……

The afternoon sun shines on the undulating sea.

With the steady roar of gas turbines, the calm waters of the Eastern Mediterranean were swept by warships, and a large fleet was bathed in the light of the west, sailing eastward in a strict formation.

At the heart of the huge ship group, the huge body of the CVN-69 "Eisenhower" aircraft carrier is breaking the waves at a high speed of more than 20 knots; Around this huge ship, which is more than 300 meters long, the two "Ticonderoga"-class cruisers, which are far away, are monitoring the vast sky around them together with two "Burke" class ships that are further away.

Just a few days ago, this large number of warships rushed through Gibraltar, crossed the murderous North Atlantic Ocean and entered the relative safety of the Mediterranean, and the aircraft carrier battle group led by the "Eisenhower" passed by the CVN-74 "Stennis" on the route, and is now approaching the eastern Mediterranean waters that are more expansive and closer to the northern front; Sailing in the Mediterranean, which resembled a huge bathtub, several inconspicuous Perry-class ships in the fleet were still running back and forth doing odd jobs, scouting and guarding against the threat of Soviet submarines while monitoring any ships approaching the fleet's path.

In the midst of the huge group of ships, all the warships were under the command of the flagship, escorting the "Eisenhower" loaded with more than 80 fighters of various types, as well as a number of search and amphibious assault ships, to the predetermined combat area; At the moment of the fierce war, the sky in the east is full of war, and in the face of this difficult and dangerous expedition, everyone in the fleet unconsciously tensed their nerves.

But. It was in this slightly depressing voyage. Some people are not in the mood that way.

On top of an aircraft carrier breaking the waves. Looking down from the tall island of the USS Eisenhower, Vice Admiral John Ford stood on the bridge with the best view of the ship, holding a cup of hot coffee. Looking down from a place almost 20 meters away from the deck, the fighter planes parked on the surface of the ship still look huge, at the end of the catapult take-off runway at the front of the deck, in front of the erected tail flame deflector, a silver-gray F-14D "Super Cat" is preparing for takeoff, and the air crew wearing various vests are busy everywhere. A qiē seems to bring a bit of the tension and rush of the battle.

"I say, Judges, do you have a plane to try sightseeing today?"

Raising his hand and raising his glass, Lieutenant General Ford asked an officer standing not far behind him, and the colonel's staff officer standing behind the general was straight and neat, and he lost no time in picking up Ford's words:

"Probably, and it's still the same, and so is the report from the combat command center."

"Oh......?"

Probably a little disappointed by the adjutant's answer, the gray-haired general made an exaggerated expression of arrogance, and he put down the white porcelain cup in his hand. Pacing a few steps gracefully in the bridge of the aviation ship, "What about the Russians." It's been a few days since we've been in the Mediterranean, and don't they have a single ship to show up and say something? Jonathan, do you think this is because we're a little too conservative in our route planning? ”

"In terms of routes, the current ...... It is still being carried out according to the scheduled plan. ”

Facing Lieutenant General Ford, who looked relaxed and seemed to be completely out of shape, Jonathan Lee habitually raised his hand to hold his glasses, and he had not followed the general for a few days, but he quickly figured out that this old gentleman's mind was not very bright, although he was a good hand at commanding operations, but he also lacked the appearance and appearance that a general should have.

Between the answers, there were still calls for air contact and the dripping sound of automated equipment, and the staff officers turned their eyes to the non-commissioned officers and duty officers who were busy on the battle positions.

At a time when the group of ships was gradually approaching the battle line and could not relax for a moment, the atmosphere here was so busy, Staff Officer Li couldn't help but wonder if it was a bit out of place for him and the general to appear here instead of going to the bridge where the captain and other commanders were supposed to go.

"Hey! Boys, get up to the skies! ”

Seeing the carrier-based aircraft eject from the side with a "whew-" and the leaking white steam drifting along the slipway, and the silver-gray metal giant bird dragging the bright afterburner flame out of sight, General Ford shook his arms and clenched his fists and shouted a few times in place like a child, and then straightened his waist as if no one was around, took out a black binoculars in his satchel, and looked into the distance through the square porthole.

During the day today, as was the case in the previous two days, the mighty battle group led by Vice Admiral John Ford, with four amphibious assault ships and a heavy nuclear-powered aircraft carrier, was once again confronted by an uninvited guest from the north.

Taking off from an airfield in the southern part of the Apennine Peninsula hundreds of kilometers to the north, several dark gray "Tornado" IDS/ADV fighters of the Italian Air Force flew in a roundabout way as usual, trying to reconnoiter the whereabouts of the American ship group in a roundabout way; Although these fighters had just left the base and entered the field of view of the hovering E-2C on the north side of the ship group, and were soon shielded from the core air defense circle of the fleet by the roaring "super cats," the implied unpleasant hostility between them made the US Navy pilots very unhappy.

yes, it's very unpleasant, isn't it?

Just a few months ago, in the face of the surging red iron currents in Central Europe, the pilots of the U.S. Navy had gone to the northern skies with these wandering Italians, fighting hard in the overwhelming sea of MiGs. But now, seeing that the giant claws of the polar bear have reached the top of the Alps, these Italians have once again changed their ways and cut off their sleeves from the NATO bloc, as they did in World War I and World War II.

This kind of practice of throwing himself into battle has to be said to have become a tradition of the Italians, and it has to be said that it is really infuriating to ride on the wall to this level!

Well, this faint unhappiness in my heart is naturally not unique to first-line pilots.

Looking at the pale blue sky to the north with a telescope in hand, the visibility over the Mediterranean Sea was very good today and there were no clouds, and Lieutenant General Ford tried his best to look into the distance with his eye sockets close to the eyepiece tube, but of course he could see nothing.

The Italian planes, which had been trying to get close to the group for several days, were still wandering two or three hundred kilometers away; Thinking of those fools in Washington, who at this time still fantasized that Italy could still have a little dignity and would not break with its allies who had been of one heart and one mind for decades, the lieutenant general snorted in annoyance, rested the telescope on his chest and shook it back and forth:

"- Hmph, Italians! Extravagant remnants of the Roman Empire, a bunch of idiots who can only eat noodles and see the scenery. (To be continued......)

PS: Thank you for the evaluation votes of the book friend *Viscount Guo Wen*! A valuable monthly pass with a book friend * Miyu Senpai * the highest*!