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High-Tech Warlord Volume 1 (735) The End of the Crossbow

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    This was a one-tenth of a second time bomb because it penetrated two decks before exploding, killing 32 people and damaging the third deck.  The rescue team and security team arrived immediately.  The bulkhead of the middle cabin was burnt black and could be broken like paper. There was a ball of black smoke in the middle, and nothing else could be seen. Several people were lying in the fire.  In the middle cabin, the passengers could only hear the roar of anti-aircraft guns and the roar of dive bombers above.  The fire brigade held the hose to extinguish the fire, and the water jets squeaked on the deck, creating clouds of steam.

    A few minutes later, another bomb hit the "Dragon King".  I saw the starboard corner of the stern lift platform blazing with flames and a dazzling red light.  Of the 60 sailors nearby, 38 were killed on the spot.  The ones closest to them were blown into pieces, and those a little further away were burned to the ground. They were frozen in place like wood carvings and clay sculptures, and the clothes on their bodies had long since disappeared.  A gunner sitting in the aiming position leaned forward slightly, leaving his aiming posture. His hand was still on the artillery pointed at low altitude. It could be seen that he was following a diving aircraft.  Japanese machine.  A gunner next to him raised his blackened hands, as if he was struggling to move the shells.  Around the explosion site, the deck burned pink.

    The third bomb lifted a steel plate on the flight deck, and the deck suddenly burst into flames.  Immediately afterwards, another bomb hit the side of the ship and fell into the sea, causing a jet of rushing water.  The water column fell on the crack in the deck and extinguished most of the fire on the deck.  After a while, people who were busy putting out the fire on the deck discovered that the anti-aircraft guns stopped firing. It turned out that there was no plane in the sky.

    This attack lasted a total of 4 minutes. 74 people on the "Dragon King" were killed and 95 injured, 4 of whom were in critical condition.  An hour later, the fire on the ship was extinguished, and the fire in some places was also controlled. The aircraft carrier was traveling at a speed of 24 knots.  Fu Renxuan ordered the "Dragon King" to go to the port of Noumea for ship repairs.  As a result, one cruiser and four destroyers escorted the "Dragon King" back home.

    Regarding other air combat situations on August 24, the information is confusing and the situation is unclear.  Japanese aircraft taking off from the Japanese aircraft carrier "Ryujo" to attack Truk Airport were repelled by Chinese fighter jets stationed on the Truk Islands.  Most of the Japanese planes were shot down.  A group of dive bombers taking off from the airport attacked the Japanese fleet on the morning of the 24th and 25th.  The Chinese Army's "Yaokai" tactical attack aircraft from Espiritu Santo also participated in the two attacks.  In short, in addition to the "Ryujo" aircraft carrier, the Japanese army also lost 3 transport ships, and 4 cruisers were severely damaged.  The Japanese fleet then gave up its attack attempt and turned around and returned.

    Another Japanese fleet is approaching the Truk Islands. This fleet includes 4 battleships, 3 aircraft carriers and more than 40 heavy cruisers, light cruisers, destroyers, transport ships and other ships.

    China has a whole set of exquisite and skillful ship repair methods.  Before the damaged ship entered port, experts immediately formulated a general work plan once they identified the main damage parts.  After this battle, as soon as the "Dragon King" arrived at the port of Noumea, various teams of workers immediately launched a surprise repair. The tense and busy scene was exactly the same as the repair of the "Cai Feng" aircraft carrier.

    The "Dragon King" task force left Noumea on October 16.  Usually, the ship repair engineers and workers are busy until the ship sets sail, but this time they left the port with the "Dragon King".  The sound of steam hammers never stopped during the entire voyage from Noumea to Truk Islands.  It wasn't until the rumble of cannons sounded that the sound of steam hammers stopped.  Qianhuo's entry, in addition to the repair team of the "Dragon King", there are 59 officers and soldiers on the "Magpie" maintenance ship and a "construction battalion", which is a maritime engineering unit, often called "maritime worker bees".

