Capítulo 1710: Chapter 1627: Sudden Anti-Ship Missile Attack
Even the four aircraft carriers heading south were not at full capacity, as they each carried only about 40 carrier-based aircraft, totaling about 170. Excluding early warning aircraft and helicopters, the actual combat force was only about 120.
Accompanying the aircraft carriers heading south were 16 destroyers, 4 cruisers, and 8 supply ships. These vessels had all undergone maintenance and resupply, with high morale and ample ammunition and fuel.
However, the Tang Army had an absolute technological advantage, and their aircraft carriers’ combat power was completely unmatched by the opposition.
With satellite intelligence support, the Tang Army fleet could be said to be directly advancing towards the Allied Forces fleet, while the Allied Fleet was unaware they were already under surveillance.
This naval battle, which almost decided the sea power of the Endless Sea, erupted abruptly, with one side’s commanders not even remotely prepared.
From the fleet commander to the on-duty officers below, to the idle sailors on the deck, no one knew that the Tang Army fleet had already launched Intruder attack aircraft, two to three hundred kiloters away on the sea surface.
No alarms went off, and the entire fleet maintained a slow formation speed of just over 20 kiloters. They never imagined that the Tang Army fleet would suddenly move south to this location, nor did they have any defensive asures in place.
The forward patrol destroyer did spot planes overhead, but they soon discovered their communications were completely disrupted. They detected the Tang Army aircraft mainly through visual observation, not radar detection.
To ensure radio silence, the Allied warships usually did not turn on their radios, so they were completely unaware they were being jamd.
When the first anti-ship missile from the Tang Army hit its target, a splendid fire blossod on the side of a battleship, making everyone rember that war had seemingly broken out two or three months ago.
Finally, soone turned on the radio, trying to warn allied forces of the attack. But by that ti, they discovered their radio channels were already being jamd.
One by one, the radars on the warships were turned on, and the radar operators were surprised to find interference signals all over their radar screens.
On the screens of more advanced radars, there was noise, making it impossible to see anything. On the older radars, the signal lines wavered as exaggeratedly as if recording an earthquake.
By this ti, several warships had been hit by anti-ship missiles from who knows where, and a cruiser had already started to explode and list.
The hit warships exploded into flas. Larger ones like battleships seed sowhat composed, but the less sturdy cruisers and destroyers were much more unfortunate.
Luckier ones were rely on fire and seed still capable of continuing to fight; the less fortunate ones were engulfed in flas, on the verge of sinking.
The fleet commander rushed out of his cabin, buttoning his uniform as he walked into the command cabin. He had just arrived when he was inford a carrier had been hit by a missile and was on fire.
“What about the patrol aircraft? Any news?” He looked at the officer responsible for contacting the carrier, as the flagship of the Elf Fleet was chosen based on the need to ensure the commander-in-chief’s safety.
“Our communications are jamd, and no ssage has co back.” The poor officer reluctantly answered, “The reconnaissance planes might have been shot down.”
The Elves also received naval battle intelligence from the Dorne Navy. They vaguely knew that the Tang Army aircraft had radar support that allowed them to shoot down enemy planes from a distance, making it almost a normal occurrence that no news ca from the reconnaissance plane units.
After hearing that one of their own carriers had been set on fire, the Elf naval leader imdiately ordered the deploynt of the carrier aircraft from the other carriers: “Launch all aircraft! I need to find the enemy fleet’s position!”
“Load all bombs! If they find the enemy, they should attack whenever they have the chance! If they can’t find the enemy, then our situation doesn’t look too promising,” he said, glancing at the nautical charts, feeling that this ti their Allied Fleet stood little chance of victory.
On the other side of the fleet, a Dwarf battleship was also struck by a missile, and all Dwarf navy soldiers had already sprung into action, so rescuing the warship and others rushing to their positions, aiming anti-aircraft guns at the distant sky.
“Missile incoming!” an eagle-eyed officer shouted, pointing into the sky at the Tang Army’s missile.
With his shout, the anti-aircraft guns nearby began spewing fla tongues. Tracer bullets flew into the sky, weaving an exaggerated web of fire.
But, ultimately, it was all in vain as the dense cannon fire remained helpless against the missiles. The missile easily skimd over the battleship’s top, hitting another warship accelerating on the other side.
That was a cruiser, and its hull was pierced in the middle by the missile. Seconds later, its second funnel suddenly billowed thick black smoke, and the flas visibly spiraled out of control.
Huge flas erupted from the missile hit site, with firefighting personnel helplessly using water hoses to try and suppress them.
The Dwarves attempted to contact the nearby Elf Fleet, but they encountered the sa problem: their communication channels were filled with static, and none of their electronic devices seed to work.
However, since the two fleets were very close, nearby vessels established contact using signals and lights, knowing they had been attacked but being equally powerless.
About 20 minutes after the Tang Army’s first missile attack, the Dwarves launched their first carrier-based fighter jet. It took another ten minutes for the Elves to launch their first aircraft, which was a torpedo-ard attack plane.
The entire fleet’s speed increased to over 40 kiloters, leaving behind the battle-damaged warships that couldn’t keep up, as well as the tankers and supply ships unable to accelerate.
Radio silence had also been broken, with the Allied Fleet repeatedly sending ssages to the still-unassembled Dorne Fleet, warning them that a naval battle had begun.
As the battle raged on, many Allied ships had already sunk, yet no one knew where the Tang Army’s fleet was or how their own forces had been discovered.
Of course, the Allied Forces still believed there was hope for a coback: they had one fleet that hadn’t been discovered yet, and perhaps Dorne’s fleet could turn the tide! They hoped that the hidden Dorne fleet could succeed in a surprise attack, dramatically changing the battlefield situation in one stroke.
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Two updates today.
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