Tokyo Detective

Chapter 609 The Air Battle of the Century (Long Chapter)
"30 kilometers away"

"Only 30 kilometers?"

Upon hearing that the distance was only 30 kilometers, Commander Nathan on the aircraft carrier felt a pang of anxiety. This was his first real air battle commanded, and also his first time fighting in a storm-like area comparable to a typhoon.

Nathan felt like he was walking a tightrope, with the possibility of his demise at any moment.

The deputy commander then spoke up.

"Commander, should we have them withdraw? With the oil corps helping with air defense, we'll have the advantage."

"What if the enemy retreats?"

"Surrounded by the Mediterranean Sea, where can they escape to—Gibraltar, the Red Sea, the Black Sea?"

"Can you guarantee they can't retreat? It's like they appeared behind us without a sound; these people are practically ghosts."

"."

The two men locked eyes, and the deputy commander was speechless, having already understood the commander's meaning.

Five submarines were suspected to have been sunk. As the fleet commander, he had no way to retreat. If he could defeat the enemy, he could atone for his mistakes and even be promoted.

But if the enemy fleet really disappeared, Nathan would definitely face a court-martial, or even be imprisoned for the rest of his life.

After all, this is the only time since America's founding that five nuclear-powered submarines have been sunk, and the waters have also been suspected of being polluted. Nathan is the perfect scapegoat and America's culprit.

"I understand."

Nathan breathed a sigh of relief when he saw that the deputy commander had finally given in. He was really worried that the deputy commander would hold him back, which would make the situation much worse.

"Inform our elite forces that their fighter jets are equipped with the latest G8 infrared system. Their purpose is to destroy the terrorists' stealth systems. Victory is imperative."

"Yes."

In the pitch-black storm clouds, even if two fighter jet formations are only 30 kilometers apart and their meeting lasts for a maximum of a few dozen seconds, the reconnaissance system is still severely affected.

For example, even with the help of early warning aircraft, the radar would still occasionally lose the number of targets on Naoki Hanyu's side, sometimes showing 180, sometimes 198, and the most exaggerated was 168.

America's fighter jets weren't much better off; their infrared readings showed only 20 to 40 enemy aircraft, not all of them, making them even worse off than Naoki Hanyu's side.

Only when the distance gets closer will the data detected by both sides be more accurate.

So both sides had a tacit understanding: to engage in a close-range dogfight.

Naoki Hanyu's righteous alter ego, acting as the temporary captain, already had a plan from the moment he entered the storm area.

"Everyone, proceed according to the plan and disperse."

"Yes."

"Let's go on a killing spree!"

The 55 fighter jets were divided into 11 squadrons of 5 each, spreading out from the four directions: left, right, top, and bottom. They were going to use their storm-adaptive advantage to fight this battle.

On America's side, orders were also issued from the air combat command center on the aircraft carrier.

"Don't let enemy planes gain the upper hand."

"Yes, all fighter jets will be divided into six squadrons to pursue the enemy. AIM-9X short-range infrared air-to-air missiles will be launched."

America's side launched missiles first, but the enemy's actions soon made them frown.

The infrared system showed numerous infrared sources, presumably thermal decoys.

However, in the storm, they had difficulty distinguishing between heat decoys and fighter jets, and it was clear that the enemy had come prepared.

"Boom boom boom boom boom"

Explosions continued, but America couldn't confirm how many enemy planes were destroyed, or if any were destroyed at all.

"Keep your grip on them tightly."

A squadron of fighter jets ascended in an attempt to pursue an enemy aircraft that was also ascending. However, the weather inside the storm was extremely bad. Strong winds and turbulence could cause the fighter jets to collide. Even if they did not collide, the fact that the entire fighter jet was being blown around and swaying was very uncomfortable.

The most terrifying thing was the icy clouds. A squadron of more than 30 F-35 fighter jets unknowingly crashed into the icy clouds, their attention overshadowed by tension.

Soon, ice began to form on the surface of the F-35 fighter jet. Due to the extremely high speed of the aircraft, the ice gradually broke off until it hit the engine, causing a "foreign object damage incident".

"boom."

"Drip drip drip"

Within five seconds, the two fighter jets crashed one after the other, completely losing power. The ice on their surfaces was clearly visible, which shocked everyone. It turned out that their fighter jets were also freezing.

Do storms in the Mediterranean have such a powerful effect on ice accumulation?
Normal storms don't have this intensity, because this is a storm that Hanyu Naoki intensified to the point of being comparable to a typhoon.

"Evacuate this area, quickly."

"Be careful of the angle, don't let the ice hit the engine again."

The icing effect further reduced the performance of all fighter jets, and there was even a possibility of them going out of control.

Just then, a pilot suddenly shouted.

