Bismarck

"General! Urgent report! Radar detected another group of planes coming from the southwest, and the IFF (Identification Friend or Foe) shows that they are not friendly forces! They will probably be over our heads in less than half an hour..."

"What?! Damn it! Why did you come at this damn time instead of earlier?"

Just as he was about to drive away one wave, another one came. Fletcher was so angry that he punched the table.

"General, I roughly know what's going on." At this time, Major General Fitch also hurried over with a telegram, his face full of heaviness: "The SS-170 Sperm Whale submarine just sent a clear code call. They found three Japanese aircraft carriers launching planes south of Wake Island at pm and sank one of them. But now they are besieged by Japanese destroyers and are seriously injured and forced to surface. This... is their last telegram... It seems that this round of aircraft was launched by these three Japanese aircraft carriers."

The Sperm Whale submarine had no time to mourn the hero, as troubles of its own were looming.

"One hundred nautical miles south of Wake Island?! Damn! Their range is so far!" Fletcher casually flipped through the nautical chart and found that the Japanese aircraft carrier was nearly 300 nautical miles away from him. He was so angry that he slammed his hat on the table and said, "Fitch, let all the planes that can take off take off immediately. Also, tell the pilots in the sky that except for the injured pilots who can land first, I will allow them to parachute now if I am not sure that the planes can hold on. While the Japanese are not coming, I can let the destroyer send out lifeboats to salvage them. Now, no matter what, we must ensure that the aircraft carriers repel this wave first."

"Yes!!"

----------

The remaining twenty-odd planes were all released into the sky, and the pilots all jumped out with parachutes. The destroyers managed to salvage some of the planes before the air raid, but the rest they couldn't salvage had to be put down inflatable lifeboats or even just a life buoy, and then... Good luck...

After rounds of air raids, everyone has become numb to life and death...

As long as I don't die...

The Japanese planes in the sky, which were covered with dog-skin plaster, made a circle and flew over the American fleet from the opposite direction of the setting sun, taking advantage of the cover of the dim twilight under the setting sun.

Under the cover of the nine leading Zero fighter Zakus, the Japanese bombers began their attack. The American Wildcats escorting in this direction were entangled by the Zero fighters, and the bombers rushed through the interception line of the American fighters before the Wildcats in other positions arrived. The American fleet sailors, with only numbness and panic in their hearts, could only look at the murderous Japanese planes rushing towards them in the unpredictable sky with panicked eyes - only the barrage of bullets and fireworks fired by the futile anti-aircraft guns could bring a glimmer of illusory warmth and security to the numb and cold hearts on the battlefield...

The escorting destroyers and heavy cruisers were also firing desperately at the Japanese planes in the sky.

But… the enemy is after all a well-trained elite sea eagle. Although the US fleet is equipped with VT fuses, the light small-caliber anti-aircraft guns that match it are only a few 28mm Chicago organs with extremely limited quantity and performance.

Even in the final stage of the war, the well-trained US Navy, which had absolute air superiority, could not defeat the kamikaze detachments in the later stages, whose training and aircraft performance were in a mess and could only play mindless collisions under the stimulation of militarism and drugs, relying on the VT fuse of the 127 anti-aircraft guns, the hedgehog-like 40 Bofors, and the 20 Oerlikon that covered the entire side of the ship. Not to mention the current fleet with low morale, almost no aircraft lost, and very weak anti-aircraft firepower.

Moreover, their opponents were not the rookies of the later Kamikaze Squad, but the well-trained elite Sea Eagles that Japan had planned for a long time after years of painstaking efforts.

In the eyes of the terrified sailors of the American fleet, through the cockpit glass of those Japanese planes, it seemed as if they saw the Japanese pilots with Hinomaru cloth strips tied on their heads, their murderous eyes staring at the American aircraft carriers in the sight, gritting their teeth, grinning, and rushing down one by one with strange cries like the sky is getting dark.

Although the VT fuze shot down several planes at the beginning, the main function of large-caliber anti-aircraft guns was to drive away the enemy, and the killing effect was actually very limited. The pitiful 28-meter range of the 2000mm quadruple anti-aircraft gun was not even enough to stop the Japanese planes from charging for a few seconds.

The anti-aircraft fulcrum in front of the two aircraft carriers, the heavy cruiser New Orleans, which had just been commissioned in 1934, was quickly hit by two dive bombers' bombs, ignited a raging fire and lost its combat effectiveness. More Japanese aircraft took advantage of the gap in the air defense circle of the US fleet and rushed through the last line of defense of the US aircraft carriers.

