Chapter 680 Closed 7

At 3:00 p.m. on July 8, it will be cloudy.

Southwest Pacific Ocean, 780 kilometers off Norfolk Island.

A canoe-like single-wing hummingbird long-range reconnaissance aircraft suddenly appeared in the clouds. This quadruple seat is thick and all made of light wood. The aircraft with a range of 2,500 kilometers was restarted on the South American route. After a large amount of light wood hoarded in Ecuador was continuously transported back to China, it not only extended the air force. The reconnaissance type has become the favorite of the navy and air force. According to this year's production plan, the two armies will be equipped with at least 500 aircraft.

Although it is not as beautiful as fighter and attack aircraft pilots, Xue Wei still likes this feeling. With a speed of 400 kilometers per hour, a lifting limit of more than 10,000 meters, and a long voyage, the hummingbird does not match its name at all. On the contrary, it is more like an eagle flying in the sky, even if it meets its own bumblebee. Don't worry too much about safety.

Outside the window, white clouds floated by like cotton wool, one by one, making people feel as if they had touched heaven, but for the members of Sparrow Unit 6, they did not believe in heaven and preferred to call it the top of the clouds.

It belongs to the top of all Chinese people.

The two reconnaissance watchers in the back seat held up their telescopes. When they carefully observed the sea, they did not forget to make fun of each other. The unique ultra-long endurance also meant a long fatigue flight. Sometimes they even had to fly for six or seven hours in a row. Fortunately, there were four crew members in the plane, which was not too lonely.

"Lao San, do you think we will die in the future? What about the 18th floor of the hell? Or do you come to such a place as foreigners say?

"Bullshit, can the Jade Emperor live in this shabby place? Let me tell you, it must be above the sky. At that time, we will become the stars in the sky, shining every day, so that Yang Maozi has to look up when he goes to heaven. This is delicious!"

"Well said, they will have crooked neck disease when they are reincarnated in the next life."

"Haha."

Xue Wei listened to the words of the co-pilot and the two crew partners behind him, and smiled at the corners of his mouth. However, considering that if the paradise in the white population is really like this, I'm afraid it's really boring. Because I watch it every day, it's better to go to the Yanluo Hall for a walk. At least I can get along with the king of Yan.

After keeping the height close to the clouds, Xue Wei looked at his watch. Time gradually faded his smile at the corners of his mouth. Not only because the visibility at sea would decline in more than two hours, but also because there was not much oil. If he could not find the warships that said in the telegram that the target was lost, it would be in vain today.

According to the telegram from the Third Task Force, after the repeated division of the Australian Grand Fleet last night, submarines and several tracking reconnaissance ships did not have time to follow up. It was not until the morning that 15 ships were out of sight, including eight vital main battleships.

In order to find these guys, Sparrow 6 and seven other partners who took off from the Raider training carrier were scattered into this sea, but it was not easy to find a sailing fleet at sea. The headquarters could only roughly calculate an area according to the speed of the other party last night, but it was also millions of square meters. The vast sea in it.

As the first three training carriers of the empire, the Assaulter and two sister ships played a major role in the defense of the empire at the beginning of the war, but because it was modified, when the new motherships continued to join the navy, it was no longer needed to take on front-line combat tasks.

Originally, it stayed in China as a training carrier with its companions, but because the empire lacked a base in this area, it only took Port Vila until recently, but Port Vila was far away and could not cover the whole of East Australia and New Zealand, so three training carriers began to be sent. In this sea area, Sparrow 6 was also deployed here with the mother ship as a supplement to the naval reconnaissance force.

To be honest, there is no more suitable reconnaissance force than training motherships. They themselves have a speed of about 25 knots and a range of 4,000 nautical miles. With Port Vila as the base, they can basically cover the whole waters of East Australia and New Zealand, and ordinary warships can't catch up at all. In addition, they can be carried when performing reconnaissance missions. Eight hummingbird long-range water reconnaissance aircraft, six bumblebees and six dragon tooth torpedo attack aircraft, even if they encounter fast small warships, they are enough to escape with their own strength.

