During the Battle of Tarawa, U.S. forces in the Southwest Pacific continued Operation Searchlight while following the intentions of Admiral Hasburn-Kimmel.

After the 5th Marine Regiment easily went ashore, it gained a foothold, found favorable terrain and formed a defensive position, which continued to strengthen over the next month.

On 17 February, after careful reconnaissance and escorted by several destroyers, 13 destroyer transports (APDs) of the L High-Speed Transport Group transported the Army's 39th Regimental Combat Team from New Caledonia to Kuah Island at an average speed of 21 knots.

Its speed was so fast that the few Ming submarines squatting in the nearby waters did not achieve any results, and all of them failed.

The officers and men of the army on board suffered a great crime because of this, and many of them vomited in the dark because of seasickness, and could not even stand on their feet when they came ashore.

Three days later, the Army's 120th Tank Battalion and engineering vehicles also arrived relatively smoothly.

However, this time the Ming army was more heavily guarded, and the US high-speed transport group was blown up and sunk an APD by bombers of the Ming Air Force on the way, losing several M2A4 light tanks and D4 bulldozers.

So far, the U.S. military has deployed more than 7,000 troops to Kuah Island and has hoarded a considerable amount of supplies.

They then began to build the airfield in the chosen place, and since there was no fighting, the soldiers could serve as laborers, and with the assistance of a number of engineering vehicles, the construction of the airfield proceeded quite quickly, almost every day.

During this period, the Second Light Bombardment Detachment of the Daming Air Force stationed in Rabaul visited every day and never interrupted the air raids, but the results were not obvious, and the staff officers estimated that this airfield would be put into use in 10 days to half a month.

This efficiency is nothing, because the U.S. military has not yet applied the time-saving and labor-saving Marston mat - that is, the prefabricated runway.

After noticing the perforated steel plate prefabricated runway used by the Ming army, the American company Carnegie Steel also designed the same thing.

The perforated steel plate, which is shaped as an M8 prefabricated runway element, has been tested and is about to be mass-produced.

Originally, the Ming army let Kuah Island go in order to avoid being disrupted, and it was useless to trap thousands of people on the island.

But now they're building airports, and the threat is growing.

Once the airfield is completed and put into use, Rabaul, Moresby, and Cairns will all be within the combat radius of US bombers.

In fact, these changes were expected by the General Staff Office of the Metropolitan Governor's Office, which was divided into two situations at that time, one was that the US troops did nothing and retreated to Kuah Island, and the other was that they tried to build an airfield as a counteroffensive fulcrum.

Several senior staff members of the General Staff Office unhurriedly devised a contingency plan to deal with the second scenario.

"Where? I'll see if I can just apply it. Zhou Changfeng scanned the labels of the files in front of the wide cabinets.

"See that column on the 28th?" Luo Fu replied as he poured himself tea.

It was too inconvenient to put a plaster on his left hand, and Zhou Changfeng, who had temporarily become a one-armed general, fiddled with it several times, and finally opened the waterproof kraft paper document bag.

Organize a detachment fleet consisting of 1 combat patrol as the flagship, 1 heavy cruiser, 2~3 light cruisers, 6~7 destroyers and several auxiliary ships to block the Solomon Sea and repel the possible arrival of the US TF-27 task force.

The landing force consisted of a mixed regiment - the 113th Regiment of the 38th Division, plus the 1st and 2nd Battalions of the 38th Artillery Regiment of the Division. The landing site is at Cape Esparnes in the northwest of Kuah Island, and the landing force will annihilate the American forces entrenched on Kuah Island with the fire support of the naval detachment.

The idea of this plan has no bright spots, it is decent, and it is very much in line with the style of those old-fashioned senior staff members of the General Staff Office.

However, after all, this is a plan formulated last month, and it has not yet been updated, and the plan cannot keep up with the changes.

Judging from the current situation, a mixed army regiment alone is not enough to deal with the US army, which has received a second reinforcement.

In addition, since the Battle of Keynes and the Battle of Johnstone caused the three infantry divisions involved in the battle to suffer heavy losses and urgently need to be repaired, the 38th Division was about to be transferred to Cairns to change its defense, and it was impossible to transfer its troops to Kuah Island.

In this way, the most suitable unit would be the 1st Marine Brigade, which was resting in Moresby.

"Zhou Kexing, your luck is too much, and there are really no soldiers around." Luo Fu, who had a helpless look on his face, looked at Zhou Changfeng and enumerated: "The 38th Division is going to Cairns, the 4th Division is still waiting in Java, and the 27th Division still has a batch of soldiers who have not been replenished...... The closest field unit to Kuah Island is the 1st Marine Brigade. ”

To tell the truth, Luo Fu felt that Zhou had been fighting overseas for most of the year, and he was really trying his best, and he could be called a model worker among the senior generals of the Ming Dynasty.

