afterglow

Chapter 672: The Island of Death; Eve
"Your Excellency, do you still believe that the enemy will land in the Mokap area?" Zhao Hanfeng leaned forward slightly and stared at the huge sand table in front of him.

Zhao Hanfeng was also in the car when the attack occurred on Maui, but his injuries were much lighter, so he insisted on handing over command while issuing combat instructions, and only returned to Oahu for treatment two days later.

"It's most likely Mokapu, Haleiwa... The possibility is very small, unless the top leaders of the US military are crazy." Zhou Changfeng said calmly.

He then added: "They are looking for a place where they can attack or defend. Mokapu has a mountain (Ko'olao Ridge) blocking them, so they don't have to face our army's large-scale counterattack. It's very suitable."

Zhu Lishuo said generously, "Don't even think about Haleiwa. If we land there, even if our army only fires back, we can kill thousands of enemies. No matter what, let's fire 20,000 tons of shells first, right?"

"That makes sense." Zhao Hanfeng nodded, "Then... it's basically confirmed to be Mokapu."

Yao Liangchuan still didn't understand, and asked puzzledly: "But there is no way to counterattack in this case. What's the use of occupying it? If you want to attack the main area in the middle of the island, you can only take the narrow roads along the north and south coasts, or the mountain passes in the middle (Nuanu Pali Pass), which are easy to defend but difficult to attack because they are blocked by one man."

Zhou Changfeng, who was playing with a lighter in his hand, smiled slightly and said leisurely: "Because... the US military... has no extravagant hope of taking over the entire island of Oahu."

After a few seconds of silence, Yao Liangchuan stretched out his hand and nodded, "Yes, the war has come to this point, showing force has become the first choice."

"Is Mokap still deploying its defense in depth according to Plan B-2?" Zhao Hanfeng asked as he flipped through several combat plans.

Zhou Changfeng suddenly remembered that the doctor had told him not to smoke unless necessary, so he put the cigarette he had just smoked back.

He hesitated for a moment, then said, "Let's change it. We can also keep the shallow and deep ones as appropriate."

From a military perspective, completely retaking Oahu is simply a fantasy, or extremely costly.

Even if the whole country made an all-out effort, the US military would not have the slightest chance of capturing Oahu within two months. The more than 100,000 fully equipped Ming army ground forces were not just playing around on the island.

What's even more terrible is that they have stockpiled sufficient military supplies, specifically 52.3 tons of ammunition, food, medicine and other provisions, enough to fight continuously for 6 to 7 months at a high intensity.

作为参考，历史上阿登战役期间美军3个集团军和1个航空队全体在27天内消耗了大约49万吨各种物资；为期82天的冲绳岛战役期间美军使用了9.8万吨弹药。

The Battle of Okinawa is a suitable example. Before the war, the Japanese army misjudged the U.S. military's offensive targets and transferred the elite 9th Division and a lot of ammunition to Xiaoliuqiu. Therefore, the U.S. military was actually only dealing with two second-rate divisions with little ammunition, and ultimately still paid a heavy price of more than 80,000 casualties.

This shows how difficult the island-capturing operation is.

Therefore, when George Marshall told the President at a roundtable conference not long ago that even under ideal conditions, the cost of more than 200,000 or even 300,000 casualties to completely capture Oahu was reasonable.

What's more, this is an unrealistic ideal condition for combat - the Ming Navy is like air, non-interference and non-support.

But is this possible?
Oahu, which is heavily armed, can be said to be a place that any attacking general would want to give up upon seeing it. For the American generals, it is really quite hopeless and they can be said to be bravely entering the death island.

Because of this, the military decided not to consider landing in the Haleiwa area for the time being and only to capture the Mokapu area.

In this way, it would be difficult for the Ming army to launch a counterattack to pose a threat to the US military, and the US military would not be able to advance to the core area in central Oahu. This decision was obviously quite conservative and negative.

The intention of the upper echelons was very clear - fight, watch and talk at the same time, let the troops gain a firm foothold first, then wait and see the outcome of the naval decisive battle, and then see if the peace talks can be concluded, and if not, consider the next stage of action.

George Marshall promised that if the campaign could successfully achieve its intended goals, Alexander Vandegrift would be nominated for lieutenant general and Simon Buckner would be nominated for four-star general.

Despite this, the two still couldn't be happy.

On this day, Zhou Changfeng received another inquiry from the mainland, which asked whether it was possible to wipe out the US troops and drive them into the sea after they landed.

Zhou Changfeng’s answer was the same as last time - if the US military landed at Mokapu, it would not be possible; if they landed at Haleiwa, it would be possible, but not necessary.

As of noon on January 1, TF-17 appeared off the coast of Mokapu. The Ming army on the eastern half of Oahu was deployed as follows:

More than 3000 men from the th Regiment of the th Division defended Cape Makabu, a key transportation route in the southeast.

