, hurriedly ran down the command platform, and ran towards his No. 201 "Purple Cloud" attack airship.

Behind Han Lin, there was Colonel Qiu Ming, the captain of the 3rd Attack Group, Zhong Xiahuo didn't ask much, only said in a loud voice: "I know that you are the commander of the 3rd Attack Group, there is nothing to say, you are the second deputy commander of the former enemy in this operation, if the two commanders above you have an accident, you will naturally become the supreme commander, but I don't think there will be such a bad situation, you just command your own brigade, go ahead, let the Russian fleet hiding in Vladivostok become garbage!" ”

"Yes, General!"

Qiu Ming saluted and ran away, so fast that one wondered if there was a vicious dog or something behind him, and in a few moments, Colonel Qiu Ming disappeared behind the door of the pod of his No. 216 "Purple Cloud" airship.

Seeing this, Zhong Xiahuo sighed: "Young man, you just have to be full of energy." ”

"Colonel Qiu Ming is indeed young and promising."

Guo Zhifei painted a snake and added a foot.

Zhong Xiahuo shook his head noncommittally, took two puffs of cigar, and said to Guo Zhifei: "Staff Officer Guo, although we only need to send airships above, but you still have thirty light bombardments in your hands, you can arrange for them to be transferred to the Hunchun or Dongning bases, and bomb the docks, warehouses, factories and other facilities in Vladivostok Port for three days and five days, so as to weaken the port's ability to support the fleet." ”

"Yes, I'll arrange it."

Guo Zhifei really left like flying, but Zhong Xiahuo turned a blind eye and said "Let's go", and he wanted to take him back to the headquarters.

The guard Xia Lin stayed in place, he was shocked by the magnificent scene of dozens of airships taking off one after another, he felt that his vision seemed to be crowded with gray-white light, in the sea of light, soaring golden dragons, each dragon seemed to be able to swallow tens of thousands of Xia Lin, Xia Lin's calves trembled.

"Xiao Xia, Xiao Xia, what are you doing?"

Zhong Xiahuo shouted dissatisfiedly, and adjutant Jiang Zichang hurriedly pulled Xia Lin's sleeve.

"Sir, that's so beautiful...... It's so beautiful. ”

Xia Lin said excitedly, Zhong Xiahuo grabbed his shoulder and pulled him over, striding towards the stairs, but Xia Lin still kept looking back.

"What's that, there must be something better to look at in the future, little guy, you can see it, maybe there are many more than I see, life is short, life is short, haha

Zhong Xiahuo laughed roughly, and dragged Xia Lin away like a kitten.

Behind them, the sky was covered in shiny cigar smoke, turnips, and long bread.

Six hours later, over Vladivostok, a large pile of cigar smoke, white radish, and long bread was slowly paraded above the blue sea, green mountains, blue sky, and white clouds.

Vice Admiral Makarov, commander of the Russian Pacific Fleet, is among the sober ants.

"Order the fleet to make fires, raise anchor, and leave the port! The guns of the ships were ready to fire from above. ”

Makarov dragged his two large locks of goatee and barked as he went, and the chief of staff of the fleet, Rear Admiral Wittgeft, followed closely behind him, and in front of them, the officers and men who had heard the order rushed to the warship, and the two hurried to the flagship "Petropavlovsk". In a short time, the whistle of the "Petropavlovsk" sounded, heavy soot erupted from the chimney, and the 11,350-ton steel hull slowly moved, and soon approached the waterway of the entrance and exit of the harbor. But the movements of the other warships were not so swift, until the oval-shaped black shadows covered the water surface of the harbor, and most of the warships had not yet left the harbor.

