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High-tech Warlord Volume 1 (Seven Hundred and Thirty-Seven) Recapture the Philippines

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    Wu Qianlong wanted to hit the Japanese at an unexpected place and catch them by surprise.  Manila was bombed.  On the long-repaired island of Cavite and on the island of Corregidor, where old wounds were covered with new vegetation, tons of bombs ignited fire and opened up the scorched earth.  Nearby bases and ports were razed to the ground by bombing and strafing from aircraft.  The task force then rushed north and attacked the Japanese island of Okinawa.  Then, they turned around and attacked Luzon Island southward. The results were quite shocking. The Japanese army was attacked repeatedly and found it difficult to resist.  The situation took a turn for the worse, and the Chinese army was in dire straits.

    The cliffs on the Philippine coast are extremely steep and precipitous. The Chinese pilots saw the cliffs towering in the sky at a glance. At the same time, they also spotted a large number of Japanese aircraft appearing in the sky.  The Japanese army invested more than 1,000 aircraft, but more than 800 were shot down by the Chinese army.  26 Japanese warships were sunk.  The Chinese army lost 129 aircraft.  The radar detected the Japanese aircraft fleet at a distance with an increasingly keen eye.  The largest air battles occurred far from the fleet.  These ships were attacked only by the bravest and luckiest Japanese aircraft.  The two Chinese cruisers suffered serious damage and were forced to tow forward.  Wu Qianlong left a squadron to cover the retreat of the injured ships, and he led the main force of the task force to rush towards the Philippines again.  The next day, Japanese radio announced to the world that China's Pacific Fleet had been destroyed and almost entirely wiped out.  Some naive Japanese pilots mistakenly regarded the two damaged cruisers and the Chinese squadron remaining behind as "remnants of the Chinese fleet."  These Japanese pilots' reports were the source of the Japanese's big mistake.  The Japanese propaganda machine, bent on reporting good news, hastily adopted this unverified report.  The Japanese cabinet held a grand ceremony to congratulate the Emperor, the source of all Japan's victories.  But 48 hours later, the truth came out.  The madmen who tarnished the reputation of the highest authority were censured.  An investigation to establish responsibility began.  The most obvious result of this stupid thing is that the Japanese military decided to dispatch the fleet at any cost to save face and try to win this prematurely announced victory.

    Wu Qianlong¡¯s fleet is huge, with a length of 80 kilometers and a width of 20 kilometers during normal navigation at sea.  This fleet will cooperate with the fleet commanded by Rear Admiral Jin Yuqi to conquer the Philippine Islands.  The Jin Yuqi fleet includes 8 battleships, 5 heavy cruisers, 6 light cruisers, 18 escort aircraft carriers, 86 destroyers, 225 frigates and 21 fast frigates.  The exact mission of this fleet is to cover the landing of the Chinese Army on the coast of Leyte Gulf.  Wu Qianlong's fleet is responsible for supporting and covering Jin Yuqi's fleet, destroying all Japanese fleets that threaten the Philippines, and destroying all Japanese fleets encountered or discovered midway.  On February 17, Wu Qianlong called Shen Honglie to complain that his top priority¡ªcovering the Jin Yuqi fleet¡ªdid not allow him full freedom of action.  Shen Honglie replied: Military orders are like mountains and cannot be changed.  Excuting an order.  Protect the Jin Yuqi fleet.

    On February 20, the Chinese army landed on the coast of Leyte Gulf with ease.  Only one infantry landing craft was destroyed.  Thousands of ships gathered in Leyte Gulf, and the scene was extremely impressive. If it weren't for the burning fire and smoke rising on the coast, it would have looked like a large-scale migration of immigrants.  There are still Japanese mortars firing sporadically on the island.  Five hours after the first landing assault echelon landed on the island, Army General Wang Chaoyong and MacArthur set foot on the beach of Tacloban Island.  MacArthur immediately came to the loudspeaker microphone set up by the Chinese communications troops on the beach and said: "This is the Voice of Liberty Radio. General MacArthur is speaking to you. Filipino citizens. My Chinese comrades and I are back. Almighty  With the blessing of God, our troops have once again set foot on the Philippine soil watered with the blood of the people of our three countries. Please come closer to me! The indomitable spirit of Bataan and Corregidor inspires us to move forward! We are fearless. We are as strong as  Steel! God leads us and shows us the way Let us listen to God's call and move toward victory together!" At this time, Chinese planes were still bombing all around.  On the evening of the second day of the attack, 157,000 Chinese troops had landed on Philippine soil.  The Chinese army lost a total of 227 people in the landing battle.

