Chapter 968: Barbarian Bull’s Conspiracy
The attack of the U.S. military on Oahu on the night of March 3rd, Hawaii time, gave the Japanese army a great shock!
First of all, the appearance of the "American warriors" who launched suicide attacks!
The Americans, who were originally thought to be greedy for life and afraid of death, are now driving planes full of bombs and incendiary bombs to hit Japanese airports... Since the Americans can do such an outrageous thing, will they drive planes to hit the expensive Yamato battleship?
Secondly, the U.S. carrier-based night fighters made the Japanese discover a major flaw in the air defense system of the Hawaiian Islands!
The Hawaiian Islands, or the entire Japan, do not have truly high-performance night fighters. Night fighters need to be equipped with airborne radars, and Japan has no way to produce the core components of high-performance airborne radars-in fact, even Germany cannot produce the best multi-cavity high-energy magnetrons now. Most of the multi-cavity high-energy magnetrons used in German radars are now imported from the UK. And the UK asked Germany not to transfer related technologies and components to Japan...until the Anglo-Japanese Peace Treaty was reached.
This request was very reasonable from the European point of view. Although Hirschmann gave Japan a break and exported 84 Me264 bombers equipped with multi-cavity high-energy magnetrons produced by Germany using British patented technology. However, Japan still could not mass-produce multi-cavity high-energy magnetrons - in fact, Japanese scientists have long been able to produce high-energy magnetrons in the laboratory, but being able to make them in the laboratory does not mean that they can be mass-produced.
So Japan not only did not have good airborne radars (Japan did have poor airborne radars), but it also did not have fire control radars that could be installed in the troops.
Therefore, in the night air battle on March 3, the Japanese Navy's Moonlight fighters were defeated 8:0, and they lost their temper.
In addition, the performance of the Japanese artillery on Oahu on the night of March 3 was also disappointing. Because it was difficult to use seaplanes to drop flares, the large-caliber artillery on Oahu could not hit the American destroyers at all, and they could only let them wander on the water 20 to 30 kilometers south of Pearl Harbor and Honolulu to cover the submarines laying mines underwater.
Therefore, General Yamashita Tomoyuki, who was in charge of commanding the Japanese army forces in the Hawaiian Islands, came to a conclusion. He believed that the Americans could use battleships and suicide planes to cooperate and destroy the numerous Japanese airfields on Oahu at night.
Once the airfields on Oahu were destroyed by the US military, the defense capabilities of the Hawaiian Islands would be greatly reduced - because 80% of the more than 2,000 shore-based aircraft deployed by Japan in the Hawaiian Islands were placed on Oahu.
If these aircraft lost the airfield, the US Navy Air Force only needed to suppress hundreds of Japanese aircraft to seize air supremacy over the Hawaiian Islands.
Without air supremacy, the fall of the Hawaiian Islands was only a matter of time. And the expected goal of inflicting a million casualties on the US military was also likely to be impossible to achieve.
Because the US military is not fighting for each island now, but directly attacking Oahu after capturing Palmyra Atoll and Midway Island... If this attack is not a feint, then the Japanese ground forces of only 50,000 on Oahu will not be able to cause 1 million casualties to the US military in any case, and I am afraid that even one-tenth of them may not be killed!
"If we lose Oahu, can we still hold on to the other islands in the Hawaiian Islands?"
At a meeting of the Imperial Headquarters held on March 5, Tokyo time, Ishihara Kanji, Vice Minister of the Japanese Army General Staff, asked loudly.
"We can hold it." Navy Vice Admiral Seiichi Ito frowned and replied, "At present, we have stationed heavy troops on the main islands of the Hawaiian Islands and Christmas Island, with a total naval and land force of more than 300,000. Moreover, each island has sufficient reserves and can independently hold out for more than 12 months."
"What about after 12 months?" Ishihara Kanji asked, "If we don't get supplies, will we all starve to death in 12 months?"
"That's not the case," Army Chief of Staff Sugiyama Gen answered for Ito Seiichi, "The Imperial Army has farmland on the Hawaiian Islands and Christmas Island..."
"Oh, by the way, the Imperial Army does farm." Ishihara Kanji said with a wry smile, "If the Americans take Oahu and no longer attack other islands, then more than 200,000 Imperial Army will farm in Hawaii? Does this make sense for the war situation?"
After listening to Ishihara Kanji's words, Yamamoto Fifty-roku and Ito Seiichi also felt that something was wrong.
It seems that the United States really does not need to take every island in the Hawaiian Islands one by one. As long as we can capture Oahu, we can circle the other islands with mines... If the Japanese want to develop pollution-free ecological agriculture on those islands, let them do it.
More than 200,000 Japanese devils working together to farm the land will not kill the US!
"Oahu is not that easy to attack," said Seiichi Ito. "We have a large number of coastal defense artillery on Oahu, including 18 twin-mounted 410mm armored turrets, which are enough to fight against the most powerful American battleships! In addition, the Army has deployed a tank brigade on Oahu, equipped with powerful Soviet-made T-34 tanks."