On a white radish marked "101"—sorry, it's the No. 101 "Qiangyun" airship—Colonel Fang Yongyang, captain of the 1st Attack Group of the 1st Floating Group of the Chinese Army, observed the situation in the harbor with a telescope, and found that the Russian ships were crowded into the port entrance and exit channel "like feces discharged into the anus", so he ordered the signalman behind him: "Send signal flares, first, all combat preparations, second, attack the ships in the harbor with all your might, and third, all boats attack freely!" ”

Several strings of signal flares were shot diagonally into the sky from the side of the pod, and after a while, several waves of signal flares flew in the air, and the signalman of Boat 101 immediately reported to Fang Yongyang: "The 2nd Attack Group has issued an attack order to this group...... The 3rd Assault Group has issued an attack order to the Brigade...... The 2nd Assault Group has entered the designated airspace as planned...... The 3rd Assault Group has entered the designated airspace according to the first plan......"

At the same time, the captain of boat No. 101 also issued a series of combat orders:

"The height dropped to 2000, the speed to 50."

"Confirm the target, 1 enemy battleship at berth 2."

"Height 2400, speed 55! Calibrate the attack course and start the first aiming. ”

"Altitude 2000, speed 50, enter the attack route, bombs are ready to be dropped at one time."

"Bomb dropping!"

16 500-kilogram bombs fell leisurely into the steel giant beast on the sea, and a cluster of dense and turbid water columns bloomed around the giant beast, and the reason why the water column was turbid was because the water depth of the berth was only about ten meters, and the bombs were almost attached to the bottom of the sea and exploded.

"Nearly 1 shot missed, the rest missed."

The observer reported that Fang Yongyang screamed bad luck and ordered the boat to turn around and prepare to return home.

Seeing this, the No. 105 "Qiangyun" boat took the risk of lowering the altitude to 1,200 meters and then dropped the bomb, and finally dropped a 500-kilogram bomb on the enemy ship's amidships, damaging the chimney and damaging part of the superstructure and several secondary guns. The No. 108 "Qiangyun" boat followed up the attack, dropped bombs at an altitude of 1,000 meters, hit two of them, blew up the front mast of the enemy ship, blew up several secondary guns, and caused a large fire. Later, the No. 203 "Ziyun" and No. 205 "Ziyun" boats also joined the attack, and at least one of the 250-kilogram bombs hit directly, injuring the ship's command platform. It was later ascertained that the ship was a Russian battleship "Retvizhan," and that the ship was directly hit by four bullets that day, and another four to five were nearly missed, and the superstructure was seriously damaged, and the bow waterline cracked and flooded, and it was unable to leave the port for at least a month to fight.

While the battleship "Letvizhan" was attacked by six Chinese airships, the rest of the Russian capital ships were also bombarded by bombs.

The battleship "Dawn" with a displacement of 12,674 tons was attacked by four airships, directly hit by two 500-kilogram bombs, and many other bombs were missed, the rear main turret swing device was damaged, the rear main mast collapsed, and one 152-mm secondary gun and several small and medium-caliber secondary guns were destroyed.

The cruiser "Liulik" with a displacement of 11,690 tons was attacked by three airships one after another, and was directly hit by one 500-kilogram bomb and two 250-kilogram bombs.

The battleship "Poltava" with a displacement of 10,960 tons was also attacked by three airships, and was directly hit by three 250-kilogram bombs, and the chimney and backup command platform were destroyed.

In order to achieve the best attack effect, Colonel Qiu Ming ordered the altitude to be lowered to 500 meters, aimed at the front of the "Thunderbolt" route, and dropped all 14 250-kilogram bombs at one time, two of which directly hit the surface of the ship, and violently exploded on the surface of the ship. The sailors on the "Thunderbolt" fired their rifles at the low-flying Boat 216, which was courageous but meaningless.

At this moment, I saw a huge spaceship shuttling through the sky, heavy bombs raining down, yellow and white water columns rising like forests, from time to time a fireball on a certain warship suddenly rose, and the fragments of iron and steel human flesh splashed like fallen leaves after autumn, and after a long time, gunpowder smoke and smoke were mixed and filled, obscuring the sky, and when the bombing subsided, the wailing and crying for help were endless.

"Fire, fire at those monsters!"

On the command platform of the "Petropavlovsk", Vice Admiral Makarov shouted wildly to the staff officers, and the order was transmitted to the gun emplacement, and the gunners sighed - the elevation angle of the ship's guns was too low to shoot at the air.

