"One person decides the outcome of the battle", to understand this situation, it is useless to simply compare the number of fighters on both sides.

If we simplify the problem to the extreme, thinking that the contest of aircraft carrier formations is to release a large number of fighters to decide the winner in the skies over the sea area of the battle, and whoever loses in the end loses a single Qiē defense capability, and then is sent to the bottom of the sea by a swarm of anti-ship missiles, then this situation is inevitably a little too idealistic and almost impossible to play out in the real world.

In a battle on the vast ocean, before the two fleets meet each other, there is one question that must be considered clearly, that is, "Where is the enemy?" ”

This question, which seems straightforward, can determine the outcome of a naval battle at a considerable distance.

Since the beginning of human civilization, the history of fighting on the ocean has been long, and the technology has been constantly improving, but with the continuous evolution of the weapon platforms of the two sides, the longer the range of the warship and the range of the weapon, the more prominent the problem of seeking the enemy that did not need to be considered in the ancient era of broadside warfare.

During the war-torn period of World War II, a series of classic war histories appeared, proving how important this issue was to the Navy.

Naval warfare, like any other kind of combat, must be subject to the conditions of the battlefield, and unlike the complex terrain on land, and unlike the complete freedom of a clear sky, it is a crucial problem for every fleet commander to find the enemy and attack first; On this basis, it is necessary to direct the actions of the ship formation, formulate what reconnaissance strategy, decide when to release the attack fleet, and how to ensure that the enemy's fleet can withstand the enemy's air attack. The tactics that come out are ever-changing. Let every moment on the battlefield be full of unexpected ups and downs.

Of course. The war situation can be complicated and changeable, and the tactics of the two sides in the contest between the Red Navy and the US Navy are different, or even completely different.

The U.S. Navy, a powerful force that has controlled global sea power for decades, honed a set of effective strategies in World War II to maintain the overseas presence of the United States and global deterrence, that is, to maintain a large fleet of attack aircraft carriers, and to complete combat operations "from sea to land" through carrier-based aircraft on heavy aircraft carriers: as long as the sea is reached, the U.S. military can launch high-intensity large-scale air strikes. For this reason, the US Navy's carrier-based aircraft generally possess a relatively balanced combat capability, and even all fixed-wing fighters can participate in air strikes when the air situation permits, which is simply difficult for ordinary countries with relatively insufficient military strength to resist.

With this in mind, the U.S. Navy's strategy of dealing with the sea forces of hostile countries, especially the Soviet Navy, which was rapidly increasing in size and combat strength, was also in the same vein.

In the face of the threat of the Red Navy's warships, even if it is as rich as the United States, it does not have the ability or need to deploy another anti-ship combat system, but continues to strengthen the attack capability of the aircraft carrier battle group. Relying on the multifaceted advantages of air platforms over surface and underwater platforms, they strive to launch asymmetrical strikes against the enemy in battle. Destroy the enemy's main combat force from the air.

On the other hand, in response to the Soviet Navy's anti-ship missile salvo tactics, the Americans' response strategy was to strengthen the air defense circle and strive to block the Soviet air-launched anti-ship missile platforms such as the Tu-22M3 and Tu-160, which pose the greatest threat, from the range of their mounted weapons. If this is not possible, the next step is to make every effort to intercept the incoming heavy anti-ship missiles, and by the way, to intercept all incoming enemy aircraft, so as to ensure the absolute safety of the aircraft carrier battle group.

The same carrier-based aircraft unit can be used as both a spear and a shield, and this comprehensive combat system of the Americans can indeed be called powerful, and for a long time, there is no force in the world that can calmly face the threat of the U.S. Navy aircraft carrier battle group.

However, from another point of view, the Achilles heel of this system, Long Yun from the real world is also clear.

The U.S. aircraft carrier battle group, which integrates attack and defense, regardless of the means of attack, is indeed a complex and complete system in terms of air defense alone: the outer layer is the F-14, F/A-18 fighters and AIM-7/54/120 series air-to-air missiles commanded by the E-2C "Hawkeye" early warning aircraft, the middle layer is the surface ship AN/SPY-1 "Aegis" system and the RIM-66 "Standard" series of air defense missiles, and the inner layer is in charge of the RIM-7 "Sea Sparrow" and MK15 "Phalanx".

Such a complex tactical system basically covers the needs of long-range, medium, and near-term air defense, and the ability to counter incoming aircraft is also very strong, but to deal with Soviet bombers carrying long-range anti-ship missiles, it is actually the outermost layer that is the most effective and critical.