"Enemy planes are starting to dive. Watch out, something's wrong, they're so fast!"

The detected target was already approaching Mach 2 per hour, a speed that seemed unlike that of an F-35 fighter jet. The F-35's fastest speed is only Mach 1.6, and it cannot maintain that speed for more than a minute.

But now it's flying at Mach 2. Is this still the F-35 fighter jet they detected?
"Be careful, don't expose your head to enemy aircraft."

"So fast."

Overhead, ten F-35 fighter jets swooped down through the ice, moving at lightning speed. This was thanks to the 20% stat boost provided by the Ocean Overlord skill, which boosted the F-35s to a top speed of Mach 1.95 and maintained it for three minutes.

As for the aircraft accelerating due to gravity during its dive, the fighter jet's speed has already exceeded Mach 2.

"AIM-9X Sidewinder launched."

The Mach 2.5 Sidewinder missiles detached from the fighter jets and flew toward their respective targets.

"No"

"fight back."

"Boom boom boom boom boom boom"

Some of America's fighter jets were shot down before they could even retaliate, while others were shot down after launching missiles.

The wreckage and flames fell into the sea like meteors through the clouds. Of the more than 30 fighters that dove, only 9 remained, which filled America's fighters with both fear and anger.

"Stick to the other person and don't lose track of them."

The remaining Aramco fighters followed suit, diving to try and catch up with the passing Hanyu fighters, and also continuously firing Sidewinder missiles.

However, it is extremely difficult for a Mach 2.5 missile to hit a Mach 2 fighter jet.

"Boom boom boom boom boom"

The Yuzuru fighter jet changed direction again and rushed towards the enemy aircraft. The speed of the turn surprised the American pilot. Was this an effect that a fighter jet could achieve?

Regardless, the two sides exchanged missile fire.

"Boom boom boom boom boom"

"Plasma Shield"

One by one, blue energy shields appeared and remained in place, attracting missiles to be hit.

The results came quickly: all of Amei's aircraft were shot down, while Naoki Hanyu lost one F-35. In addition, the enemy had just destroyed a Super Hornet with a volley of missiles. Now, Hanyu's fighter squadron has lost two aircraft, even though it has shot down more than 30 enemy aircraft.

American fighter jets split into five teams to pursue the enemy, and this air battle is far from over.

The powerful turbulence forced an American fighter jet to sway wildly, almost causing it to collide with a friendly aircraft. This frightened them into spreading their formation even further, which was the perfect opportunity for the Yuzuru fighter jet, hidden in the clouds, to hunt down the enemy.

The missile was launched, and the American fighter jets detected it immediately.

"Missile attack, be careful."

"fight back."

The American side launched missiles that disappeared into the thick clouds, while their own side suffered casualties.

And so, more than 250 fighter jets chased each other in the storm, with wreckage of fighter jets falling into the sea from time to time, some belonging to America's side and some to Naoki Hanyu.

However, the total number of aircraft has not yet exceeded 60, so the two sides are still locked in combat.

This was also part of Naoki Hanyu's plan, and pilot Ami was facing a deadly crisis.

"vomit"

Vomiting sounds came through the communications, and soon the American fighter squadron couldn't hold on any longer. It wasn't because of heavy casualties, but because the pilots' stress tolerance had reached its limit.

After all, pilots need to maintain shooting accuracy while continuously operating under 9G overload and turbulence, so they are constantly on edge, and eventually their bodies can't take it anymore in such harsh conditions.

With a third of the pilots either vomiting or pale, the commander of the Amer Air Combat Command also looked pale; he had anticipated the dire situation.

"Quickly leave the storm layer and descend."

"Yes."

The American fighter jets did want to descend, even if they were at a disadvantage due to enemy aircraft occupying high altitude, it was better than everyone's bodies collapsing.

However, Naoki Hanyu's air force will not let the enemy escape.

"Hunting begins, everyone enter supersonic mode."

51 fighter jets launched a general attack on 146 enemy aircraft at Mach 2. This time, there was no playing hide-and-seek; it was a direct head-on battle.

Each of the clones possesses superhuman physical abilities, exceptional mental strength, and unparalleled focus, making them far superior to enemy pilots who can barely utilize half of their combat capabilities.

Faced with the attack from Hanyu's fighter jet, the American pilots who were caught in the attack uttered their last words: "Damn it."

"I'll fight with you."

"what"

"Boom boom boom boom boom boom boom boom"

The air battle lasted for eight minutes, and in the end, America only had 17 F-35 fighters that escaped at low altitude, while Naoki Hanyu's fighter group followed behind.

The battle was over. After more than 10 minutes of aerial combat, America's side lost 189 aircraft of various types, while Naoki Hanyu lost 8 aircraft, including 5 F-35s and 3 Super Hornets. This was Naoki Hanyu's worst loss ever.

