bullyxtreme Chapter 1080: Cross vs. 10
Chapter 1080: Cross vs. 10
One hour later, the first escort aircraft group had reached the time when it was time to return to the airport, otherwise they would not be able to return due to insufficient fuel. At this time, the second escort aircraft group had also arrived.
The escort mission was handed over to the second escort aircraft group.
"Dongdong 3, we'll be leaving now. You're in charge of this!" the captain of the first escort aircraft group said into the communicator.
"Understood, Dongdong is bright, wish you a safe return journey!"
On the sea, the ocean-going fleet is sailing westward at maximum speed, leaving this area.
However, sailing at maximum speed cannot be sustained for long, otherwise the fuel will not last until returning to port.
At this point, the ocean-going fleet had reached a speed of 22 knots, which is about 44 kilometers per hour, and is the maximum speed that the ocean-going fleet can currently achieve.
In the hour prior, the fleet had already left the area below where the air battle had taken place, but such a small area was far from enough to completely evade reconnaissance for the Japanese Zero fighters, whose combat radius reached 1900 kilometers.
"Captain, what should we do now? Should we follow the convoy? Or..." a pilot asked in the communication channel.
After thinking for a moment, Dongdong said, "The last two planes will turn around and follow the convoy for escort. The rest of you will stay with me. We'll fly towards Kaohsiung Port for a while, no more than half an hour. If we encounter any Japanese aircraft or reconnaissance planes, we'll take them out; if we don't, we'll return!"
"clear!"
The second escort aircraft group then split into two. Two of them broke away from the formation and followed the ocean convoy, circling and guarding the convoy at high altitude, while the other eight fighter jets continued to fly eastward.
After flying for about fifteen minutes, some small black dots appeared in the gaps between the white clouds ahead.
"Captain, is there a flock of birds ahead?" a pilot shouted into the communications channel.
Dongdong looked around and said with a serious expression, "No, it's definitely not a flock of birds. Birds can't fly that high. It must be a swarm of Japanese planes. Everyone, get ready for battle. The team will be divided into four parts, two groups, and meet the enemy in the pre-arranged formation. Be careful to use the clouds for cover. If conditions permit, we can launch a surprise attack on the enemy planes!"
"understand!"
"understand!"
As they drew closer, the pilots realized that what was coming from ahead was indeed a group of Japanese planes, a small squadron of 10, all Zero fighters.
The escort formation was equipped with P-47N fighters, which had a maximum speed of 759 km/h, while the Zero fighter had a maximum speed of 565 km/h. In terms of range, the P-47N also had a much greater range than the Zero. In terms of weight, the P-47N was almost three times that of the Zero. Therefore, each side had its own advantages and disadvantages.
Because of its lighter weight, the Zero fighter was much more agile than the P47N. However, the P47N was tough and had heavy cockpit armor and self-sealing fuel tanks, resulting in an extremely low casualty rate. Even if it was severely damaged, it could continue to fight. Because of its self-sealing fuel tanks, the fuel tanks could self-seal after being attacked and divert fuel to other fuel tanks and fuel lines, so the fuel tank fire rate was also quite low.
In terms of weaponry, the P47N was equipped with eight 12.7mm Browning machine guns with a magazine capacity of 3400 rounds, providing formidable sustained firepower.
The Zero fighter was different. In order to pursue agility and maneuverability, it was designed to be very small and light, weighing only 2.5 tons even when fully loaded. This made it completely defenseless, lacking pressurization and having weak firepower. It also lacked self-sealing fuel tanks, making it extremely vulnerable to damage, fire, and explosion after being attacked.
The Zero fighter was armed with two 20-meter cannons and two 7.7-millimeter machine guns, and was equipped with approximately 600 rounds of ammunition.
In terms of sustained firepower, the P47N fighter was far superior to the Zero fighter.
Zhang Yunhe's pilots had fought against Japanese fighter planes more than once or twice. They had long since figured out the strengths and weaknesses of the Zero fighter, and the P47N fighter was still very advantageous in dealing with the Zero fighter.
They have developed a set of tactics to deal with the Zero fighter, which involves using the P47N fighter's higher service ceiling to perform a series of maneuvers such as dive-attack-evasion, avoiding low-altitude dogfights with the Zero fighter, and fully leveraging the P47N fighter's survivability and powerful sustained firepower.
At this time, the escort group had 8 P47N fighters and the Japanese had 10 Zero fighters. The difference in numbers was not significant, but the difference in the survivability and firepower of the fighters was quite large.
8 vs 10, the advantage is in my hands!
"Brothers, two people per group, coordinate your attack, and fight according to the original tactics! Move out!" Dongdong shouted in the communication channel.
"receive"
"receive"
The escort formation employed a dive-attack-evade tactic, suppressing the Japanese aircraft from the outset. The Japanese fighters were forced to evade the dive attacks of the escort formation fighters and even attempted close-range dogfights. However, the escort formation pilots were already very experienced in this tactic and used it with great skill.
They never engaged the Japanese fighter planes in close combat. They opened fire as soon as they came down from high altitude. Because they had enough ammunition, they were not worried about running out of bullets. The machine guns kept spitting fire and firing bullets.
Since the Japanese warplanes were attacking, we had to evade them and even try to get close enough to get right up to them.
After completing their attack, the escorting squadron pilots immediately increased their throttle to escape the pursuit and entanglement of the Japanese Zero fighters at maximum speed. Because of their absolute speed advantage, the P47N fighters could easily escape the pursuit and entanglement of the Zero fighters after their dive attack, and then quickly climb up.
After getting rid of them, they quickly turned around and used the dive attack and escape tactics against the Japanese fighters again. This tactic had been very effective against the Japanese Zero fighters. The Japanese pilots knew that the opponent was going to launch a dive attack, but they just didn't have a good way to break this tactic and could only watch helplessly as their own or their team's fighters were shot down.
"They are fighter planes from Hong Kong. They flew for a long time before arriving, so they don't have much fuel. Although our losses are greater than theirs, as long as we hold on, they will panic when their fuel runs out and they can't return to the airport. The final victory will surely belong to us, Banzai!" The Japanese captain encouraged his men.
The other Japanese pilots shouted "Banzai!" over the communication channel.
The sounds of machine guns and cannons firing were constant, interspersed with the whistling of dive attacks, and every now and then the sound of Zero fighters being hit and exploding in mid-air could be heard.
Less than 15 minutes later, the battle was extremely fierce. The Japanese had lost 6 fighter planes, while the escort fleet had lost 3. The numbers on both sides were still not much different, and neither side dared to retreat easily. Retreating would mean exposing their backs to the enemy, which would be suicide.
At this point, it all comes down to who can hold out until the end.