The USS Lexington and USS Saratoga, whose carrier-based aircraft had been almost completely lost, were clumsily dragging their bodies, which were difficult to turn due to their high center of gravity, and trying their best to dodge the Japanese attack - but it was of no use.

A group of Japanese bombers dived towards the Lexington - these were five Type 99 bombers. Although there were two Wildcats following behind, it was obvious that the Japanese pilots were more well-trained. The fire net formed by several rear machine guns and the maneuvers with a certain rhythm formed an almost perfect tactical coordination. And behind the two Wildcats, there were still two Zakus following closely.

"elder sister!"

On the fierce battlefield, almost no one noticed that a female nurse on the USS Saratoga suddenly looked towards the USS Lexington when she finished bandaging a wounded soldier. Almost at the same time, the 127mm anti-aircraft gun on the USS Saratoga, which she was barely avoiding, also turned towards the USS Lexington for some reason. The muzzle was raised high, facing the Japanese dive bomber that was difficult to distinguish with the naked eye in the sky full of bullets in the distance...

"Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom..."

The VT fuse fired by the 127mm anti-aircraft gun instantly wove a fire net with flames and flying shrapnel in the sky above the Lexington aircraft carrier. The five dive bombers that had just flown over the Lexington were immediately enveloped in a rain of steel.

but……

Even with such a powerful barrage, it was not able to completely stop the crazy attack launched by the Japanese army, whose Bushido spirit had been deeply rooted in their bones.

Not to mention that several Japanese planes had already dropped bombs, creating two water columns beside the Lexington. There was even a Japanese plane with thick smoke billowing out of it, and one of its wings had been blown off halfway. It was spinning in the sky and happened to hit Mrs. Lex's flight deck.

For a moment, flames shot into the sky.

and……

"Enemy dives. Full left rudder..."

In just this short moment, another group of Japanese troops who were attacking Saratoga at the same time had already broken through the interception. Three Allied Type 99 dive bombers nicknamed "Val" had already appeared above Saratoga. At this time, the only weapon that could reach this elevation angle - the 28mm anti-aircraft gun - had a pitiful range and was completely unable to intercept these plague gods carrying bombs.

"Oh…oh no. There's no way to avoid this…"

Before the nurse could react, the black bomb had already been dropped in her direction. Saratoga knew very well that her turning performance was extremely poor - a turning radius of more than 2000 yards was almost the same as uniform linear motion in the eyes of a well-trained enemy. Even if she wanted to make an evasive move, the high center of gravity made her only able to carefully twist her hull and try to avoid the most dangerous position between the hangar and the flight deck.

With a loud bang, an armor-piercing shell smashed through her port side anti-aircraft gun deck and landed on her armor at the waterline. The seawater rushed in from the breach and quickly submerged a boiler. More importantly, her complex power system of steam turbine-generator-motor was not very resistant to shock.

Amid the explosion, the entire ship suddenly lost power and paralyzed on the sea. The graceful nurse Sarah suddenly felt her whole body go limp and she almost fell to the ground - her main circuit tripped.

In the sky, the last few torpedo planes in the Japanese fleet have now appeared at the sea-sky line.

The USS Saratoga was paralyzed, but the USS Lexington was still sailing despite the raging fire on the deck. Fletcher and Fitch directed the firefighting while directing the evasion and counterattack. Mrs. Lex's 127mm dual-purpose gun fired repeatedly in the direction of the Japanese torpedo planes, trying to break up the formation of the torpedo planes - although for some reason, the two Japanese planes shot down seemed to rush towards the paralyzed Saratoga on the sea.

In the direction of my wife, there are three Type 97 torpedo planes...

The torpedo was dropped...

Everything is too late.

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The USS Saratoga sailed farther and farther away, farther and farther away from the light of my wife's fire...

Finally, the last bit of light from Mrs. Lex slowly dimmed above the sea and sky...

Her tilted body became the last impression in everyone's eyes. When they left, the sea water was rushing into her body. She was completely beyond help.

At this time, Fletcher, who had been silent for a while, finally turned his head slowly and spoke to the staff officer beside him:

"Send a message to Commander Kimmel and Halsey. Our plan has failed..."

When he said this, the entire bridge fell silent. No one knew what to say and could only silently do their work.

"…The enemy's island base shore-based aviation warning range is too large, we were exposed at the beginning…The attack effect on Wake Island, where the enemy has strengthened its defense, is also not ideal, and their airport has not lost its combat effectiveness…We lost Lexington and Wasp, and Saratoga also has to return to Pearl Harbor for repairs…But they only lost one aircraft carrier, and they still have two aircraft carriers that can fight."

