Chapter 184 The Missing Submarine
.On the afternoon of the 9th, after fulfilling all responsibilities and burning all confidential documents, the last group of US troops in Hamxing surrendered to the Volunteers.
The fierce battle that lasted for three days and three nights was finally temporarily declared over.
Although the battlefield was not calm, for example, the 16th Army began to pursue the First Marine Division that withdrew Jince as ordered, and the South Korean army was still attacking Dingping, but the large-scale battle between the Volunteer Army and the US army had been temporarily terminated. Both sides were mobilizing troops to accumulate strength and prepare for the next decisive battle.
At that time, the one who fought the most fiercely was Dingping.
Regardless of whether the Korean army's attack was effective or not, in order to prevent the volunteer army from advancing to Yuanshan, the Korean army had to cheer up and continue to stand on the airborne positions.
Fortunately, the airborne troops are not fighting alone.
After the Sixty-Fifth Army captured Xianzhou, the ground transportation line with Dingping was opened, which not only allowed the transportation of materials, but also allowed the troops to be replenished. However, for long-term considerations, Huang Zhibo did not ask the Sixty-Fifth Army to replace the 15th Airborne Army, but only asked the logistics support troops to deliver the ammunition and medicine that the airborne troops were urgently needed, and also transferred an armored battalion from the Sixty-Fifth Army to assist the airborne troops in combat.
According to the plan, the 65th Army will rest in Xianzhou, and replace the light armored division of the 16th Army guarding villages and towns such as Shangcangli on the night of the 19th. At the same time, the 39th Army will also rest in Hamxing, and only send a relatively complete tank battalion to assist the 16th Army in advancing to Jince.
In the evening, Mu Haoyang and Lu Wen and other technical officers arrived in Xianxing and followed the logistics support troops to return to the rear.
During dinner, Qi Kaiwei found Zhou Yusheng.
Because large-scale ground wars have almost nothing to do with the navy, Zhou Yusheng did not participate in the command work.
After a few days, Zhou Yusheng, in addition to occasionally doing something that should have been done by Mu Haoyang, the most he did was to try to figure out the whereabouts of the "Sea Dragon" and the "Sea Snake".
After ambushing the US amphibious assault fleet, the two submarines lost contact with the rear.
Although reason told Zhou Yusheng that the "Sea Dragon" and "Sea Snake" had been killed and could not escape the US anti-submarine network, he still had a glimmer of hope before receiving the exact news. If the submarine was only damaged, it was likely to sink to the bottom of the sea and could float back to the surface.
During World War II, a German U-boat resurfaced after three days of sinking.
However, if the Navy wants to find out whether the two submarines were sunk by the US military, the Navy cannot do so, it must rely on the intelligence department.
After a few days, Zhou Yusheng made more than a dozen calls to Li Mingyang every day, which made Li Mingyang very impatient. The second division was not specifically for searching for missing submarines for the navy.
However, Zhou Yusheng's efforts were not in vain.
On the first day of the war, on the morning of the 17th, the Second Department received the first intelligence confirming that the US military discovered two conventional submarines of the Chinese Navy near the waters of the amphibious assault fleet, and in the subsequent anti-submarine warfare, they sank the two submarines one after another.
Now, Zhou Yusheng was desperate.
But before noon, the second department sent another message, modifying the information, that is, the US military did not sink the submarine.
Zhou Yusheng was very confused and even lost his temper at Li Mingyang, believing that the Second Department was not reliable in doing things. However, since the Second Department revised the information, it showed that the "Sea Dragon" and "Sea Snake" still had the possibility of survival.
Although he served in the submarine force for more than ten years and was once the captain of a nuclear submarine, the rest of his waiting still made Zhou Yusheng feel that he was living like a year. No one knew when the Second Department could get the exact information, so after a few days, Zhou Yusheng almost never met.
It’s not that he doesn’t want to sleep, but that he can’t sleep.
On the night of the 18th, the Second Department sent the third piece of information, and it was a very detailed piece of information.
The US military did discover two conventional submarines of the Chinese Navy, and used more than a dozen anti-submarine helicopters, several anti-submarine warships and several anti-submarine patrol aircraft to siege one of them. After using several torpedoes in succession, it sank the submarine and finally dropped several deep-water bombs.
Judging from the sea areas mentioned in the intelligence, it should be the "Sea Dragon".
An important evidence is that the US anti-submarine helicopters caught some things from the People's Army Navy submarine forces in the submarine sinking waters, including a "Excellent Battle Award Flag". This award flag was personally awarded by the People's Army Navy Commander after the "Hailong" arrived at Qingjin Port. As for the items of the People's Army Navy submarine forces on the submarine, they were specially sent to the submarines at Qingjin Port.
Now, there is nothing to doubt, the "Sea Dragon" must have sunk.
However, the intelligence did not clearly mention whether the US military had sunk another submarine.
The intelligence only mentioned that the US military carried out large-scale anti-submarine operations south of the amphibious assault fleet. The anti-submarine helicopters dropped several torpedoes and found items inside the submarine on the sea. However, on the most important issue, it was very vague, that is, the submarine sinking location was not mentioned. The most important thing was that the US military's anti-submarine warships and anti-submarine patrol aircraft participated in the battle.
There are only two possibilities: one is that before the anti-submarine warships and anti-submarine patrol aircraft arrives, the anti-submarine helicopter sinks the submarine, and the other is that before the anti-submarine warships and anti-submarine patrol aircraft arrives, the submarine flees.