"But without the cover of the aviation force, the Americans can still use dive bombers to destroy the 18 armored turrets. It's nothing more than losing some aircraft." Ishihara Kanji shook his head repeatedly. "If the United States destroyed the airport on Oahu, Operation Z-1 would fail, so we can't just watch this happen."
This time, Seiichi Ito did not raise any different opinions, because after thinking about it, he also recognized Ishihara's judgment-the airport on Oahu cannot be destroyed, otherwise how many American troops can you fight with 50,000 defenders? 100,000? 200,000? 300,000?
How many American dive bombers can 18 armored turrets on Oahu take out? 200? 300?
This won't work!
Even if we do not consider the shore-based aircraft deployed by the United States on Midway Island and Palmyra Atoll, just talking about carrier-based aircraft, there are now at least 3,000 US aircraft carriers near the Hawaiian Islands.
Without the shore-based aircraft on Oahu, the hundreds of aircraft on other islands in the Hawaiian Islands and the hundreds of carrier-based aircraft of the Combined Fleet are no match for them.
And if the air superiority is gone, what is the use of the four Yamato-class tubes? Can it withstand a bombing by 1,000 American planes?
After all, the Japanese Navy does not have the perverted air defense capabilities of the US Navy!
"Your Excellency, Prime Minister, it seems that we can only prepare for the decisive battle in advance!" Yamamoto Isoroku also made a decision at this time. He said in a low tone to Tojo Hideki, who was presiding over the meeting: "I have to admit that the Americans have been prepared since the Panama Battle. They fought very smart, fully utilized their strengths, showed almost no flaws, and relied on their own strength to fight a tough battle with us. Although there is no truly outstanding command and strategy, it is very difficult to defeat such an enemy... The Hawaiian Islands. It’s going to be a tough fight!”
Yamamoto has now almost seen through the Americans. Their fighting methods are simple and crude. There is no such thing as luring the enemy, setting up ambushes, or surprise attacks. What they have is crushing them with strength. The fleet covering hundreds of square nautical miles pressed directly in front of Oahu. If it couldn't defeat the Japanese shore artillery during the day, it would attack at night. Airborne radars were installed everywhere like cabbage, turning carrier-based aircraft into night fighters. Magnetic mines were thrown into the sea for free, directly blocking Pearl Harbor. Not counting this, there are countless submarines running to the Western Pacific, the coast of Japan, and the Southeast Asian islands at the same time to drop water lasers and torpedoes. It is said that they are also deployed in Australia to be as powerful as the Me264 (actually, the B-29 is better than the Me-29). 264 powerful) long-range bombers are preparing to bomb the oil fields in Nanyang...
This series of combination punches forced Japan to change its original plan, abandon the "island consumption stage" and directly enter the "main island decisive battle stage".
…
"Sir, Task Force 51 reported that a large number of Japanese fighter planes were taking off on Oahu."
At 2 pm Hawaii time on March 4, Admiral Halsey, who was eating ice cream at the command post in the hot Palmyra Atoll, received a report of a Japanese fighter plane dispatching—it was discovered that the Japanese fighter plane dispatched was a ship in the Fletcher-class destroyer lingering near Oahu!
Because Pearl Harbor was sealed with mines the day before, the Japanese 8th Fleet was temporarily unable to come out, so that the American Fletcher-class destroyers could move freely in the waters near Oahu.
The radar on this class of destroyers happened to be used to shine over Oahu. As soon as the Japanese plane took off, Halsey got the report before the formation started.
In fact, there are not only Fletcher-class destroyers hanging around Oahu, but every island in the Hawaiian Islands that can build an airport, including Christmas Island, has American destroyers staring at it.
As soon as the Japanese plane took off, the Americans knew it immediately!
In addition, in order to ensure that the fleet of several hundred square nautical miles under his command would not be surprised by the Japanese, Halsey also mobilized hundreds of destroyers to set up a circular destroyer cordon outside the four task forces. In the waters west of Midway Island, Halsey also deployed a dispersed patrol group, which also formed a cordon.
At the same time, hundreds of Catalina seaplanes patrolled the skies around the U.S. fleet at all times to ensure that the fleet would not be attacked by the Japanese.
"Haha," Halsey smiled happily when he heard the report of Japanese fighter planes taking off, "The Japanese are finally coming to die!"
"Sir," Major General Callahan, chief of staff of the U.S. Central Pacific Command, seemed a little worried, "The Japanese suffered a lot in the Battle of Christmas Island. Maybe there will be some different tactics this time? And Japanese aircraft on the Hawaiian Islands The number is also much higher than that of Christmas Island.”
Halsey snorted softly: "It's nothing more than the loss of some ships. The key now is to exhaust Japan's aircraft and pilots in the Hawaiian Islands. As long as this goal is achieved, the loss of 100 ships does not matter.
And tonight, my fleet will go to Oahu again to destroy the airport. The Japanese aviation will not be arrogant for long! "