"... Now Halsey has also been exposed, and they still have a mine warfare team - the most important thing is that their other 'three' aircraft carriers - the Soryu, the Hiryu, and the Ryukaku (because of the US intelligence error), have not been found yet. ... Now the enemy is in the dark and we are in the light, and they can also get support from the Wake Island airport... This battle is really not suitable to continue like this..."

"My suggestion is to retreat... We can settle accounts with these little Japanese in the future."

Fletcher's fists were clenched so hard that they made a creaking sound, and his tone was full of depression and pain...

In another cabin of the USS Saratoga, Gaga, who was curled up in her little bed crying, secretly remembered the blood debt of her sister Zhan Chen in her heart.

If...she wasn't going back to Pearl Harbor for overhaul...

Chapter 607: Guadalcanal

"…Because…so…with the approval of the President, Admiral Kimmel is now ordered to return to Washington to accept the investigation of the Congressional investigation team on the defeat in the Battle of Wake Island! The post of Commander of the Pacific Fleet will be taken over by General Chester Nimitz, and Nimitz is now awarded the rank of Admiral! Commander-in-Chief of the United States Navy Fleet, Admiral Ernest King."

Facing the military police wearing MP-logoed helmets and reading out orders expressionlessly, Admiral Kimmel, who looked ten years older, nodded helplessly and walked towards the door of the conference room with a desolate and helpless look, flanked by two military policemen on his left and right.

At the door of the conference room, Nimitz, who was about to take over Kimmel's position, stood there without a white star on his shoulder. When Kimmel was about to leave, the new and old commanders of the Pacific Fleet looked at each other silently and stood there, looking at each other in silence.

Nimitz and Kimmel were once old friends. In 40, when Roosevelt was considering appointing a new commander of the Pacific Fleet, Nimitz, who was originally the first candidate, gave up the position to Kimmel on the grounds that he lacked qualifications.

but now……

Looking at the helpless look of his former friend, Nimitz could only cast a helpless look.

Although, given the complexity of Washington's officialdom, who can tell how much truth there is, how much falsehood there is, and how much... the death of the rabbit makes the fox mourn...

Nimitz watched Kimmel walk out of the door, get in the car, leave the headquarters and head towards the airport before he slowly walked back and stepped onto the podium in the conference room.

"...I won't say anything more. I believe you have all learned a lesson from this failure. Now, I need to hear a comprehensive report on the current combat effectiveness of the Pacific Fleet and the enemy situation in the Pacific theater. I hope that before this Friday, all departments and combat units can submit a situation report and a plan for the next step of the operation..." Nimitz, standing on the stage, glanced at the Pacific Fleet generals standing below, paused, and continued: "In addition, I am now issuing the first order as the commander of the Pacific Fleet: Before the Pacific Fleet Command formulates a new combat action plan, all troops will focus on defense, and at most small-scale harassment, disrupting commerce and reconnaissance operations are allowed. Except for the submarine force, all Pacific Fleet plans for offensive activities against enemy-occupied areas must be reviewed by the Fleet Staff and approved by me!"

The other American generals below were silent.

………………

Imperial Japanese Navy Ministry, Kasumigaseki, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo.

The streets outside the window were filled with jubilation, and in the Navy Ministry building, everyone from the three big naval bosses to the guards at the door and the kitchen staff were all smiling. The reason for the laughter and joy was naturally the victory of the Battle of Wake Island.

After all, we just won a battle, so it's understandable.

The loss of a light aircraft carrier and 67 aircraft resulted in the sinking of two regular aircraft carriers and 200 aircraft on board! Although the USS Saratoga managed to escape, it lost its combat effectiveness due to the need for repairs and the fact that its carrier-based aircraft units were basically crippled!

The start of the Pacific War could not be better! Even Isoroku Yamamoto, who was meeting with the Minister of the Navy and the Chief of the Naval Affairs Bureau in the conference room, was delighted:

"…So, since the Americans only have three aircraft carriers now, we should take advantage of this time to concentrate our forces and maximize our advantage - it would be best to destroy their aircraft carriers before their new aircraft carriers are put into service, and force them to negotiate peace with us as soon as possible!"

The other two bigwigs in the Navy Department, Admiral Shimataro Shimada, the Minister of the Navy, who was mainly responsible for administration and represented the Navy in politics, and Admiral Nagano Osami, the Chief of the Naval General Staff, who was responsible for setting naval combat objectives and ordering the Combined Fleet to take action, and was also Yamamoto's old superior - even now, he was still the direct superior of the Commander-in-Chief of the Combined Fleet. When they heard what Yamamoto said, they all smiled and nodded.