However, the gunners on the shore came up with a solution, and the commander of the field artillery company, Captain Grigov, organized his subordinates to mount six 76-mm field guns on wooden barrels and sandbags to raise the elevation angle of the guns, and launched a fierce fire on the Chinese airships that had reduced their speed to enter the attack route, but because there were no special sights and the shells did not have proper fuses, the hit rate was terrible, and most of the shells fell into the harbor, and some of the shells fell into the city, causing several civilian casualties, and a few shells even hit the flagship" Petropavlovsk", Lieutenant General Makarov, instead of blaming Captain Grigov, asked the commander of the fortress to commend him for "leading his troops to resist the enemy's air attack with courage and tact, demonstrating the noble and fearless traditions of the Russian army."

Captain Grigov's efforts were not completely useless, the No. 201 "Ziyun" boat, the captain of the 2nd Attack Group of the Chinese Army, was violently shaken when it rose and broke away after dropping bombs on the Russian cruiser "Rulik", and later the captain found that the pressure of the No. 13 and No. 14 airbags was declining, apparently damaged, and in order to return to the safe navigation altitude, the No. 201 boat abandoned all the ballast and relied on the lift of the remaining 14 airbags to return to the sea. It was later found out that the No. 201 boat was penetrated by a medium-caliber shell from the lower rear section of the boat, penetrated the No. 13 and No. 14 airbags, and then penetrated through the middle and rear sections of the upper part of the airship.

In addition to the No. 201 boat, the No. 219 "Ziyun" boat of the 3rd Attack Group was blown to the Sea of Japan by the northwest wind due to the failure of the rudder when returning home, and after four hours of drifting at sea, the mechanic ventured to climb to the stern of the airship and repaired the rudder. It was later found that the cause of the rudder failure was that a shell grazed the stern of the boat, breaking the wire that operated the rudder.

The only casualty suffered by the 1st Floating Group of the Chinese Army that day came from Boat 209 of the 2nd Attack Group, which returned to the ship, and the captain, Major Gao Bin, accidentally fell while disembarking and rolled all the way down the gangway, breaking his right arm and losing a front tooth, causing extremely heavy losses.

The losses of the Russian Pacific Fleet on that day were relatively "minor"; the battleships "Letvizhan," "Dawn," and "Poltava" were hit by bombs; the battleship "Petropavlovsk" was hit by shells fired from its own shore guns, of which the "Retvizhan" and "Dawn" had to be docked for maintenance, and the cruisers "Rulik," "Thunderbolt," and "Askold" were damaged by bullets. In addition, the unlucky gunboat "Beaver" was directly hit by a 500-kilogram bomb, which caused the ammunition depot to explode, broke in two on the spot, and fell to the bottom of the sea to feed the fish. The destroyer "Brave" was hit by a 250-kilogram bomb on the side of the ship, and the sea water poured in, capsizing and sinking in an instant, and none of the officers and men on board survived. A total of 116 officers and soldiers were killed and 231 wounded.

The blood-red sun hung faintly on the top of the hill in the west, the sun was shining, the waves were sparkling, the fire was fading, the smoke was not dissipated, Vice Admiral Makarov stood on the tall command platform of the battleship "Petropavlovsk", looking at the tragic situation in the harbor, and his heart rose with anger.

"Isn't it an airship? My Chief of Staff, do you see that? We should have that kind of thing, I saw this kind of thing in Petersburg two years ago, and the British showed it, and I suggested at that time that this kind of thing has a great future, it must have a great future, and it should be bought, and we should buy it, buy the technology, and we will make it ourselves. But our Chancellor of the Exchequer, our dear Sergei Yulievich, said that it is too expensive, and it will not be useful, ha, it is too expensive, it will not be useful, you see, what are all these things that are not going to be useful? Too expensive! Yes, it's too expensive, they blew up all my warships, it's too expensive! Ha Lu Ha! ”

"We already have airships, and Kuropatkin bought three from Britain for artillery school firing."

The Chief of Staff of the Fleet, Wittgeft, reminded.