More than 2900 men from the th Regiment of the nd Division defended Kahuku Cape, a major transportation route in the north.

The main force of the 1.2nd Division, the th Anti-aircraft Artillery Battalion, the st Tank Battalion, the Second Vehicle Team, and the Oahu Special Coastal Artillery Team, with people, defended the Mokapu Peninsula and Kaneohe and Kailua in depth.

Standing at the observation post at the Nuuanu Pali wind outlet, the scene before your eyes is truly unforgettable.

Facing us were two towns that had been reduced to ruins in air raids, with broken buildings and black smoke rising from all over. At the end of the land was an airport full of potholes, which was Airport No. 6, the former Kaneohe Bay Air Terminal. Further away was the vast blue sea, with countless ships looming where the sky and the sea met.

"The commander-in-chief is so wise. The enemy is really coming here. It will be a good show to watch next." Chen Jie, commander of the 22nd Division, exclaimed.

"Don't take it lightly. We have new weapons entering service one after another, and so do the enemies. We must be vigilant." As he spoke, Zhou Changfeng stood up from behind the high-magnification observation mirror.

"clear."

Just at this moment, the roar of the airplane engine came from behind everyone.

Looking back at the sky, I saw a fleet of hundreds of planes flying over the Koala Ridge and rushing towards the US fleet in the distance.

Soon, dozens of US military aircraft suddenly emerged from the clouds, trying to intercept this attack formation.

The Ming army fighter planes escorting the fleet immediately responded and became entangled with those Hellcats.

Dozens of Yuannian medium bombers rushed towards the US fleet in the face of dense sea and air fire. The shells fired by the dual-purpose guns exploded in the air, like a black smoke blanket, and in the smoke was filled with countless high-speed fragments. Almost every minute, a plane was hit and crashed into the sea, but the remaining survivors still insisted on moving forward, and only turned back after dropping the two aerial torpedoes mounted in the bomb bay.

Immediately, many white tracks, some thick, some thin, some short, some long, some straight, some curved, suddenly appeared on the sea. Some were from torpedoes, and some were from warships that were hurriedly evading.

The water column produced by the explosion of the torpedo hitting the ship was particularly jumping, rushing out of the sea surface dozens of meters high, which was particularly eye-catching...

Yesterday and today, within two days, the Ming army's shore-based aviation force dispatched a total of 422 air force aircraft and 195 naval aircraft to attack the US fleet, not including the sorties of fighter units fighting for air supremacy.

The aviation unit consumed hundreds of torpedoes and more than a thousand bombs, and lost 114 aircraft. It sank three US destroyers, one tank landing ship, and two infantry landing ships, and damaged the old battleship USS Oklahoma, a heavy cruiser, a tanker, and nine destroyers. The US Navy alone lost 3 people, and the number of injured was incalculable. Among them, the destroyer USS Dashiel (DD-1) was hit by a torpedo and broke its keel, and sank rapidly in more than 2 seconds. No officers and soldiers on the ship survived.

Because the US military was unable to completely suppress the Ming army's shore-based aviation in Hawaii, it had to launch a forced landing operation under such a bad situation.

The enemy's air strikes were so fierce and our own losses were so heavy that the counterattack on Oahu was cast under a heavy shadow from the very beginning.

The angry Richmond Turner cursed the Army's 7th Air Force as trash, and the commander of the 7th Air Force, Lieutenant General George Kenney, reiterated that being able to suppress three airports was the limit of their capabilities.

There are only a few usable airports on the Big Island, and the airport on Molokai Island has been hampered by artillery harassment from the Ming army. Now the effectiveness of our own electronic interference has been greatly reduced, and it would be good if we can suppress three airports.

从次日凌晨开始，担负两栖支援任务的第4特混大队开始对卡内奥赫湾和凯卢阿湾进行水雷清扫作业，这支舰队包含3艘护航航母、9艘驱逐舰、12艘护航驱逐舰、19艘扫雷舰、32艘扫雷艇。

During this period, the US fleet remained anchored in the relatively safe open waters and carried out shelling of the coast.

After several consecutive high-intensity attacks, the Ming army's air force took a short break and then launched another large-scale attack.

1月20日，在被击沉了4艘扫雷舰和11艘扫雷艇之后，损失巨大的第4特混大队总算将登陆目的地周围水域的数百颗水雷清扫干净。

On January 1, the U.S. Navy Underwater Demolition Squadron approached the beach in speedboats and assault boats and began to blow up the concrete obstacles that were everywhere; the Ming army dispatched a number of wheeled reconnaissance vehicles to respond flexibly, which greatly hindered the U.S. military's actions.

On January 1, the air battle was extremely fierce all day. The Casablanca-class escort aircraft carrier USS Fanchaut Bay was sunk and the Independence-class light aircraft carrier USS Monterey (CVL-22) was severely damaged.