    At dawn on the third day of the attack, that is, February 22, Rear Admiral Jin Yuqi received a telegram from the submarine "Seagull".  At that time, the "Seagull" and the "Puffin" submarine were on guard at the mouth of the Palawan Strait in the western Philippines.  "Seagull" reported: 3 Japanese cruisers discovered.  Late at night on the 22nd, the "Seagull" and the "Puffin" sent a second telegram: a group of several large warships.  A fleet of probably battleships was approaching the strait from the southwest.

    Late at night on February 23, a Japanese warship appeared at the mouth of the Palawan Strait. After the two Chinese submarines reported the situation, they maintained contact with each other.  It was dark at night, and two submarines were floating on the water a few meters apart, monitoring the Japanese movements in front of the Japanese fleet.  The two captains spoke to each other on their respective bridges.  Discuss plan of attack.  Before dawn, two submarines launched toward the Japanese.  The two captains looked down at the radar screen and saw that the target was getting bigger and bigger. The large Japanese warship was flying behind the small warship.The guards sailed in two columns.  5:32.  The "Seagull" fired 6 torpedoes from the forward torpedo tube; then turned around and fired 4 more torpedoes from the rear.  The first six torpedoes immediately hit the lead ship of the Japanese fleet.  The Japanese warship was facing the periscope; smoke was everywhere, flames were rising into the sky, and the bow of the ship sank into the sea first.  At the same time, the second Japanese warship also shook with the explosion of the last four torpedoes of the "Seagull".  This was no longer a place to stay for a long time, so the "Seagull" dived deeply into the seabed.  In this way, the "Seagull" sank the heavy cruiser "Asama" in one fell swoop and severely damaged the heavy cruiser "Jiban".  A few minutes later, the "Puffin" attacks were successful one after another, sinking the heavy cruiser "Fukuoka".  The two submarines stayed silent in the deep water for a long time. They could only hear the torpedo boat's propeller making a slight noise overhead, and the depth bombs exploded causing the sea water to churn up and down.  The two submarines were safe and sound.  The "Asama" sunk by the "Seagull" was the flagship of the Japanese fleet coming from Singapore; the fleet commander, Admiral Kurita, and several Japanese sailors who fell into the water were rescued and boarded a destroyer.  Most of the crew died at sea, especially half of the people in the communications department of the staff.  This loss hampered the speed with which cryptographic telegrams could be compiled.  This also affects the outcome of the battle.

    During the day on the 23rd, the Wu Qianlong fleet met the oil tanker fleet in the Philippine waters about 280 nautical miles northeast of Samar Island.  The huge fuel tanks of each aircraft carrier are fully filled with fuel.  This fleet roughly includes 12 aircraft carriers, 6 fast battleships, 10 cruisers and 50 destroyers.  This fleet can deal with the incoming enemy calmly, because the landing on Leyte Island was covered by Jin Yuqi's fleet.  In addition, a task force of five aircraft carriers commanded by Major General Yang Chengwu has left the Philippines and is heading to the Ulithi Island base, where all personnel will take a break.  This situation may be unexpected on the eve of a major war.  The reason is that Zhang Qifan, commander of the aircraft carrier fleet with an overall mind, discovered in mid-January that the fleet officers and soldiers were mentally exhausted: "For three hundred days, my 10,000 sailors have not left their decks. There is no fleet like them.  It's been a long time." So he decided to let the warships take turns to rest.  When he learned that the Japanese fleet was approaching, Yang Chengwu's task force had already set sail for Ulithi Island.  They are so far apart that it would be useless to recruit them back.  Say it again.  There is nothing worrying about the strength of our enemies or ourselves.  After the fleet was refueled, Wu Qianlong immediately ordered the ship to return to the Philippines.  Wu Qianlong's fleet was divided into three task force squadrons.  The formation was completed in the early morning of the 24th, and the three task forces formed a long snake formation of more than 200 nautical miles, meandering towards the west.  The air wing fanned out and searched the sky.  Visibility is excellent.  Looking down from the sky, you can see the turquoise sea water, the vast mist, and the tropical islands shining like crystal gems.  At 7:46, a pilot of the "Longxing" aircraft carrier was flying above 3,000.  Minutes later a Japanese fleet was detected on aircraft radar.  It can also be seen with the naked eye.  This fleet was the Japanese fleet attacked by the submarines "Seagull" and "Puffin", including 5 battleships, 8 heavy cruisers, two light cruisers, and 13 destroyers, two of which cost 160,000  tons of "Yamato" and "Musashi".  It is estimated that if the Japanese fleet commanded by Admiral Kurita does not stop for a moment, it will reach the waters of Leyte Island in the early morning of the 25th.  The Japanese navy has laid mines in various bays and straits, and is heavily guarded, waiting to work.  Wu Qianlong did not want to cross these straits to meet Kurita's fleet.  Furthermore, according to the Intelligence Service report.  Admiral Ozawa leads another Japanese fleet including aircraft carriers that has sailed away from the Japanese mainland and is likely to fight from the north of the Philippines. For these two reasons, Wu Qianlong is even more unwilling to fight in the inland straits.  He determined to intercept Kurita's fleet with a large-scale air attack.  In short, Wu Qianlong learned from the east of the Philippines that the Kurita fleet had inserted into the inland sea from the west of the Philippines, so he immediately sent planes for bombing.  at the same time.  Wu Qianlong telegraphed Yang Chengwu, who was going to Ulithi Island to rest, and asked him to lead the task force back to join the war.