Zhou Changfeng didn't feel that he worked too hard, but he was a little sorry for not seeing his wife and daughter for a long time.

He put the plan file back and closed the cabinet door, "It's a coincidence, I was going to rest until February." ”

"So what to do? Are you going? Earlier or later? Luo Fu asked three questions in a row.

"Or else?" Zhou Changfeng yawned, "But don't worry, the Americans have been digging a pit for a month, and they will definitely suffer in a hurry, so prepare well." ”

Although the current situation on Kuah Island is very different from the history, and the overall situation is completely different, considering that this place has caused the Japanese to suffer a lot in its original plane, Zhou Changfeng feels that it is better to be cautious.

I hope everything goes well, and strive to eat this unscrupulous US military neatly!

In the afternoon, he called the Governor's Office.

Cheng Han was not surprised to learn that someone Zhou took the initiative to ask for help.

He said on the other end of the phone: "I was just betting with people that you kid would call today or wait until tomorrow, and I won." ”

"Huh? I can only say that I understand me too well. ”

After saying that, both of them laughed.

Cheng Han fiddled with a square personal seal and elaborated quickly:

"Alright, let's get down to business."

"According to aerial reconnaissance photos, the runway built by the Americans is more typical, about 3,000 feet long and 200 feet wide, which can be used for destroyers and light bombers to take off and land."

"After the completion of the airport, it can take off and land bombers, with a total capacity of about 80 aircraft, and it is suspected that an inclined auxiliary runway is under construction, which is not a small threat, and it should be seized as soon as possible."

Zhou Changfeng bluntly vetoed: "Senior, I've read the strategic plan last month, won't the Navy send aircraft carriers to support?" In that case, you can't be in such a hurry. ”

"Aircraft carriers? It doesn't hurt if the Navy wants to. ”

"Rabaul is 2,000 miles away from Kuah Island, and it is not within the combat radius of our fighters, so it will be difficult to fight without air supremacy."

"Did you say that the landing was not easy or that there would be a follow-up engagement?"

"The actual operation did not have much impact, mainly because of the difficulty of landing, and how to ensure supplies after that was also a difficult problem."

Cheng Han hesitated for a few seconds and asked: "Is it feasible for the Air Force to claim that it can bomb enemy airfields to temporarily paralyze them?" ”

"Nope." Zhou Changfeng still decisively refused, "The bomber will be intercepted, and the air force can't issue a military order, so I definitely won't take the risk." ”

The distance of a thousand kilometers already exceeded the combat radius of the Type 36 fighters and could not provide escort for bombers.

This means that the bomber formation of the Air Force can only bomb the Kuah Island airfield alone, and it will definitely suffer heavy losses.

Heavy bombers like fire hedgehogs are still in groups and have countless battle losses, and light bombers can not be counted on at all.

Even if a few bombers successfully dropped bombs, they would not be able to paralyze the entire airfield, and the bulldozers would be able to resume operations as soon as they filled the craters.

In Zhou's view, the promise of the Ming Air Force was extremely irresponsible, because when the time came, all the air supremacy would be in the hands of the enemy, and all of its supplies would be blown up on the beach by US planes.

Then Cheng Han asked a colonel of the Air Force Department, who was reporting there, to take the phone.

"I think Sir Zhou, you are too worried, we are also testing new methods to deal with the airport, like some timing bombs, decoy bombs, and can also be mixed with some mines......"

"Do you think this works? Can you guarantee that an unescorted bomber will be able to bomb someone's airfield? You don't know what the consequences will be, the supplies transported by the transport ship are piled up on the beachhead, and all of them will be blown up! ”

"Uh...... Commander Zhou, it's okay to supply your subordinates by airdropping, about 80 to 100 metric tons per day. ”

Hiss!

Guaranteed airdrop supplies? Why does this sound familiar?

Zhou Changfeng didn't want to talk anymore, so he asked him to return the phone to Cheng Han, and then said that he had to think about it again.

After hanging up the phone, he complained a few words that the Daming Air Force was unreliable, and then made another call to the Navy.

"Hello? Oh, it's Zhou Zhizhao, please wait a moment, Xia Jinbo has just woken up and is still washing. ”

"Okay, then don't hang it yet."

Song Zhongkai returned to the capital overnight, and as the leader of the navy, he was busy until the early hours of the morning when he returned to the navy, and then slept until the afternoon.

After understanding Zhou's thoughts and the previous situation, Song Zhongkai said disdainfully: "You don't have to worry about this, Cheng Han quarreled with me last time, and he was embarrassed to speak, and then you don't care about the Air Force gang, what you say is better than singing." ”

He pondered for a few seconds and muttered, "The Heavenly City Right Wall will be repaired and undocked immediately, and transferred to support Solomon's side." ”

"Thank you Xia Jinbo!" The stone in Zhou Changfeng's heart fell to the ground suddenly, and he said lightly: "I was just thinking, if there is really no aircraft carrier to help, then how to fight this battle." ”

"It's serious, it's better to be cautious in military affairs, and don't hide your silence if you have difficulties."