"That's the Army's business, Kuropatkin's business, to hell with them. God forbid, we are unprepared, we have nothing to do with those monsters buzzing in the sky, they fly overhead, drop a huge pile of black cannonballs, and then leave unharmed, it's not fair! This is no longer a war, and if this goes on we will be slaughtered, yes, slaughtered! ”

"I think we should have artillery with high elevation angles, and shells that can explode in the air, so we can take them down."

"Yes, we should do this, but Petersburg will not do this, they will have a committee of several officials, study it for a year or two, waste millions of rubles, and tell us, no, that won't work, it should be done in a different way. You know, when I was in Kryastadt, I asked for the fortress to be equipped with hanging balloons in order to improve the observation capabilities of the fortress, and that's what the people in Petersburg did to me. ”

Wittgeft shrugged: "General, we have no choice. ”

Makarov slapped the railing fiercely: "Yes, we have no choice, we not only need artillery that can hit airships, we also need airships, the best weapon against airships is still airships, artillery against artillery, armored ships against armored ships, it's all the same truth!" ”

"I heard they still have airplanes, ugly robotic birds with canvas wings, that kind of thing flies faster than airships......"

"Airplanes? We also have them, the Americans sold them, they used these planes as toys, flew up and down on the grass by Lake Ladoga, teased the crown prince, yes, planes, useless. ”

Makarov said, putting his hands in his pockets and turning to walk off the podium.

The next day, 30 "Qingfeng" bombers of the 2nd Air Bombing Group of the Chinese Army attacked the port facilities in Vladivostok in two waves, destroying several barracks and warehouses, and blowing up a port crane, causing more than 100 casualties.

Airplanes really seemed useless - at the time of their birth.

Addendum: Introduction to the weapons and equipment of the Chinese army's aviation floating troops in 1903.

1. Aviation weapons (excluding instructor equipment)

FJZ-2 "Whirlwind" reconnaissance aircraft: wooden, biplane, single-seat, using a Taipei Ocean Heavy Industries HK-7B 50-horsepower aero engine, maximum speed of 115 kilometers per hour, range of 230 kilometers, ceiling of 2500 meters, no weapons. Finalized production in 1900.

FJZ-3 "Cangfeng" reconnaissance aircraft: wooden, biplane, single-seat, using a Taipei Ocean Heavy Industries HK-8A 80-horsepower aero engine, with a maximum speed of 140 kilometers per hour, a range of 290 kilometers, an altitude of 3,800 meters, and no weapons. Its improved "Cangfeng Jia" uses the 120 horsepower engine of the HK-8D type, and the shape of the wing has been improved, the speed has been increased to 160 kilometers per hour, and the range has reached 310 kilometers. Finalized production in 1901.

FJZ-4 "Huofeng" reconnaissance aircraft: wooden, biplane, two-seater, using a Taipei Ocean Heavy Industries HK-8C 100 horsepower engine, maximum speed of 128 kilometers per hour, range of 320 kilometers, ceiling of 3100 meters, equipped with a rear-firing machine gun, the fuselage special bomb rack can be loaded with up to 16 grenades. Finalized production in 1901.

FJZJ-4 "Huofeng J" Artillery Calibration Machine: Improved from the "Huofeng" reconnaissance aircraft, the machine gun and cartridge rack are eliminated, and the rear seat is equipped with a color signal gun, which can be used to provide simple calibration data for artillerymen. It was finalized in 1902.

FJZL-5 "Gale" reconnaissance and liaison aircraft: wooden, two-wing, two-seater, using a Taipei Ocean Heavy Industries HK-8D 120-horsepower aero engine, maximum speed of 136 kilometers per hour, range of 450 kilometers, ceiling of 3500 meters, unarmed. It was finalized in 1903.

FJQH-1 "Qingfeng" light bomber: wooden, biplane, two-seater, using a Taipei Ocean Heavy Industries HK-8D 120 horsepower aero engine, maximum speed of 131 kilometers per hour, ceiling of 3300 meters. The rear seat is equipped with a machine gun, and there are a total of 5 bomb racks under the fuselage and wings, which can hang small bombs weighing up to 25 kg, with a maximum bomb load of 250 kg and a maximum range of 430 km when carrying 200 kg of bombs. It was finalized in 1903.