    During the day on the 24th, aircraft of the Wu Qianlong Fleet attacked the Kurita Fleet several times; aircraft of the USS Regulus discovered a second Japanese fleet sailing toward Leyte Gulf in the Philippine Inland Sea south of the Kurita Fleet.  and immediately launched an attack.  Finally, the Chinese aircraft carrier was attacked by Japanese aircraft, and it was discovered that some of the aircraft were carrier-based aircraft. Wu Qianlong learned from this that the third Japanese fleet heading south, namely Ozawa's fleet, had arrived.

    Chinese planes launched an attack. In the vast sky, not a single Japanese plane escorting the Kurita fleet could be seen.  However, the Japanese fleet's artillery fire was extremely fierce and dense as a net.  In addition to cannons, each ship is also equipped with 25 mm machine guns. Each Japanese battleship has 120 of these machine guns, each cruiser has 90, and each destroyer has 40.  Under this canopy of artillery fire, the Kurita fleet advanced towards Leyte Gulf.  The first attack by Chinese military aircraft did not break through the fire network in the air, and the effect of the air strike and bombing could not be observed.  The second attack improved slightly, hitting a large battleship and otherof some warships.  The third attack echelon consisted of 80 fighters, 52 torpedo planes and 62 dive bombers.  After the attack, one of the two Yamato-class battleships slowed down and caught fire.  Kurita's fleet turned westward, fought and retreated.  The last assault echelon flew over the target at 16:00, and the Japanese were still withdrawing westward.

    A Japanese fleet in the south was discovered and attacked by a flying squadron of the "Xuanyuan".  This is the fleet commanded by Admiral Nishimura, including two battleships.  Two heavy cruisers and 4 destroyers.  Its mission is the same as that of the first fleet from Singapore, which is to pin down the Chinese fleet.  After being attacked by the Chinese fleet, the Japanese fleet suffered little losses and continued to sail forward.  Japanese planes taking off from land launched their first air strike at about 8 o'clock, which lasted for one hour. Its main target was Wu Qianlong's northernmost squadron.  There are about 10 Japanese aircraft.  However, due to timely discovery, most of the Japanese planes were intercepted far away from the aircraft carrier.  While the battle was going on, the aircraft carrier was hidden in the vast low clouds and curtains of rain and fog, only leaving slightly when planes were taking off and landing.  but.  The "Kangding" light aircraft carrier finally suffered a bomb.

    Around 13:00, Japanese aircraft launched a second attack on the squadron.  This time the Chinese fighter jets did not intercept the Japanese plane, so the battle started over and around the aircraft carrier.  As a result, several aircraft carriers suffered no serious losses.  Many of the Japanese "aircraft carrier" carrier-based aircraft were discovered during this second engagement.  During these two battles, approximately 200 Japanese aircraft were shot down, and the squadron lost 42 aircraft.