    On the morning of the 13th, the repair work was not over yet, especially the front deck lifting platform was not functioning properly.  At 11 o'clock, Jin Yuqi received a telegram from Wu Qianlong: "Go north quickly to intercept the enemy bombers that may be invading." Jin Yuqi followed the order. On October 16, after everything was ready, the "Dragon King" resumed its captaincy.  Under the command of Captain Ha Hongbo, the flag of Rear Admiral Jin Yuqi was hoisted, and it was escorted by the battleship "", two cruisers, and eight destroyers.  The "Dragon King" was ordered to sail at full speed to the South Pacific, where the "Xingkai Lake" was already cruising under the escort of 4 cruisers and 6 destroyers.  The two fleets met in the northeastern sea of ??the New Hebrides Islands at noon on October 24 to form the "Golden" Task Force, commanded by Jin Yuqi.  The new course of the "King" Task Force is: bypassing the Santa Cruz Islands from the north, and then sailing to San Cristobal Island, the southernmost tip of the Solomon Islands.  The reason for this was that Shen Honglie already had exact information about the location of the Japanese fleet.

    In the afternoon of the 16th, the telex on the bridge of the "Dragon King" transmitted a piece of aircraft reconnaissance intelligence forwarded by the Pacific Fleet Command: "Two enemy battleships were discovered six hundred nautical miles northwest of the 'Kim' Task Force.  , four cruisers, and seven destroyers." In less than an hour??, the Pacific Fleet Command forwarded another piece of aircraft reconnaissance information: "Two Japanese aircraft carriers with frigates, bearing: 08°51′ north latitude, 164°30′ east longitude, course: 145° southeast; speed: 2  Fifteen knots." Judging from this information, the Japanese fleet was less than 360 nautical miles away from the task force.  Jin Yuqi immediately sent the first team of planes to search and attack, but no targets were found.  The Japanese aircraft carrier has changed course.  However, Chinese Army reconnaissance aircraft kept tracking until they learned that Japan had changed course and headed towards the Truk Islands.  However, regardless of Japan's intention to enter, at least for now it can be inferred that the two armies will exchange fire no later than the next morning.  That night, the mood on the Chinese aircraft carrier was very high.  Lieutenant Colonel Yu Luoke, the aviation commander on the "Dragon King", summoned the pilots to the restaurant for a lecture.  He first briefly talked about the battle situation in the Truk Islands, and then introduced the formation of the Japanese fleet.  He then said: "However, you now have excellent aircraft, which are solid and better than all modern aircraft. You have also received the best training and are familiar with the new tactics of air combat." Finally, he conducted a routine test on the pilots.  Encouragement.  After he finished speaking, the pilots dispersed to rest.

    The battle started on the morning of October 16th.  At 4:30, the pilots had breakfast. The aroma of coffee, fried eggs and Chinese cigarettes wafted from the restaurant. The numbers and notes written by Yu Luoke during the midnight meeting were still on the blackboard.  Most of the pilots seemed a little sleepy.  At 5:05, it was completely invisible on the flight deck, and it was still as dark as midnight.  The voice of the flight commander Jin Yao was particularly melodious, and he seemed to be better than the announcer. He held the microphone and said: "Please leave the propellerstart the engine." After the order is issued, it usually takes a few seconds to be heard.  The roar of the engine, because aircraft do not have a starting device like a car, and if a starter is installed, it would be too bulky.  There is an electric igniter in a special ignition device installed under the engine.  The engine sputtered a few times before starting.  The exhaust pipe then erupted into flames.  If you have never seen it, it is difficult to imagine how pure and transparent this blue flame is.  The first planes took off.

    Soon, dawn broke.  The slightly white sky sets off the outline of the "ship island".  Then, the silhouette of the frigate also appeared on the sea.  The battleship "" was sailing not far to the left of the "Dragon King". There were no portholes on its hull and the ship building was very low. It looked like a big black pike.  In the blink of an eye it was bright.  On the deck of the "Dragon King", planes were still taking off one after another.  On the bridge, Admiral Jin Yuqi was wearing a tawny shirt, sitting on a high stool with his head bare, staring at the green sea.  There were a few small fluffy cumulus clouds floating in the sky, and the east side of the clouds was painted with a layer of golden yellow.  A school of flying fish swam merrily past the starboard side of the boat.  The sky became brighter and brighter, and in an instant, a red sun burst out from the eastern horizon.  Looking south, you can vaguely see the escort fleet of the "Xingkai Lake" sailing on the sea 8 nautical miles south of the "Dragon King", with the two squadrons advancing hand in hand.  The last of the early morning patrol aircraft took off.  There was silence on the deck.