Over there, Yamamoto continued to elaborate on his own views:

"The British in the Indian Ocean have been holding on to the Madagascar Island area and have not shown any signs of large-scale deployment, so Nanyun has not had any fighter planes. ... It feels very wasteful to keep four regular aircraft carriers and two light aircraft carriers in the Indian Ocean when the situation has been unable to change for a long time. ... Therefore, I plan to transfer Nanyun back and concentrate our forces to defeat the US Pacific Fleet in front of us! Only the two light aircraft carriers, Shoho and Zuiho, and a heavy cruiser squadron will be left in the Indian Ocean..."

"This...wait a moment!"

Yamamoto was interrupted midway through his speech.

"Yamamoto, you know that the coordination of the Empire's land and sea national policy before the war was that we cooperated with the German Navy to cut off the shipping line from India to Britain, and then the Army carried out political infiltration and instigated the DL tendencies in those colonies. ... If you transfer the troops in the Indian Ocean, it is equivalent to giving up the direction of India! Such a big thing must be explained to His Majesty the Emperor and the Army." Shimada Shigetaro was very worried about this and raised the issue directly. On the other hand, Nagano Osami looked at Yamamoto with almost the same worried expression.

"There is no other way to give up the Indian Ocean temporarily. You also know how terrible the industrial potential of the Americans is! The Empire can only seize the opportunity now when their military strength is the weakest and directly deal a devastating blow to the US Navy, and then seek peace talks to end this war..."

Yamamoto's words made Shimada and Nagano stunned for a moment. But if you think about it carefully, Yamamoto's opinion is not unreasonable...

"In that case, please ask Mr. Yamamoto to submit a report so that I can submit it to the cabinet for discussion and the Emperor's decree." Seeing that the meeting had reached this depth, Shimada finally spoke.

"It's already been written. I've asked the Combined Fleet's General Staff to evaluate it... By the way, here's the evaluation report." Yamamoto was obviously prepared. He opened his briefcase, rummaged around for a few times, took out two reports, and handed them to Shimada Shigetaro and Nagano Osami respectively.

The report was very thick, and it seemed that Yamamoto had made up his mind. Shimada and Nagano flipped through it and accepted the report. However, Nagano thought about it and asked, "Yamamoto, if we only have two light aircraft carriers and a squadron of heavy cruisers in the Indian Ocean...is this enough?"

"That's enough!" Yamamoto seemed confident and nodded affirmatively:

"...According to the information provided by the Germans, although Somerville has more than a dozen old battleships, they only have six escort carriers that are slower and less powerful!... Considering that their old battleships can only run at a speed of 21 knots, and the combat effectiveness of their escort carriers is not even comparable to that of light aircraft carriers, at least our fleet will have no problem protecting itself."

"In addition, if we need to take military action in the Indian Ocean, we can also seek cooperation from the Germans. Although Germany is fighting the Soviet Union, their navy is constantly fighting against Britain and the United States. The United States first declared war on Germany. In order to ensure that their own backyard does not catch fire when fighting the Soviet Union, the German navy is very happy to cause trouble for the United States and Britain."

"Just a few days ago, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs forwarded a report. After their meeting with Ambassador Hiroshi Oshima, their Admiral Raeder promised to order the Lütjens Fleet to keep a close eye on the Indian Ocean no matter what! ... So I think we can still have great confidence in whether we can cooperate with the German fleet to deal with the British and American troops in the Indian Ocean. ..."

"In addition, Nanyun said that their Zeppelin aircraft carrier is very powerful and can even beat our most elite First Fleet in air combat exercises! With such foreign aid, there is no need to worry about the two light aircraft carriers not having enough combat power!..."

"…Finally, even if we take a step back and say that the remaining troops in the Indian Ocean are not enough to completely block the support of Britain and the United States to the Middle East - Britain and the United States are now using land transportation lines on the African continent, and then relying on the method of sneaking across the Red Sea to transport supplies to the Middle East bit by bit - but even so, as long as we can concentrate our forces to achieve a decisive victory in the Pacific, we can expect to achieve a decent peace with the United States!..."

Following Yamamoto's report, Shimada and Nagano looked at each other, and then continued to ask Yamamoto a few questions about the Indian combat arrangements and the cooperation between the German and Japanese fleets. Yamamoto, who had been prepared, responded confidently. In the end, Shimada and Nagano seemed to be satisfied with Yamamoto's answer and put away the assessment report. While Shimada was putting it away, he was also saying:

"That's it for now. When Nagano and I meet the Emperor, we'll report this suggestion to him. If the Ministry of Foreign Affairs wants to communicate with the Germans, I'll be the one to do it."