    At about 9 o'clock, the bomb that fell on the "Kangding" light aircraft carrier penetrated the flight deck and exploded on the middle deck of the hangar, blowing up the fuel tanks of the six torpedo planes parked there.  There were also torpedoes hung under the wings.  The security team rushed into the thick smoke, only to hear the squeaking of fire extinguishers.  Generally speaking.  A fire like this should be "contained" quickly.  The captain of the "Kangding" fully thought he could keep his job.  But sometimes, fire is like a stubborn enemy that refuses to surrender, scurrying around and spreading everywhere.  The fire on the "Kangding" was like this. After the fire was extinguished on the middle deck, it spread to other places in a cunning manner. The crew had no choice but to push the aircraft parked on the flight deck into the sea.  "Kangding" withdrew from the fleet.  At 10:02, a dull explosion sounded inside the ship.  The flight deck was blown in half, and the rear lift platform was thrown into the sky along with many sailors.  The aircraft carrier was stranded at sea, unable to move. A 300-meter-high column of fire and smoke shot up from the ship, and destroyers came to the rescue.  This almost forgotten scene appeared again in front of the officers and soldiers of other warships.  At 10:50, the captain of the "Kangding" ordered the evacuation of the wounded.  The destroyer "Tiankuixing" has been docked at the front of "Kangding", and the waves lifted the destroyer.  He threw it on the aircraft carrier and smashed the "Tiankuixing" ship building.  After the wounded were finally evacuated, the destroyer "Tiankuixing" walked away.  Then three more destroyers came over and sprayed water on the "Kangding" with water hoses like a real fire brigade.  The fire slowly died down.  The other ships of the task force moved away. The cruiser "Nantong" approached the "Kangding" and sprayed water with 14 high-pressure water hoses.  The sea was churning, the waves were surging, and with the waves, the sound of the two ships colliding with each other was heard from time to time. The two 120mm cannons on the cruiser were knocked off the turret like small toys, and the front side of the aircraft carrier  A fire broke out, and the "Nantong" had to turn around and leave the aircraft carrier.  After the explosion, the "Kangding" was still floating on the sea and was sunk by the destroyer with two torpedoes.  A total of 112 people were killed or missing on the aircraft carrier and 127 were injured.

    The Ozawa fleet was discovered by Chinese reconnaissance aircraft in the evening.  After hearing the pilot's report, Zhang Qifan immediately informed Wu Qianlong; the fleet seemed to include 4 battleships or heavy cruisers, two aircraft carriers, 1 light aircraft carrier, 8 cruisers and 9 destroyers.

    Sixteen minutes after the order was issued, Wu Qianlong received a telegram from a reconnaissance plane: the Kurita fleet was discovered between Bureas Island and Masbate Island.  The staff turned back and looked at the map. Instead of retreating, the Japanese fleet sailed towards the San Bernardino Strait at a speed of 24 knots.  This news may not be credible. It is impossible for the warships of the Kurita fleet to be damaged to this extent and move forward at such a fast speed.  Information is unreliable and should not be trusted.  However, Wu Qianlong still sent a telegram to Jin Yuqi just in case.

    Wu Qianlong fleet is heading north.  At 23:04, another telegram was received from the reconnaissance plane. The reconnaissance plane discovered that the Kurita fleet was still advancing.  However, the message was interrupted and the name of the reported sea area was unclear.

    An hour later, the pilot returned to the ship and completed the telegram and further confirmed it.  Several battleships of the Kurita fleet filed forward, and one of them trailed a trail of oil behind it.  The fleet is now only 40 nautical miles away from the mouth of the San Bernardino Strait.  Wu Qianlong's first task is to conceal Jin Yuqi's fleet.

    Jin Yu QizhunPrepare to block the Nishimura fleet coming from the south.  He estimated that this encounter would be a night battle, so he made corresponding tactical preparations.  That is, the escort aircraft carrier should stay on the coast of Leyte Island, while the rest of the fleet moves forward, and will launch an attack as soon as the Japanese enter the Surigao Strait.

    PS: I hope someone will establish a sect that cannot eat chopped green onions, just like Islam, which cannot eat pork.  In the future, when I am asked why I picked out the green onions, I will be able to answer with dignity and coolness, "Because of religion."

    Asking for a monthly ticket!

    (.)s
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