However, the results were also outstanding, as they destroyed America's fighter jets equipped with targeted weapon systems.

Naoki Hanyu renamed the aircraft carrier headquarters "Sea King." He looked at the only enemy target on the map, the most difficult to deal with: the dual-carrier strike group.

Although the anti-aircraft firepower of the nearly 10 cruisers and destroyers was strong, the enemy was now like a wild beast without vision, waiting for him, the hunter, to hunt it down.

He doesn't need to kill with a single blow; he only needs to slowly probe the enemy for a moment of carelessness.

To put it bluntly, he intends to overwhelm his opponents with sheer numbers in this battle.

Naoki Hanyu believed he was infinitely more powerful than those two supply ships, so he could simply go to the weapons depots of each ship and drop off the missiles; there was no need to transport them from the supply ships.

As the fighter wing destroyed fleeing enemy aircraft, the early warning aircraft drew ever closer to the fleet caught in the storm, and the radar locks onto enemy ships became increasingly precise.

"It's time, Elsa. The first strike will be the decisive battle. Let the air force coordinate and test the strength of the enemy's air defenses."

"Yes, all warships shall launch the first wave of saturation attacks."

On the turbulent sea, the carrier strike group halted its movement, and the launch units opened one after another, launching a continuous stream of Tomahawk missiles and Standard Missile 6 anti-ship missiles, some of which were equipped with multiple missiles.

"Swish swish swish"

One after another, more than 200 missiles produced thick trails of fog that did not dissipate for several seconds, even in the wind and rain.

Countless missiles streaked through the storm like a meteor shower, symbolizing the most terrifying power on Earth.

The fighter jets, which were already tens of kilometers away from the fleet, did not launch an attack immediately. They waited for the missiles to arrive before testing the enemy's strength with a saturation attack.

Meanwhile, in America's fleet, Commander Nathan gritted his teeth and stared intently at the screen displaying the feedback that all the pilots had lost vital signs.

"How is this possible? How is this possible? I have 200 fighter jets. That's the power to destroy a country."

Even oil-producing countries can't produce 200 fifth-generation fighter jets, yet they were all wiped out in just over 10 minutes. How is that possible?

"No"

"puff"

Nathan coughed up a mouthful of blood and collapsed from shock.

Vice Commander Ivan fell silent. Couldn't you have finished fighting before fainting? I don't want to share your responsibility.

Finally, Ivan sighed and took over command.

"All warships are converging on Haifa port; we need their air defense capabilities."

"I asked the colonel-level staff officer."

"Commander, will the oil-producing countries really cooperate fully?"

"They have no choice but to cooperate. I have already communicated with the President and also spoken with President Eldad of the oil country. If our fleet is really defeated, then the future of the oil country will have nothing to do with America. The President has agreed."

"."

The deputy commander didn't want to hand over the power of life and death to the oil-producing country, but after nearly an hour of delay, they couldn't escape. The storm in the open sea was getting worse, and the enemy ships were getting closer. There was no time to escape to the Red Sea through the canal, so they had no choice but to rely on the oil-producing country's air defense and go all out.

If only all five nuclear-powered submarines were still around, one of which, a Virginia-class IV, was equipped with its ultimate weapon: a small nuclear bomb.

But who could have imagined that five submarines would be destroyed, and now it's too late to use small nuclear weapons?

As time ticked by, only one F-35 fighter jet returned to the aircraft carrier and landed; all 207 aircraft were wiped out.

Meanwhile, the infrared system also detected fighter jets loitering 60 kilometers away. Unfortunately, due to the storm, the effectiveness of their first wave of anti-aircraft missiles is unknown.

Soon, air raid sirens sounded on the aircraft carrier and in Haifa port. They had detected more than 150 missiles, and there were definitely other undetected missiles, such as Tomahawk and other anti-ship missiles.

Suddenly, Ivan's expression changed drastically.

"It's not 150, it's more than 350."

The radar system was densely packed with targets, indicating that the fighter jets had also launched anti-ship missiles, definitely more than 200.

Moreover, the fighter jets didn't just launch and run away; the wing also took the opportunity to approach the enemy ships in an attempt to find an opening.

In other words, Naoki Hanyu's first wave of saturation attacks used a full 400 anti-ship missiles. Even with Naoki Hanyu's seemingly bottomless system warehouse, this amount represents one-third of his inventory. Adding the recent consumption, it's almost half gone.

This is not some cheap contraption launched by Persia or Eastern countries, such as homemade rockets or missiles that cannot be accurately guided and rely on luck. It is a real high-tech weapon of mass destruction.