    He ordered nine torpedo planes, escorted by 6 fighter planes, to fly to the Truk Islands. On the way to the Truk Islands, this group encountered an injured Japanese battleship discovered by the heavy cruiser "Rehe" in the morning.  The disabled battleship was sailing slowly at a speed of 5 knots, surrounded by 5 destroyers, but there were no escort aircraft on board.  The Japanese ship's anti-aircraft guns opened fire.  The fleet of "Dragon King" also launched an attack.  Three torpedoes hit the Japanese battleship, and the torpedo explosions were clearly visible from the plane.  But the Japanese ship continued to move forward as if it had not been hit at all.  The pilots of the "Dragon King" arrived at the airport and saw the pilots there talking passionately about the enemy battleship.  A group of the most elite pilots from the Navy and Marine Corps gathered on the Truk Islands.  Since morning, the Japanese battleship had been damaged by artillery fire, dive-bombed twice, and torpedoed three times.  But it was still moving smoothly at a speed of 5 knots, seemingly indifferent to all this.  In the afternoon, the pilots of the "Dragon King" came to the sky above the battleship together with other pilots.  This "unwilling to sink battleship" withstood three more dive bombings, three torpedo attacks, plus two strafing runs.  The pilots came back to report that the Japanese battleship's stern had sunk in the water and that the ship was still sailing with only two guns remaining.  Finally there was another torpedo attack. In the evening, the Japanese battleship finally stopped. Fire filled the ship and the entire stern was burned red.  This battleship is the "Hiei".  Its incredible sturdiness can be said to be the glory of the Japanese steel industry and British shipbuilding technology.  It was hit by 86 shells on the 12th, and at least 8 bombs and 12 torpedoes on the 13th.  That night, she bombarded the Truk Islands with her last two guns before sinking.

    Other Japanese battleships were finally discovered on the night of the 14th.  Around 23:00, the radar station on the Truk Islands detected a large warship battleshipOr a heavy cruiser and two cruisers.  At this time, Major General Li Hailong led the battleships "" and "Constitution" and four destroyers. They separated from the "Dragon King" task force on the 13th and were performing separate missions around Savo Island.  The moon was bright in the sky, the north wind was blowing, and the sea seemed particularly quiet.  Just after midnight, the Japanese warships appeared, and the two Chinese battleships opened fire immediately.  This was a hand-to-hand, lightning-fast night artillery battle, and this time both sides were heavy warships.  The USS Constitution and the USS "Constitution" aimed their 406mm heavy guns at the two Japanese ships in front and blasted them. The two Japanese ships sank within a few minutes.  At the same time, the Chinese destroyers also suffered serious losses: one was sunk and three were severely damaged.  The Chinese army was left with only battleships fighting alone.  At this time, another Japanese fleet appeared on the sea eight nautical miles away, led by the battleship "Kirishima".  The Japanese ship may not have found any targets yet and turned on its searchlight to search at sea.  The "Constitution" and the "Constitution" opened fire at the same time.  6 consecutive rounds, a total of 108 heavy artillery shells, were poured on the battleship "Kirishima" at once.  The "Kirishima" sank quickly, but it still made a desperate struggle before sinking and damaged the "" with its main gun.  The remaining Japanese warships fled in panic.

