Chapter 2744： Desperate Strike Three (1/2)
2744 1
”The Constellation is destined to not live, so it can be used as a decoy.” Old Fletcher said.
”What do you mean? Constellation was the flagship of the entire aircraft carrier squadron when the fleet departed from Pearl Harbor, but now you let us abandon him? Even as a decoy?”
Mitchell was the first captain on the aircraft carrier Constellation. Although it was not long, Mitchell was unwilling to lose his warship. And to be honest, Constellation is really a good aircraft carrier, and it is no exaggeration to say that it is the best aircraft carrier of the US Navy at this stage!
”If as many people as possible can survive, any warship can give up. You can understand war as a mathematical problem. We consider the increase and decrease of combat power. Some symbolic meanings are not in our consideration. Inside, the Constellation has been severely damaged. It can't even display half of its combat power. If it can be used to share a wave of enemy aircraft, I think it is very valuable.” Old Fletcher said. ”Well, this is not an aviation issue, it is a fleet issue. I have the final say. I will submit a report to General Sims after the meeting today. Now, all tactics are carried out on this premise.”
”After the Constellation releases all fighters, it will leave Zeppelin and Assault, and then release radio waves to expose itself. If our deception is realistic enough, then the first wave of Japanese naval aviation will target the Constellation. In this case, we can avoid the opponent’s first round of blows.” Fletcher then looked at Logan: “Well, as the most experienced commander of the three of us, what do you think the Japanese army will do next? How many waves of attacks can they make?”
”Radio direction finding is very important, but more often, after the aircraft carrier is determined by the reconnaissance aircraft, it guides the attacking fleet to attack through uninterrupted guidance. Therefore, even if we mislead, the Japanese army will still carry out a sector search. There are only two situations in which the aircraft carrier will be allowed to launch its own attack group. The first situation is when the reconnaissance aircraft determines to find the target. The second situation is when the enemy aircraft can be trailed. After all, the sea is different from the land, and the carrier-based aircraft cannot return. Will go around in circles, and will not land elsewhere.” Logan said.
”So, we have to pretend to be more like this, right? General Logan.” Old Fletcher said.
”It's better to be like something again. In the most unfavourable situation, we need to face three waves of Japanese attacks, but we can only withstand one wave of incomplete attacks at most, which means we have to avoid two waves!” Logan Said.
This is definitely not alarmist talk. First of all, you cannot underestimate the reconnaissance power of the Japanese combined fleet. Let’s not talk about submarines, which are unknowingly stuffed. Let’s just talk about aviation reconnaissance. During the war, several naval battles used dawn. Or it was launched at dusk. Germans often use this. Americans know it. British people have experienced it. Then the Japanese will naturally be prepared!
Coupled with the Japanese navy's dual-engine land-based air force, the long range and long dead time of the twin-engine aircraft allow them to fly to the intended sea area before dawn. In fact, the Japanese did the same during the air-to-sea warfare on Lagen Island. Before dawn, the Japanese land-based aviation units set off the planes, and they started the fight shortly after dawn. This shows that the Japanese Navy is capable of taking off before dawn and conducting reconnaissance at dawn. The US fleet can locate the Japanese fleet, but no one can guarantee that the Japanese fleet cannot locate the US fleet.