However, this also brings trouble, because the aircraft carrier is too small. There are only two destroyers to escort, and the target at sea is small, so when there is poor visibility, long-distance flight is easy to get lost by radio navigation alone.

The two engines buzzed overhead, and the propeller broke through the clouds, forming a pale white cloud belt behind the fuselage. Of course, all of this can only be seen from the reflector.

"Captain, isn't it?" After reading the watch, the co-pilot also began to worry about the fuel.

"I know. Search forward for another 30 minutes. If you haven't found it, go back."

"Good." The co-pilot turned his head and said with a smile, "Lao San, you have to stare your eyes wide this time. Don't miss the cruiser like last time."

"Don't worry, deputy. I drink half a bottle of cod liver oil every day these days, and my eyes are good!"

The lookout, nicknamed Lao San, finished speaking. The co-pilot immediately opened his mouth, patted his forehead, and wailed, "Half a bottle? You're the mother, it's ruined!"

Xue Wei also laughed. Cod liver oil is a high-end product, and the army is also a quota supply. Pilots like him only have a small bottle a month, so he just drinks a few drops a day. This guy is good, half a bottle a day! It's really luxurious.

"No, Lao San, you are just like us, with a small bottle every month. Is it possible that Medical Officer Yang is your relative?" Another crew member was surprised and said, "I haven't heard of it."

Lao San scratched his head. After a long time, he giggled and hesitated and said, "Actually, I didn't drink what I sent before. I wanted to take it home to my sister. She is now in college and needs nutrition. I didn't expect that last time, hehe."

Xue Wei knew that when he attacked the New Hebrides Islands last time, Lao San missed a cruiser. As a result, he was almost rushed to the landing site. Fortunately, the submarine on the sea found it and only notified him to catch up. Although the weather was bad that day, he could not blame him, and the superior did not be held responsible, but he just felt that he did not see it clearly. I have always had pimples in my heart, so I made up my mind to save more than a year and drink the cod liver oil as water to protect everyone's eyes.

"Lao San, I don't have a few bottles left. You can take them back and bring them to your sister later."

"I also have it. Anyway, I'm not used to this taste. I heard that this thing is the best for my eyes, and now it's war, it's difficult to buy it in China. You can take it back with you."

"Ha ha, you don't have to."

"You're welcome. It's not for you, but for our sister. She goes to college for her eyes. She just needs it. If you feel sorry, why don't you wait for your sister to graduate and introduce her to me?"

" Captain, can you open the hatch?"

"Haha."

In the brisk laughter, Xue Wei looked at his watch again. Just as he was about to return, Lao San, who was even talking behind him, suddenly shouted: "Captain, three o'clock, two biplanes!"

Xue Wei looked at it quickly and saw only two black spots approaching quickly in the distance. He quickly shouted, "Everyone sit down, Lao San, determine the type of plane."

"It's like a camel, no, it must be a camel! Captain, they found us."

"Don't worry, they can't catch up with us." Almost at the same time as the third brother confirmed, Xue Wei knew that he had met a warship, because only the British and American camel F2 naval models that had just begun to be equipped could come here, so he immediately shouted, "Give me the plane to me. Please pay attention to search the sea. This time, you have to look carefully." After saying that, he immediately pushed the pole and rushed to the two camels head-on.

The speed of the camel F2 naval biplane is only 200 kilometers per hour, but the hummingbird can reach 400 kilometers at full speed, so when it was approaching, Xue Wei immediately turned away from the fuselage. Before the two camels made an interception, he had already rushed over and flew behind them.

It seemed to know that this would be the result. Although the two camels were not fast, they still chased after their buttocks. After 15 minutes of flying, the black smoke column suddenly jumped out of the sea level, which made Lao San excited.

"Captain, over there."

Following the third finger, Xue Wei also saw the smoke column, so it is indisputable that he began to fall to the height.