Breaking through this layer of air defense and creating conditions for the attack is of course the key role of Long Yun.

To do this, after flying the Su-27M2 into the battlefield, his actions require some skill, and he cannot fight an "epic air battle" with the overwhelming F-14 Tomcat interceptor.

On the contrary, if he really does this, I am afraid that he will not be able to help the Red Navy -- even if a composite pylons are used, the maximum bomb carrying capacity of the White No. 20 Su-27M2 is only 16 air-to-air missiles, and one missile may not be able to solve one enemy plane; if it is only for the purpose of killing the enemy, there are dozens of fighters on a US aircraft carrier, and even if he does his best, he will not be able to destroy a few; this kind of battle is of course a nightmare for the downed US pilots, but it does not matter to the overall situation of the battle.

Because of this, the value of an ace pilot of the Red Air Force is actually reflected in the "critical moment", that is, at the right time, in the right place, to break through the outer defense circle of the US Navy in one fell swoop!

From the afternoon to the evening, the time passed imperceptibly, and when a gray night gradually covered the land, in the dimly lit base on the outskirts of Khabarovsk, a closer and closer engine whistle was gradually heard in the distant sky, and the An-124B transport plane carrying the white No. 20 Su-27M2 quietly appeared from the vast night sky and landed on the long runway with the help of the faint airport landing lights.

The An-124B can fly in just over two hours on a journey of 1,600 kilometers from Oryolminsk to Khabarovsk, but in order to avoid being discovered and the risk of leaking information, "Ruslan" stayed in Oryolminsk until dusk before taking off, and by the time it arrived at its destination, the Far East was already full of stars.

After the transport plane landed, like the personnel in charge of this secret operation in the base, Long Yun immediately began to get busy, making all the necessary preparations for boarding and dispatching.

Due to the rush of time, the battle situation on the far sea changed rapidly, and there was no time to familiarize himself with the modified white No. 20 landline, so the young man who packed his belongings and several project leaders approached the An-124B transport plane that was dormant at one end of the runway and several refueling trucks were "booming" next to it.

Walking all the way, looking at the past from a distance, in the night, he could only barely see the silhouette of the full body of "Ruslan", and the white painted fighter on his back, and when he approached step by step, he looked up at this behemoth with a length of nearly 70 meters and a vertical tail top of more than 20 meters above the ground, and Long Yun, who had a close look at "Ruslan" for the first time, was very novel, and he paid attention to the white No. 20 on his back on the top of the fuselage, and the Su-27M2, which belonged to the big one among the fighters, was also in "Ruslan" The transport plane looked a little small against the backdrop, almost like a toy airplane, which made him feel a little unreal in a trance.

Looking up at the huge "Ruslan", Long Yun quickly entered the interior of the modified transport plane with his entourage, at this time there was still a little time before the An-124B was refueled, and the order of the General Command had not yet been issued, he put down his things in the cabin compartment of the temporary modification, and talked with the person in charge of this project, Major Anton Nasimov from the Air Force.

From Major Nasimov's mouth, he probably knew the progress of the entire plan, as well as the state of readiness of "Ruslan", Long Yun quickly glanced at the project progress report, and found that a series of flight tests carried by fighter jets had been completed smoothly, and now he was familiar with this system, and he had a little bottom in his heart, he didn't say anything else, since there was such an order above, the battle on the distant ocean must have been carried out to some extent, at this time what he needed to do was to relax and prepare for battle, everything else can be put aside for the time being.

"Then, Comrade Rezenov, you can now familiarize yourself with how to get into the Sukhoi fighter jets carried by the 'Ruslan'; this can still be done, although the time is short."

"Oh?

Well, I think too! Please take me to get acquainted with it. ”

In order to carry the landline of Lieutenant General Viktor Rezenov, on the basis of the original modification, the project personnel from the space technology department and IAPO did a lot of work to complete a series of modifications to the structure of the "Ruslan" fuselage and the layout of the aircraft.

The stout and huge An-124B, whether as a transport aircraft or a special operations platform, can be regarded as quite luxurious.

In the huge cargo hold of the transport plane, coming out of the temporary pilot's lounge, walking along a naturally formed aisle towards the tail of the plane, Long Yun immediately saw a metal door, Major Nasimov led the way, opened the door and stepped aside, briefly introduced the role of this compartment, and related precautions, and then asked the lieutenant general to observe by himself, according to the process before the fighter left to try it again. (To be continued......)