"Yeah!" Yamamoto and Nagano nodded together to show that they had no objection.

"Then let's move on to the next and final topic: the Imperial Navy's next strategic goal and plan..." Turning the page, Shimada Shigetaro, the head of the Navy, presided over the meeting to discuss the next step. However, at this time, he happened to think of a supplementary opinion: "...By the way, Nagano-kun, Yamamoto-kun, you also need to come up with a plan for what to do after Nanyun returns, which should correspond to our next strategy. Then I will take it to the Emperor for judgment."

"What's the next plan..." Nagano, who had already put away the assessment report, thought about it and felt that there was nothing that needed to be revised on a large scale for the time being: "The next plan is still the same. Since India has been put aside for the time being, we can only focus on developing the island chain around Australia. The army said it wants to capture Port Moresby in southern New Guinea, but I am not optimistic about that approach. What a joke, how many soldiers can the army spare?!"

"In my opinion, we should take advantage of the current gap in the US military's strength to seize the Solomon Islands, and then develop Fiji, Samoa and other places to completely cut off the transportation line from the United States to Australia!"

"There is a lack of large island construction bases in the Central Pacific. It is difficult for aircraft carriers alone to defeat our fleet, which has bases to rely on and can directly reduce their combat effectiveness! Therefore, if the Americans want to counterattack, they can only start from Australia. The safest way is to attack through the island chains in the southwest Pacific. Make it impossible for the Americans to counterattack!..." Nagano Osami stood up, pulled out a pointer, pointed to the location of the Solomon Islands, and glanced at Yamamoto Isoroku.

When it comes to direct command on the battlefield, the person with the most say must be the Commander-in-Chief of the Combined Fleet!

So, start your performance now!

Seeing Nagano staring at him, Yamamoto Isoroku knew that it was time for him to speak up regarding the specific tactics:

"...If this is the case, the United States will face a dilemma! If they are eager to counterattack, we can gradually reduce their combat effectiveness and then seek a decisive battle! If they know that they are not strong enough and plan to accumulate strength, we can also use this time to strengthen the defense and occupy the base facilities on these islands!..."

"…From the Battle of Wake Island, the reconnaissance aircraft and long-range bombers of the land airport network, and the aircraft carrier mobile forces cooperated well, and the combat effect of one plus one was greater than two! So, if I were an American, even if I knew that this was a routine, they would most likely come here to die!…"

After listening to Nagano and Yamamoto's words, Shimada Shigetaro nodded and said, "In that case, the matter has been tentatively settled. By the way, how do you plan to seize the Solomon Islands?"

"As for the Solomon Islands, they must first occupy the main island here, and then expand the depth distance as much as possible - fortunately, the main island of the Solomon Islands happens to be on the side close to them!" Yamamoto Isoroku smiled slightly, stretched out his hand, and pointed in the direction of the main island of the Solomon Islands: "If one or two airports are set up here, not only can the Solomon Islands be brought under control, but it can also provide a larger early warning search range!... In this way, they will have to think twice before they want to counterattack!..."

"Well, then, let's build an airport here, and then transfer all our aircraft carriers to Rabaul and Truk, ready to go at any time!..." Shimada Shigetaro nodded with satisfaction and put away the things on the table: "That's it for now, I will go to the tent to report to His Majesty the Emperor later!...By the way, what is the main island of the Solomon Islands you mentioned? And where is its specific location?"

"Please wait for the exact location." Yamamoto rummaged through his bag again, opened a more detailed sea chart, and pointed to one of the islands...

"The island where we plan to build the airport is the main island of the Solomon Islands. It is located here. As for the name, the name of this island is..."

“It’s called Guadalcanal!”

Chapter 608: Bismarck's Meeting

Under the escort of four BF-109 fighter jets, a military passenger plane HE-111 slowly landed at the airport of the Socotra Island Garrison.

The door of the plane opened, and Admiral Lütjens, the commander of the Eastern Expeditionary Fleet of the Greater German War Navy, walked out of the plane with his secretary. Bonte, Lindemann and Top, who were waiting at the airport, saw their commander coming down and followed him to greet him.

"Commander, you are back."

"Yes, you have worked hard during this period."

Several old comrades held their rough hands together and smiled at each other.

The Persian cat next to me felt a little uneasy...

Several captains were not so aware. Bonte continued Lütjens's words and said, "Haha, we are fine... Commander, what did the higher-ups say this time?"

"Well, there are a lot of things to do... Let's go back to the headquarters first, and then meet again to sort out all the recent things." Lütjens thought about it and finally decided to go back and talk about it.

"Ok!"