On January 1, the U.S. military concentrated its battleships, cruisers, and destroyers to pretend to approach the coastline to lure the Ming army's coastal defense guns to be exposed. Some of the Ming army's coastal defense guns opened fire and attacked. The Astoria (CA-23) heavy cruiser was hit by two 34㎜ armor-piercing shells and was seriously damaged. The U.S. military immediately opened fire, and the entire fleet poured shells at those artillery positions!

In the next three days and two nights from January 1 to 23, the US military carried out continuous fire preparations, consuming a total of 25 tons of artillery shells and aerial bombs, almost plowing the Mokap Peninsula and the deep areas.

"This is unprecedented artillery fire. It really costs a lot of money." Yao Liangchuan was already a little upset by the continuous earthquakes.

"Your Excellency, B2, B3, B4, C1, and C3 have all been basically destroyed. Most of the shallow and deep pre-set positions are broken and unusable. The ones near the foothills (Koolao Ridge) are fine, not much damage." Zhao Hanfeng pointed to the defense zones marked on the map and asked, "Do you still want to follow the previously planned method?"

"Let's talk about it by category." Zhou Changfeng yawned and said calmly: "The order is as follows: The 22nd Division will start repairing fortifications. Time is short, so just focus on repairing key areas. Afterwards, if the air force's strike is effective and the enemy's progress is slow, we will continue to use Plan B2 for short-term defense; otherwise, we will resist two or three times and delay the enemy for twelve to twenty-four hours."

A staff officer then repeated the order, then stood at attention and clasped his fists, saying, "Secretary, that's it."

Zhou Changfeng raised his hand and glanced at the time, then casually said, "It should officially land at dawn tomorrow, if not tomorrow then the day after tomorrow. I'll get some sleep first."

He took out two balls of cotton from his pocket and stuffed them into his ears, then turned around and lay down on the camp bed in the next compartment.

截止1月25日午夜，登陆前的狂轰滥炸已经持续了三天两夜，这些天美军舰队又被明军飞机和岸防炮击沉2艘护航驱逐舰、3艘登陆舰、1艘火力支援舰、2艘货轮，另外宾夕法尼亚号战列舰也被击伤。

At the same time, on the back slopes of several hills at the northern foot of the Ko'olao Mountains...

There are many large semi-dug bunkers built here. Thirteen Tiger (P) and three Clouded Leopard tanks of the 13nd Independent Assault Vehicle Team are parked quietly inside, and the tank soldiers are relaying artillery shells into the vehicles.

A few hundred meters northwest of the 602nd Team's hiding place, there are two larger semi-dug bunkers, which are the location of the Oahu Special Coastal Defense Artillery Team.

In the dim moonlight and the distant artillery fire, the two angular steel behemoths looked like monsters lying there, with metallic luster flashing at the edges where the paint had peeled off.

During the sea transportation, the Ming army loaded the three super-heavy tanks separately. On the way, the freighter carrying the Zhongnan was sunk by a US submarine, so only the Wutai and Jiuhua were successfully transported. Neither Pearl Harbor nor Honolulu had cranes that could lift such heavy objects, and the two were brought ashore with the help of the large crane at the Double Ten Dock in Pearl Harbor.

The Wutai car captain came over, propped up the heavy side skirt with his right hand, and asked with a smile, "Why are you still writing letters, Brother Feng? Is your car ready?"

"It's all done." The captain of the Jiuhua, Navy Warrant Officer Feng Ziyu, was writing a reply letter to his wife using a flashlight.

"…My nephew's studies cannot be abandoned. If the tuition is tight, you can advance a hundred dollars. You must discuss it with them and don't be harsh. The enemy army is approaching, and we have to repel the enemy's attack. I don't have time to talk to you. I sincerely look forward to your return."

Feng Ziyu just graduated from the Naval Coastal Defense Academy last September, ranking ninth in the artillery major. He thought he would be assigned to serve in the Coastal Defense Artillery Battalion, but he never expected that he would end up in such a unit that is in name only.

You told me this is a coastal defense gun?
When the sky in the east showed signs of paleness, the special coastal artillery team was calling everyone for a meeting.

He said succinctly, "The superiors estimate that the enemy will land after daybreak, or tomorrow, but we still have to make full preparations. Listen, follow the route agreed upon the day before yesterday, it is better to go slowly than to go wrong, if the car gets stuck, it will be the end. Then, the anti-aircraft guns should be smart and protect these two large trucks."

Just as he finished speaking, a flash of fire suddenly appeared in the distance.

Everyone looked back and saw rows of orange light balls appearing in the deep night sky, like a meteor shower flying backwards into the sky, extremely brilliant.

"This... a rocket?" someone asked uncertainly.

"Yes, that is, launching rockets before landing!" Feng Ziyu said firmly: "It seems that it is indeed today, everyone take your positions!"

(End of this chapter)