Because it was not clearly mentioned whether the submarine was sunk, Zhou Yusheng was more willing to believe in the latter possibility.
Wang Yuhan is a very outstanding submarine captain. If it weren't for the political review, he would have been likely to become the captain of a nuclear submarine. Compared with Safimo, Wang Yuhan is more stable and knows how to retreat when he sees difficulties. He is definitely not the kind of submarine commander who likes to take risks.
Although this cautious attitude makes people think that he is unprofitable, it is more popular among submarine officers and soldiers and gives him a better chance to escape when he encounters danger.
A few hours later, the Second Department sent the fourth piece of information.
This time it was sent by Li Mingyang himself. The news was very accurate. The US military could not confirm that it had sunk the second submarine because the wreckage of the submarine was not found in the combat waters. According to Li Mingyang, the intelligence was obtained from the coalition command, and the person who provided the information must be a senior officer.
Zhou Yu breathed a sigh of relief now.
However, this does not mean that the "Sea Snake" has escaped.
It is obvious that when avoiding the torpedo dropped by US anti-submarine helicopters, the "Sea Snake" failed to escape unsuccessfully and would definitely be injured by torpedoes. If the injuries are serious, even if the "Sea Snake" can escape from the battlefield, it may not be able to return safely, because in the Japanese Sea, the "Sea Snake" must not float to the surface. If it has been sailing underwater, it may sink due to severe water inlets at any time.
But, no matter what, at least the "Sea Snake" escaped.
On the morning of the 9th, Zhou Yusheng wanted to find Huang Zhibo several times, hoping to mobilize some forces to search for the "Sea Snake". At least a few patrol planes should be sent to East Korea Bay.
But he still held back. After all, Huang Zhibo would not delay the ground fighting for a submarine.
After lunch, Zhou Yusheng found Li Mingyang who came to report the situation and hoped that the Second Department would provide some help. Li Mingyang agreed very readily, but did not make any guarantee. After all, the Second Department was just an intelligence agency and could only use spy personnel, and could not send search forces to the Sea of Japan.
Since Li Mingyang agreed to help, Zhou Yusheng had to wait and deal with other things.
Now, what he needs to deal with the most is the second batch of six conventional submarines sent to the Sea of Japan.
Although these six submarines are not advanced enough, four of which are Type 039 and two are Type 636. Only one Type 039 has participated in combat operations on the Yellow Sea, and the other five have been on the battlefield for the first time, but it is better than none. Moreover, these six submarines have successfully entered the Sea of Japan and are not discovered by the coalition forces.
As a naval combat staff officer, Zhou Yusheng had to find something to do for these submarines.
According to his idea, after dinner, he went to Qi Kaiwei. If necessary, he had to talk to Huang Zhibo. The Army had already shown the limelight and the 71st Special Mixed Fleet would arrive. In the case where the Air Force could not sustain, the Navy became the only way to deal with the US fleet.
As a result, Qi Kaiwei came to him on his own initiative.
"I'm going to find you."
"What are you doing? Want to ask me for a task?"
Zhou Yusheng smiled and said, "The 71st Special Mixed Fleet is coming soon. It should be a good idea to let the Navy taste some sweetness."
"You think beautifully."
"Old Qi, you..."
"I'm kidding you, if it's okay, I won't come to you." Qi Kaiwei smiled and said, "It was the commander-in-chief who asked me to come to you, and I'm discussing with you about dealing with the 71st Special Intermediate Fleet."
"The Commander-in-Chief wants to kill the 71st Special Mixed Fleet?"
"No, but look at the opportunity." Qi Kaiwei paused for a moment and said, "The First Marine Division retreated. The commander-in-chief believed that after the 71st Special Mixed Fleet arrived, the US military would board the ship in Jince and retreat from the sea. If possible, we have to try to prevent the US military from retreating."
"The army won't fight?"
"Fight, but the US military is hiding in Jince Port, and the ground attack is very difficult. Moreover, until now, several main armies have suffered major losses. If they fight against Jince, they will not be able to fight Yuanshan."
“That is, let’s attack the transport fleet?”
"That's what it means, can it be done?"
"If there is no 71st Special Mixed Fleet, there is no big problem."
Qi Kaiwei glanced at Zhou Yusheng and said, "There are many opportunities to kill the 71st Special Mixed Fleet, but there is only one chance to kill the First Land Warrior at sea."
"Old Qi, it's useless to say that. As long as there is the 71st Special Mixed Fleet, it will be difficult for submarines to get close to the transport fleet."
"You mean, you have to deal with the 71st Special Mixed Fleet first?"
"After arriving at the battlefield, the 71st Fleet will definitely spend a lot of energy on our submarines, and will not send a transport fleet until the sea route is unobstructed. Think about it, if we have the ability to deal with the transport fleet, we will definitely have the ability to deal with the 71st Fleet. In other words, if we can kill the 71st Fleet, the US military will not be able to escape by sea."
Qi Kaiwei nodded, indicating that he understood Zhou Yusheng's meaning.
"Of course, if you only deal with the transport fleet, there is no way, but I can't make a guarantee."
"I will consider your suggestion, but does the submarine have a way to deal with the 71st Fleet?"
"There must be a solution, but I need one."
"who?"
"Col. Lu Wen."
Qi Kaiwei was stunned for a moment and said, "She and Major Mu Haoyang are rushing back and will arrive tomorrow night."
"Then I'll go to Jiangjie to wait for them."
Chapter completed!