FJQH-1J "Sunny Wind J" Artillery Calibrator: Improved from the "Sunny Wind" light bomber, the bomb rack and machine gun were eliminated, and a low-power radio station and calibration equipment were installed, and the maximum speed was reduced to 115 kilometers per hour. It was finalized in 1903.

SFJZH-1 "Yanfeng" heavy bomber: wooden, biplane, three-seater, using three Taipei Ocean Heavy Industries HK-9C 180 horsepower engine, driving three five-bladed wooden propellers, can hang a maximum of 100 kg of bombs, the maximum bomb load of 700 kg, the maximum range of 500 kg of bombs is 1500 km. One machine gun in the front and one in the rear. It was finalized in 1904. Since it was not completed before the start of the war, the official designation is preceded by the letter S (i.e., experiment). It was finalized in 1904.

SJZ-2 "Thunder" water reconnaissance aircraft: wooden, biplane, single-seater, three-pontoon, using a Taipei Ocean Heavy Industry HK-7C 60 horsepower engine, maximum speed of 122 kilometers per hour, range of 340 kilometers, ceiling of 2900 meters, unarmed.

SJZ-3 "Dingdian" water reconnaissance aircraft: wooden, two-wing, two-seater, three-pontoon, using a Taipei Ocean Heavy Industry HK-8C 100 horsepower engine, the maximum speed of 134 kilometers per hour, the range of 400 kilometers, the ceiling of 3400 meters. The rear seat is equipped with a machine gun and a special bomb rack outside the fuselage, which can carry 16-20 large flares or grenades.

SJZ-3J "Den J" Maritime Artillery Calibrator: It is a modified "Bolt" machine, equipped with low-power radio and calibration equipment, and equipped with a signal gun, with a speed of 110 kilometers per hour and a range of 370 kilometers.

2. Floating weapons (excluding instructor equipment)

FQJ-2 Artillery School-launched Balloon: Single Airbag, Hot Air Balloon Principle, No Cover, Cable Length 1500 Meters, Ceiling 3000 Meters, Maximum Lifting Speed 150 Meters per Minute, Gondola Limit 1, Self-sustaining Power 4 Hours. Finalized production in 1897.

FQJ-3 Artillery School-launched Balloon: Single airbag, relying on gas combustion hot gas take-off and suspension, soft cover, cable length 2500 meters, maximum lift-off speed of 200 meters per minute, ceiling of 3500 meters, gondola limit of 2 people, self-sustaining force of 7 hours. Finalized production in 1900.

FQJZ-3 Reconnaissance Balloon: Modified on the basis of FQJ-3, without calibration equipment, with added aerial observation, photographic and mapping instruments. Finalized production in 1901.

FTZ-1 "Feiyun" reconnaissance airship: single airbag, soft cover, equipped with 1 Taipei Ocean Heavy Industries HK-7B 50 horsepower aero engine, driving 1 double-bladed propeller, maximum speed of 38 kilometers per hour (no wind), ceiling of 3000 meters, maximum range of about 300 kilometers (no wind) at a speed of 30 kilometers per hour, open pod, limited to 5 people, no fixed weapons. It was finalized in 1898 and mass production began in 1899.

FTZ-2 "Shengyun" reconnaissance airship: double airbags, hard structure shell, equipped with 2 Taipei Ocean Heavy Industries HK-8A 80 horsepower aero engine, driving 2 three-bladed propellers, maximum speed of 70 kilometers per hour (no wind), maximum range of 700 kilometers at 50 kilometers per hour (no bomb, no wind), open pod, limited to 5 people, ceiling 3500 meters, no fixed weapons, light external bomb racks, can be hung with 5, 10, 25, 50 kg of small bombs, maximum bomb load of 200 kg. It was finalized and mass-produced in 1900.

FTZ-2J "Shengyun J" Artillery School Launch Airship: Modified from the prototype of the "Shengyun" reconnaissance airship, it has no bomb rack, reduced fuel load, is equipped with school shooting equipment and medium-power radio stations, is limited to 6 people, and has a self-sustaining capacity of 8 hours. It was finalized in 1902.