    At dawn on October 15, the battle ended, and Wu Qianlong ordered the task force to return to the base.  In these days of fighting, the Japanese sunk and completely destroyed two battleships, one heavy cruiser, four destroyers, and 12 transport ships; two battleships, two heavy cruisers, and two Japanese transport ships were damaged.  1 light cruiser and 4 destroyers.  Two light cruisers and seven destroyers of the Chinese army were sunk; 1 battleship, 1 heavy cruiser, and 1 light cruiser, p; although the Chinese army suffered serious losses, the Chinese army's positions on the southern islands of the Solomon Islands exempted the Japanese  A serious threat to the navy.  After that, the Japanese army also launched a counterattack in an attempt to send heavy reinforcements. In other words, there was another naval battle, and the cruisers of both sides engaged in a desperate night melee.  The Chinese heavy cruiser "Hubei" was sunk and three other cruisers were damaged.

    After many battles, the Japanese Navy's military power was greatly exhausted.  If we say that from the winter of 1942 to the spring of 1945, the Japanese army went to war with China and the United States at the same time, and it has always been in the active position on the Pacific battlefield.  But by the autumn of 1945, the war entered a completely different stage. In this stage, the Chinese army gradually took the initiative on the battlefield.

    On November 13, part of this fleet was discovered sailing north in the vast sea south of the Philippines in the Tawi-Tawi Islands.  On the 17th, the submarine "Tuna" reported that it had discovered a huge Japanese fleet, which included at least 9 large aircraft carriers, 5 battleships, 16 cruisers, and 32 destroyers.  This shows that Japan is likely to make a desperate move to fight the Chinese fleet to block the Chinese army's advance in the Pacific.  The appearance of Japanese single-engine aircraft over Saipan was expected by the Chinese military staff and all officers and soldiers of the navy.  On the night of the 18th, Task Force 58 sailed westward, with 12 escort aircraft carriers cruising on the sea near Saipan.  Facing the Japanese escort fleet, the Chinese army deployed 7 large aircraft carriers, 8 light aircraft carriers, 7 battleships, 8 heavy cruisers, 13 light cruisers, and 607 destroyers.  At this time, in addition to assisting the British army in defending Australia, Zhang Qifan also had 450 fighter jets, 250 dive bombers, 200 torpedo planes, and 80 reconnaissance aircraft.  The Chinese fleet first headed west, then turned around and sailed east.  For strategic reasons, Fu Renxuan did not want to stay away from the Mariana Islands until Japan was discovered.  In the early morning of the 19th, Task Force Fu Renxuan arrived in the waters about 80 nautical miles west of Guam.

    At dawn, the reconnaissance plane left the deck, and there was silence all around.  On the deck of the "Xuanyuan", the soldiers stared at the dim sky filled with dark clouds.  Under the clouds, you can see a blue highland.  The huge fleet sailed neatly on the sea.

    At 9:40, a familiar whirring sound came from the microphone, and then a steady voice ordered a group of fighter jets to take off without any explanation.  The aircraft carrier turned around to head into the wind and headed east.  The men on the deck began to get busy.  At this time, the microphone rang, ordering the second team of planes to prepare for takeoff.

    No Japanese planes were found in the sky above the aircraft carrier, but China's advanced radar has already spotted Japanese planes in the distance.  The air battle between Chinese fighter jets and these Japanese planes, mostly coming from the west, lasted from 10:10 to 13:10.  The scale of each battle is quite large.  Japanese fleets consisting of 90 to 130 aircraft were intercepted dozens of nautical miles away from their targets, and were beaten to pieces by Chinese aircraft.  Only a few Japanese aircraft successfully approached the Chinese task force, but the bombs they dropped failed to hit their targets, and some only caused negligible damage.  The Japanese pilots did not even get close to the "Xuanyuan".  The Chinese pilots were very surprised that the Japanese pilots attacked so ineffectively.  When reporting on the combat situation, the Chinese pilot said: This battle was "very monotonous."  Over Ritudan Island, thirty-three Chinese "Yaoji" fighter jets fought against 38?Japanese aircraft shot down 35 Japanese aircraft, and the Chinese army only lost one.  In the air battle this morning, 404 of the approximately 500 Japanese aircraft participating in the battle were destroyed.  The Chinese army lost 22 aircraft, of which 9 pilots were rescued after falling.  In the afternoon, all aircraft on the Chinese aircraft carrier were dispatched, but the Japanese fleet had not been found yet.

    ♂♂

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