Chapter 283 slipped away
For a time, the two F4EJs were in a dilemma.
Under such an absolute numerical disadvantage, it takes courage to continue the confrontation.
But after all, they were the ones who took the initiative just now and rushed towards us in a menacing manner. If they turned around and ran away without even seeing each other now, it would seem too embarrassing...
Kato Hikaru initially thought about whether to request reinforcements from the 302nd Air Force at Naha Base.
However, the current deployment of air forces still follows Cold War habits. The aviation units located in the southwest are not elite and their combat readiness level is relatively low.
Considering that the base is still about 400 kilometers away from this airspace, even if reinforcements are sent, it will probably take about half an hour to arrive.
If you want to take off the F15J with better performance, it may take longer.
According to the current speed at which the two sides are flying towards each other, visual contact will enter in three minutes at most. Even if everyone maintains restraint, they will be 2 versus 8...
At the end of the day, you can't take advantage.
Furthermore, the fuel consumption of fighter jets during violent maneuvers is much higher than that of normal level flight. Before reinforcements arrive, both sides may have withdrawn their troops.
In the cockpit, Kato Kuzuo secretly cursed the ground radar station that had just provided him with target information for being unreliable.
What they said about “only three large planes” was really believed in their lies.
At this moment of confusion, the voice of the wingman pilot came over his radio:
“Could this be their trap from the beginning?”
“What trap?”
One sentence made Kato Koichi, who was already in a state of facing fewer enemies and more, even more nervous.
"This...I can't say, maybe they want to introduce us to fighting within visual range, and then rely on the numerical advantage to prevent us from flying back, or use a camera gun to take a few photos of us being bitten, you know, in This situation is difficult to avoid in a melee.”
If Kato can be a little calmer, he should be able to hear that the wingman has no clue about this and is just guessing now.
But the content of the other party's wild guess hit exactly what the former was most worried about.
“The Self-Defense Forces are essentially government agencies, while the Self-Defense Officers are essentially civil servants.”
This sentence is not only describing their training level, but also describing their organization method and operating logic.
It's a mistake to do too much, and it's good not to do anything.
If what the wingman just said really happened, Kato would have to bear the blame.
Thinking of this, he suddenly felt that it would not be a shame to turn around and go back...
But before that, the posture and preparations for passing the blame still need to be sufficient.
“The opponent has a huge numerical advantage, and your concerns are indeed justified.”
Kato slightly pulled the throttle with his left hand to continue decelerating the aircraft, and at the same time changed the flight direction slightly to avoid a head-on collision with the opponent's aircraft group shown on the radar:
"We can't fight them now, call for reinforcements, and delay for a while."
He knew that all conversations would be recorded by the onboard equipment, which could be used as a tool for him to explain his actions if there was any trouble later.
After saying this, Kato adjusted the airborne radio to the satellite communication channel and prepared to communicate with the Naha base behind.
“Base, this is COSMO356. The situation you reported just now is wrong. We found 8 more Chinese fighter jets near that large aircraft. They are presumed to be J-8s. Please support us!”
However, a few seconds passed, but no reply was received on the radio.
Aware that the situation was getting increasingly out of control, Kato endured his inner uneasiness and called again.
Still no response.
At this time, Yamamoto Kaku's voice came from behind:
“It appears that our satellite communications are being interfered with?”
“How is it possible? This is communication equipment that was just upgraded last year. Compared with before, the frequency band was even specially switched.”
Kato Hikaru subconsciously denied this statement.
But it seems that no other explanation can be found.
After a few seconds of hesitation, he asked his wingman to try calling again.
There was also no response.
"What the hell..." Kato Koichi was able to persist at a 2 vs. 8 disadvantage before, mainly because he had the support of two flying teams behind him. The range and overall performance of the F4EJ exceed that of China's main model J-6 and J-7, not to mention the slightly distant Nittahara base and the world's most advanced F15J, which have absolute advantages in terms of quantity and performance.
But now, for whatever reason, this advantage no longer exists.
On the radar, the Chinese fleet is only less than 30 kilometers away from its own two-plane formation...
“This is over the high seas, we are training normally, it's just an accidental encounter.”
“As long as we fly back safely, no one will know what happened here.”
As the saying goes, nothing is difficult in the world, as long as you are willing to give up. After some mental construction, Kato Koichi convinced himself to forget about the thoughts he had when he came to find trouble about twenty minutes ago, and then took a deep breath:
“Let's return.”
The two planes performed a 90° roll simultaneously, then turned rapidly and deviated from their original route.
At the same time, dozens of kilometers away, the SouShui 2000 radar on the Yun 8J immediately captured the opponent's movements.
“They retreated.”
Shen Tao also heard the report coming from the back cabin.
“Are you really scared away?”
This is a quite surprising result. In fact, he was even ready to make visual contact with two F4EJs just now.
As a result, the other party suddenly became timid.
As a veteran Hainan Airlines pilot, Shen Tao has naturally had contact with the Air Self-Defense Force.
Although the training level is far inferior to that of the US military, so that experienced radar soldiers can distinguish whether the target is an F15J or an F15C just by looking at the track, but no matter what, relying on more advanced weapons and equipment and the old father behind him as a backup, Kong Zizi has brought a lot of trouble to China's aviation forces in the past few years.
It was indeed the first time that he had seen this kind of situation where the two parties turned around and ran away without even seeing each other.
Haven't even heard of it before.
As a result, today, a chance encounter that was considered unexpected for both parties actually revealed the other party's original shape.
Such a difference made Shen Tao think about whether the passive defense strategy in the past was a little too conservative.
Although the performance of the electronic warfare aircraft was indeed very good, in the previous confrontation exercise, the radar on the Y-8J was rendered useless. Presumably, the two other aircraft also suffered similar interference.
However, this is definitely not a reason to run away from the enemy.
Attributing the reason to the lack of courage of the opponent's pilots seems to be slightly more reasonable, and it is also more in line with the writing habits of our army's post-war summary.
But Shen Tao has a deeper idea about this—
A well-known senior general of our army once said that if the commander does not understand the environment and is not prepared for the enemy's attack when the enemy suddenly attacks, then even if he is usually brave, he will be helpless and have to do three things. Of the sixteen strategies, running is the best strategy.
In his opinion, this is the core of the problem.
Hong Kong has no plans or preparations to deal with emergencies like today.
They have better radars and more early warning aircraft to provide more complete air surveillance capabilities, but in essence, their adaptability is quite average.
In the final analysis, the other side has always been fully prepared to take the initiative to provoke, while China is in a relatively passive situation.
But this time, the offense and defense have changed.
So, if we can take more proactive sorties like today (actually it can only be regarded as normal maritime training), will it be able to disrupt air self-sufficiency and reduce the sea and air pressure faced by the eastern direction?
Shen Tao gritted his teeth and decided to start writing as soon as he returned.
Of course the flight commander alone cannot make a decision on this kind of thing.
But a report from a flight commander can make more people start thinking about this issue.
(End of this chapter)
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