Empire Conquest
Chapter 89 - 85 Air Defense Combat Status

Chapter 89: Chapter 85 Air Defense Combat Status

West of the Mobile Fleet, approximately two hundred kilometers away.

When Wei Chengwen arrived with his wingmen, the sky was already in chaos. Dozens of fighters from both sides were flipping and flying up and down, like they were attending a masquerade ball where the admission ticket was bought with blood and life, machine guns served as weapons, and only the victors could leave alive.

Almost all the curses could be heard on the communication channel, with occasional cheers coming through.

In fact, the battle was almost one-sided.

Although the fastest speed and climb rate were not inferior to the Zero Fighter, and the firepower was even more fierce, and the protection much better, the "Typhoon" was far behind in the crucial aspect of maneuverability—for example, its turning radius was about twice that of the Zero Fighter, and the roll speed was also much slower.

In one-on-one combat, the "Typhoon" definitely was not a match for the Zero Fighter.

If anything, it was merely robust enough.

As long as it wasn’t hit in a vital area, even if it was hit dozens of times by the Zero Fighter’s 7.7mm machine gun, the "Typhoon" acted as if nothing was wrong.

In the air, it was almost always the Zero Fighters chasing the "Typhoons."

Within a minute, three "Typhoons" had been shot down by Zero Fighters.

Wei Chengwen really wanted to rush over, but he had to pull back on the control stick, steer the fighter to turn around, and chase the Attack Aircraft Group that was still flying east.

At the beginning, Wei Chengwen received an order from the squadron leader to cover the Attack Aircraft Group.

Of course, it wasn’t an order given only to Wei Chengwen, but to all the fighters that had not encountered Zero Fighters, though there were fewer than ten in total.

Whether the Attack Aircraft Group could break through the outer anti-aircraft network of the Mobile Fleet depended on the performance of the escort fighters!

At this moment, aboard the "Heng River."

When the communications officer came to report, Liu Xiangzhen looked at his watch, and it was just past one in the afternoon.

Now, he had to make a crucial decision.

Should he send additional anti-aircraft fighters to expand the fleet’s air defense range?

According to the latest received information, the Attack Aircraft Group of the Mobile Fleet flying west from the east of Foot Island was also operating separately, with squadrons as the basic combat units.

However, there were several issues.

First, the scale was not clarified, that is, how many squadrons there were in total, and how many were Dive Bombers and how many were Torpedo Attack Aircraft.

Liu Xiangzhen had already asked the staff to cross-reference and analyze the telegrams, but it was uncertain whether a clear conclusion could be drawn.

Second, the Attack Aircraft Group of the Mobile Fleet was flying west.

This point was very clear, all telegrams emphasized this, that the enemy planes were flying west, not toward the Special Mixed Group’s area.

However, that was precisely the problem.

Wouldn’t the enemy planes possibly change direction during the flight?

Don’t forget, the Special Mixed Group’s Attack Aircraft Group was actually flying northeast, and at the moment of encounter with the enemy planes, it was in the southwest direction of the enemy planes.

Third, no report mentioned the specific situation after encountering the enemy.

The key issue was, how many Zero Fighters continued to provide cover for the Attack Aircraft Group? Were these Zero Fighters escorting the forefront of the Attack Aircraft Group? After the encounter, had the Mobile Fleet’s Attack Aircraft Group gathered together, or were they still flying west in a dispersed manner?

Indeed, all these questions were caused by chaos.

No one could be blamed, as even experienced pilots could hardly keep an eye on everything around them and an ear in all directions, remember everything they saw and heard, and report back perfectly without error, ensuring the situation reported matched the actual battle conditions. It was already commendable that pilots seated in narrow cockpits remember to report the engagement status to the flagship during intense combat.

It was these issues that troubled Liu Xiangzhen.

What troubled him?

Should he temporarily give up the third round of attack to strengthen anti-air defenses?

However, it had only been a few minutes.

After swiftly contemplating, Liu Xiangzhen made a fairly clear judgment of the situation and issued an order to enhance anti-air defenses.

To be exact, he ordered the Fleet to enter a state ready for anti-air combat.

The sole basis for Liu Xiangzhen’s decision was this: if we can’t protect the Fleet, what will we use to launch the third round of attacks?

Time-wise, if just a squadron of enemy aircraft found the right direction, they would certainly arrive before the Special Mixed Group launched its third assault.

It was now twelve fifty-five.

In the next ten minutes, both carriers from the second Aviation Mixed Fleet deployed six Fighters each, yet these were also the last of the Fighters.

The key point was, they ceased all aviation operations related to the attack.

After launching the Fighters, the crew began moving the Bombers and Attack Aircraft, which were being maintained and armed on the flight deck, back to the Hangar.

Of course, they had to drain the fuel and remove the bombs and torpedoes.

Moreover, it involved reorganizing the formation of the Battleships around the carrier battle group.

Following Liu Xiangzhen’s order, precisely when all Fighters had taken off, the "Nanjiang" Fast Battleship, which had been several thousand meters away, caught up.

Eventually, the Battleship positioned itself about one thousand meters to the right of the "Heng River," maintaining that distance.

At this range, the "Nanjiang" was able to use its High-altitude Gun to cover the "Heng River" and intercept enemy aircraft approaching from all directions except the northwest.

Simultaneously, a Heavy Cruiser and two Light Cruisers from the Special Mixed Fleet positioned themselves to the left and both front and back of the "Heng River."

Simply put, four escort Battleships surrounded the "Heng River"!

Additionally, the speed of the formation remained above 30 knots!

If not for the "Nanjiang" slowing them down, they could reach a speed of 33 knots, which is the fastest standard cruising speed for the "Longjiang" class.

In less than twenty minutes, before one fifteen, both carrier battle groups of the second Aviation Mixed Fleet were fully prepared for anti-air operations.

Their quick readiness was due to Fleet exercises!

Every year during Fleet exercises, considerable time is spent on combined training, integrating Fast Battleships typically part of the Combat Fleet into the Special Mixed Fleet.

The only drawback was that the full value of the Fast Battleships had not been completely realized.

Three years ago, Bai Zhizhan had proposed to the Navy Headquarters that Fast Battleships be assigned to the Special Mixed Fleet to serve as anti-air command ships.

Unfortunately, as this matter involved the Combat Fleet, there had been no follow-up after Bai Zhizhan’s proposal.

Now, both carriers had triple protection: the outermost layer of Fighter aircraft, the middle layer of Anti-Air Warships, and their own anti-air capabilities.

However, it wasn’t entirely perfect.

The "Ling River" was covered by the "Yuejiang."

Though this Fast Battleship had undergone several upgrades for formidable anti-air firepower, certainly no less than the "Nanjiang," it hadn’t received special treatment in the latest upgrades and wasn’t equipped with the secret weapons specifically developed for anti-air defense.

The trouble was, during anti-air combat, the greater the distance between carrier battle groups, the better.

If the "Ling River" carrier battle group suffered a concentrated attack from enemy aircraft, the outcome would likely be grim.

But at this point, there wasn’t much they could do.

According to the escort Fighters’ report, if the Mobile Fleet’s Attack Aircraft Group changed course in time, they could arrive by around one thirty.

Even if they didn’t change course in time, they would arrive before two.

That meant the second Aviation Mixed Fleet had just over ten minutes left!