A moment later, a fleet appeared in front of everyone. Lao San saw that several camel F2s were taking off from a mother ship, and other warships next to them were also like enemies, and machine gun cannons began to rotate one after another.

"Illinois, I saw two old Illinois-class ships."

" Neptune, it's the British Neptune!"

"Confirm that there are three U.S. Omaha-class light cruisers."

"Confirm."

"Be careful, five o'clock, three camels!"

"Dad""

"Hop it firmly, hold it firmly, I want to speed up to get rid of them."

"Captain, the number is wrong. How many ships can't you see?"

"Then I'll fly low and go around a few more times."

"Be careful, 11 o'clock, cruiser quick-fire gun."

"I know, my eyes are wide open to me. I must count them. You grandma, hit me! Contact the mother ship and report that some of the lost fleet are being found. The location is 850 kilometers east of Norfolk Island, south latitude.

"Call, Sparrow No. 6 call, please answer when you hear it, please answer when you hear it!"

"Received, Bird's Nest received."

"Captain, they began to turn the rudder to the southwest."

"Sparrow Report No. 6, Location."

======="Lao Xiao, the reconnaissance aircraft found that it was 850 kilometers east of Norfolk Island, about 270 nautical miles away from us. When it was found, it headed north and seemed to be ready to go to the Fiji Islands, but now it has turned to the northeast."

With the telegram just received, Li Dingxin walked to Xiao Tianzhi. The two have been partners for many years. Since he, the former deputy captain of Beiyang Dingyuan, arrived in Ryukyu, the two began to work together, so they were very familiar with Xiao Tianzhi's temper. After point out the general position, they immediately continued in a low voice: "According to the preliminary investigation, only There is one Neptune and two old Illinois-class, but Delaware and Blerofone were not found, and I checked the number of all the ships currently under surveillance, and there are also four cruisers and all five W-class destroyers missing.

"Oh?!" Xiao Tianzhi's eyes suddenly exploded with cold light: "Are you sure?"

"Yes, the pilot is sure that they are not in the battle!" Li Dingxin circled the chart with his fingers and said, "According to the speed, these five main battleships should still be in this 160-mile circle. I have ordered the reconnaissance aircraft to expand the search, but it's time."

Xiao Tianzhi understands what he means. It's 3:00 p.m., that is to say, it is impossible to find the five disappeared battleships before the evening.

If it is one more night, the search difficulty will be dozens of times larger than now, and all the hummingbirds that can be mobilized by themselves are only more than 20. It is impossible to search for such a large range, so the search direction must be determined immediately now.

But the premise of this is that we must know where Clarkston's goal is, Nouméa or somewhere else, and now it is basically certain that these five capital ships are the real killing moves he threw.

"The battleship formation is currently on Raoul Island, and the nearest enemy fleet is only 120 nautical miles away. Why don't you let them fight first and force Clarkston out?" Li Dingxin suggested.

"No." Xiao Tianzhi waved his hand and rejected the suggestion. Clarkston used the division of troops to disturb his sight, and used the old battleships as bait. He also used two motherships to scare people. If the battleships were asked to intercept them, let alone how troublesome it would be to deal with so many fleets scattered within hundreds of nautical miles, and if They were scared to scatter and run away, especially the "disappearing" capital ships also fled together, and it would be troublesome to chase them again.

So what we need to make sure now is not to catch up with them, but to determine their goals!

Thinking of this, Xiao Tianzhi immediately looked at Li Dingxin and asked, "Guess, are they supporting Nouméa or preparing to leave?"

"The attack on Nouméa may be very large. Although the five battleships can do something, the United Kingdom and the United States are now afraid of our aircraft, and I asked the Second Task Force. The two marine regiments have landed in the port of Numea, so even if they gain a lot, they are likely to be entangled by us. "

Li Dingxin thought for a moment and continued: "From the course, they are facing the Fiji Islands, so I prefer them to leave."

"Is it?"