"Yes."

It turns out that being under the naval system is still beneficial.

A few minutes ago, Zhou Changfeng was still brainstorming how to replenish and fight in the absence of air supremacy, but it turned out to be too much to worry about.

The Amagichi Ugaki had been repairing for several months after being wounded by the kamikaze in the Battle of Darwin, and was now finally able to return to the battlefield.

With the support of your own aircraft carriers, half of the battle has already been won.

Zhou Changfeng, who was in a good mood, returned home, and the joy between his eyebrows made Xia Xiaoshi a little curious.

She looked him up and down, blessed slightly, and asked with a smile, "Is there any good news today?" So happy. ”

The latter replied casually: "Do you remember what I told you before?" It was the Americans who secretly transported a force to Guadalcanal, and now they are almost repairing the airfield, they can no longer delay, and they are ready to kill them in one go. ”

Xia Xiaoshi didn't ask, but complained a little lonely: "Then sir, aren't you going to leave again......"

"No, let's talk less about ten days and half a month."

"Oh, that'...... Zhou Kexing, let's go to the movies tonight. ”

"Watching a movie?"

"Yes, I asked Lin Xi to buy the ticket." Xia Xiaoshi held Zhou Changfeng's right hand and said softly: ""Longzhong Pair", it was only released a few days ago, let's go, Mr. Go, we haven't been to the movies together for a long time." ”

"For a long time? Are you sure? The latter smiled dumbly and squinted at her, "So what did we go to see last month?" ”

After being accustomed to flirting and scolding, Zhou Changfeng, who wanted to stay at home, was still no match for his wife, so he accompanied her to the cinema in the evening of twilight.

"Longzhong Pair" is very familiar to the Chinese, from "Three Kingdoms - Zhuge Liang Biography", which is about Liu Bei's conversation when he visited Zhuge Liang in the thatched house.

The theme of the Three Kingdoms has always been relatively hot and has a large audience, and this huge movie has been carefully filmed for many years, and it has been called for a long time.

However, the reviews of this movie are seriously polarized, and Zhou Changfeng feels that it is not very good, because the time span told in the movie is too large, from Liu Bei's troops to Zhuge Liang's Northern Expedition, a total of more than 30 years apart, which leads to the plot jumping hastily and sparsely.

When he saw the last half an hour, Zhou Changfeng, who was engrossed, suddenly found that Xia Xiaoshi beside him had fallen asleep.

This woman is purely here to enjoy the time of watching movies together......

At this moment, a fragment of Zhuge Liang's invention of the wooden ox and flowing horse appeared in the picture.

"Shu is mountainous, rugged and rugged, difficult and difficult, it is not easy for ordinary chariots and horses to transport grain, nine years after Jianxing, Zhuge Liang came back to Qishan, and supplied the Northern ......Expedition with Muliu cattle and horses."

Divergent thinking played a wonderful role at this moment, and the circumference wind could be described as a flash of inspiration, instantly reminiscent of the sky-high price of the trolleys of later Americans.

The Americans found that in jungles, hills, and other complex terrains, it was difficult for standard transport vehicles to pass through, and ammunition, food, and equipment could only be carried by soldiers, which greatly affected combat efficiency.

To this end, the Americans spent $800 million to develop the Force-Enhanced Silent Tactical Trolley (STEED), which was purchased for "only" $170,000 each.

The trolley weighs 86kg, while the same quality of silver costs $63,000.

[Picture]

Interestingly, Zhou Changfeng believes that this kind of trolley with auxiliary power is exactly suitable for the combat environment of today's Ming army.

At present, the off-road ability of conventional trucks is low, the transportation efficiency in complex terrain is not good, and the Ming army is far from being able to equip a large number of half-track vehicles like the US army.

On the whole, this kind of power trolley is quite suitable for the national conditions of the Ming Dynasty, and it would be nice if a cheap similar thing could be developed.

Zhou Changfeng didn't have the heart to watch the rest of the film, and he spent the next half hour thinking about how to piece together a power trolley that was convenient for mass production under the existing technical conditions.

The electric motor is not considered, the battery life of the brush motor and lead-acid battery is too low.

When it comes to choosing between internal combustion engines, gasoline engines are more modest, and the torque of small gasoline engines may not be considerable enough to pull heavy objects.

So, the rest of the choice becomes...... Horizontal bar diesel.

The torque is unknown, but it is strong when it is strong!

Chapter pushes a book, interested book friends can take a look.

(End of chapter)