FTZ-3 "Pingyun" reconnaissance airship: three airbags, structural hard shell, equipped with 2 Taipei Ocean Heavy Industries HK-8C 100 horsepower aero engine, driving 2 three-bladed propellers, maximum speed of 90 kilometers per hour (no wind), maximum range of about 1500 kilometers at 60 kilometers per hour (no bomb, no wind), ceiling of 5000 meters, semi-enclosed pod, limited to 7 people, equipped with 2 self-defense 7 points 92 mm light machine gun, with a light external bomb rack, can be hung with a maximum of 50 kg bombs, The maximum bomb load is 200 kg. It was finalized in 1901 and mass production began in 1902.

FTZ-3J "Pingyun J" Artillery School Launch Airship: Based on the "Pingyun" reconnaissance airship, the bomb rack and machine gun are cancelled, the pod is limited to 8 people, equipped with school shooting equipment and a high-power radio station, and has a self-sustaining power of 12 hours. It was finalized in 1903 and mass production began in 1904.

FTG-1 "Qingyun" light attack airship: three airbags, steel skeleton, hard shell, equipped with 4 Taipei Ocean Heavy Industries HK-8A 80 horsepower aircraft engine, driving 2 three-bladed propellers, maximum speed of 80 kilometers per hour (no wind), ceiling 3500 meters, open pod, limited to 4 people, equipped with 2 7 point 92 mm light machine guns for self-defense. Equipped with 2 external bomb racks, it can carry all kinds of bombs below 100 kg (inclusive), with a maximum bomb load of 800 kg and a maximum range of 800 km when carrying 500 kg bombs. Finalized production in 1900.

FTG-2 "Ziyun" medium attack airship: nine airbags, steel skeleton, structural rigid shell, equipped with 4 Taipei Ocean Heavy Industries HK-9B 150 horsepower aero engine, maximum speed of 80 kilometers per hour, semi-enclosed pod, limited to 4 people, ceiling 5000 meters, equipped with 2 7.92mm light machine guns for self-defense. Equipped with 1 bomb bay and 2 external bomb racks, the maximum bomb load is 3.5 tons, and the range when carrying 2 tons of bombs is 1200 kilometers. Finalized production in 1901.

FTG-3 "Qiangyun" large attack airship: 16 airbags, triangular steel skeleton, structural rigid shell, equipped with 4 Taipei Ocean Heavy Industries HK-10A 300 horsepower aero engine, driving 4 five-bladed propellers, maximum speed of 70 kilometers per hour, semi-enclosed pod, limited to 6 people, ceiling 6000 meters, equipped with 2 self-defense machine guns. There is a large bomb bay and two external bomb racks, with a maximum bomb load of 8 tons and a range of 1,600 kilometers when carrying 5 tons of bombs. It was finalized in 1902.

SFTG-4 "Chiyun" giant attack airship: 24 airbags, triangular steel skeleton, structural rigid shell, equipped with 8 Taipei Ocean Heavy Industries HK-11A 600 horsepower aero engine, maximum speed of 80 kilometers per hour, semi-enclosed armored pod and machine gun tower, ceiling of 7000 meters. The pod is equipped with 2 machine guns in the front and rear, 2 machine gun towers on the left and right sides of the airship, 2 rotating machine gun towers in the front and rear of the upper deck of the airship, each machine gun tower is equipped with 2 combined machine guns, and the whole boat is equipped with a total of 16 self-defense machine guns, which are operated by 10 machine gunners. The whole boat has 20 people, including 6 chief and co-pilots (including the chief and deputy captains), 6 machine gunners, 4 mechanics and machine gunners, 2 navigators, and 2 radiomen and military doctors. The pod contains a large built-in bomb bay with a maximum bomb load of 12 tons and a range of about 7,000 kilometers when carrying 10 tons of bombs and up to 12,000 kilometers when carrying 3 tons of bombs. In 1904, it was finalized, because it was not completed before the start of the war, and the official number was preceded by the letter S (i.e., experimental).