Xiao Tianzhi lay on the table and looked at the chart quietly. His eyes slowly stopped at Port Vila, 570 nautical miles north of Nouméa, which is now the imperial temporary base in the farthest end of the southwest Pacific and the base camp for attacking Nouméa. Will Clarkston choose?

But if you want to cross the periphery of Nouméa and go deep into Port Vila, is this guy too bold? It's not like his cautious and almost conservative style before!

Is Clarkston really that bold?

And even if he can shell Port Vila, what happens after that? Is it possible to follow the New Hebrides all the way back to the west coast of the United States? Or go straight to Solomon Islands to Rabaul and Daxia?

Just kidding!

Not to mention how many warships are waiting for him along the way, even if he is lucky to the sky, the endurance of the five battleships is not enough.

Therefore, after the attack, they will definitely turn back and converge the currently scattered main fleet, because their endurance is impossible to cross South America or Africa without resupply.

In this way, Clarkston did not intend to escape at all, so the Indian Grand Fleet did not cooperate with the operation, but since he did not escape, where was he going when he came out?

Xiao Tianzhi looked for it. There are not many places in the southwest Pacific Ocean for such a large fleet to anchor, or simply say that there is only one!

New Zealand!

"Clarkston is ready to go to New Zealand!"

"Go to New Zealand?"

"Yes, you see, the environment of Sydney Harbour, backed by Australia, is very good, but there is only one entrance to the sea. If you continue to park there, it will be dead. Clarkston must be clear about this.

He must also know our purpose, so he anchored and left, because he knew that as long as his fleet was in one day, we would not dare to land in East Australia wholeheartedly.

So he took a step back.

This is a key step!

From the perspective of the environment, New Zealand is a big island, and there is no lack of food and resources. It is much more difficult to block a small island like Nouméa. It can move on all sides, which is equivalent to increasing the scope of fleet activities. It can attack, retreat and defend, and even hide in the French Polynesian Islands if necessary.

"But if he retreats, he will retreat. Why did he come to Nouméa? Looking at your eyes just now, do you still suspect that he is going to Port Vila? Li Dingxin was puzzled.

"This is also what I thought was strange before, but now I think that he has to fight. If he doesn't send a fleet to make a show, the Noomea garrison will lose confidence. In less than half a month, it will be ours, so he must come, not only to give confidence to the Noomea garrison, but also to the Australian garrison. Otherwise, he patted his buttocks and ran away, emptying all the East Coast of Australia. Who will bear the responsibility?"

So he pretended to attack, and then retreated as the advance, telling the country that he had fought, but he had never fought. In this way, we can naturally withdraw the fleet to New Zealand. As long as we keep the fleet, we can't land in East Australia at ease. We must rely on the army to nibble from west to east, which is impossible before the end of the year. Take the whole of Australia.

It can't even be done in the first half of next year! This completes the purpose of procrastinating our pace and buying time for the agreement.

" hiss." After listening to the analysis, Li Dingxin also took a breath and said in surprise, "This doesn't look like Clarkston's mind. Is it Seymour?"

Xiao Tianzhi also frowned: "This is also my strange. Clarkston has always been known for his caution. Seymour must not dare to make such a desperate plan to escape from death, so I suspect that there is someone else!"

"So what should we do now?"

"Now?" Xiao Tianzhi suddenly raised the corners of his mouth, pointed his finger at a place, and said slowly, "I don't have any other skills, but my surname is Bigny, hehe, so we don't go back to Port Vila, and we don't go to Fiji. Let's wait for him here!"

"Wait here?" Li Dingxin was stunned for a moment, but when he saw Xiao Tianzhi's fingers, a trace of joy suddenly flashed on his face and nodded: "I see."

"Order the battleship formation to immediately move towards the Fiji Islands. Whether Clarkston goes to Nouméa or Port Vila, you must go here when you come back! Then let's give him a surprise here first and see how he plays tricks!"

"Yes!"

(to be continued)