Eleven cruisers and destroyers did not hesitate to prepare to intercept; this crisis was undoubtedly the most terrifying since World War II.

The navy on all the warships became busy, and everyone looked extremely tense, knowing that the moment of life and death had arrived.

"Hurry up, send the radar data to the fire support department."

"Load the sea sparrows and keep a close eye on them."

After the Aegis system locks onto the target, anti-aircraft missiles are launched from the launch unit.

At the same time, all air defense systems in Haifa Port were activated, starting with the Arrow-3 anti-missile system, an air defense force capable of intercepting exoatmospheric ballistic missiles at altitudes exceeding 100 kilometers.

Of course, using this thing to intercept anti-ship missiles is overkill; the core capabilities still lie in the David's Sling and the Iron Dome system.

The David's Slingshot is a medium-range air defense missile, with a range similar to that of the THAAD system.

The Iron Dome system operates at low altitudes, even lower than the Patriot system.

In this way, the fleet launched more than 200 missiles in a short period of time, while the air defense system of Haifa Port was overloaded and launched 400 missiles in just half a minute.

In the field of vision of a clone bound to Standard 6, a dense barrage of missiles was fired at him; the scene was truly shocking.

"hateful."

The diffusion of the ionosphere prevented the radar from locking on, and anti-aircraft missiles grazed past him and hit the anti-ship missiles behind him. But before he could feel lucky, he discovered that a missile was heading straight for him.

"Damn it, it's infrared guided, plasma shield activated."

The blue plasma shield became a decoy missile, but the subsequent Sea Sparrow and Iron Dome missiles made him let out a tragic cry.

"Damn it, I really don't have a single drop left, I'm not reconciled."

"boom"

The missile was intercepted, and a series of explosions occurred in the wind and rain. The impact of the explosions could be heard by the residents of Haifa Port even through the rain.

Just as some curious onlookers were gazing into the distance, they suddenly noticed lights appearing on the distant sea, and not just one.

"Boom boom boom boom boom boom"

This is the news that a small number of missiles successfully evaded interception and hit the target warship.

"Quickly, put out the fire! Someone, come quick!"

"Damn it, the ammunition magazine has been hit."

"boom"

A powerful explosion erupted from the ammunition compartment amidships, tearing the entire destroyer in two.

After the anti-aircraft missiles intercepted all the missiles they could, the remaining missiles were targeted at the group of fighter jets that were trying to get close. As a result, after a series of interceptions, Hanyu Air Force lost two more fighter jets and had to retreat temporarily.

There's no other way; with the combined air and sea defense forces, they can launch over 600 missiles in a short time, creating a near-impenetrable defense.

Of course, the missile strikes were not without results. In the dual-carrier strike group, one destroyer was sunk, one cruiser was damaged and unable to fight, and the Ford-class carrier sustained minor damage.

This is the result of Naoki Hanyu's more than 400 missiles; you could say it's all for naught.

In the aircraft carrier command headquarters, Naoki Hanyu frowned as he looked at the results of the battle. His 400 missiles were all gone?
The first wave destroyed a destroyer and rendered a cruiser inoperable, seemingly crippling one-fifth of the air defense capabilities of the dual-carrier strike group. However, Naoki Hanyu didn't have much ammunition left. At most, he could launch 1.8 more saturation attacks, and once all the ammunition was used up, he could go home for dinner.

"Damn it, how do I get through the turtle shell? Do I have to resort to melee combat?"

Naoki Hanyu is temporarily unable to use electromagnetic skills, so he doesn't want to engage in close combat. After all, America isn't an oil-producing country, and if they dare to come, they must have prepared countermeasures, just like this new infrared system fighter jet.

In the past, if it were 50 against 200, Naoki Hanyu would have been confident of annihilating the enemy aircraft without losing a single one. But today, he has lost 8, no, now it's 10 fighter jets.

Elsa then offers a solution.

"Commander, I'll lead the destroyers a few dozen kilometers further. The naval guns under my command won't be able to stop them."

"."

Naoki Hanyu looked at the very serious female soldier. Although he admitted that the enemy could not stop the naval guns, the naval guns operated by this naval gun master were definitely a deadly weapon.

However, at a distance of 50 kilometers, our fleet is also in danger.

"Elsa, give me some more time to think about it."

"Commander, time waits for no one. America's reinforcements in the east are probably already on their way. Moreover, the storm is weakening. If we don't try this time, we'll hardly have another chance."

Elsa's eyes burned with fervor as she spoke. Indeed, she wanted to be the first person in the world to destroy a dual-carrier battle group (the Wraith), an unparalleled honor for a naval officer.

Finally, Naoki Hanyu made his decision, and he looked at the new weapon in the system space.

"The Starship, you are the one."

(End of this chapter)