What the hell is a private enterprise?

Chapter 561 Send out everything that can fly.
Still no word from the Air Force?

“It will take at least half an hour for fighter jets to arrive, and you know that the gnats’ best tactic is to overwhelm air defenses with sheer numbers in a short time.”

“But Filger has only just been promoted; he’s a young man, he shouldn’t…”

Miles, Band, and Tren were still in a panic. When they learned that the Royal Ark might be in danger, they were almost scared out of their wits and immediately called for air support.

Not only the Royal Air Force, but they also pinned their hopes on the U.S. Air Force.

However, no matter who provides support the fastest, it will take more than half an hour. If you calculate the time difference, the supporting fighters will arrive 15 to 20 minutes after the gnats attack the Royal Ark.

If they can hold out for a little while, with the help of the carrier strike group and air support, even if they don't escape unscathed, at least the sturdy carrier won't be at risk of sinking; at worst, it will just need some repairs.

In the battles envisioned in the past, this wouldn't be a big problem. After all, the Cold War had just ended, and even against the Soviet Union's (the United States') massive bombardment at its peak, the Royal Ark could hold out for a while.

However, the extremely low-altitude attack tactics of mosquito gnats are truly difficult to defend against, and more importantly, no one is psychologically prepared for them:
The pressure from the Third Fleet was so intense that the Royal Navy, which had already relaxed its guard, was not fully prepared and still hoped that the United States would step in first and that the problem would be solved through negotiations, which they were best at.

But no one expected the other side to launch a strong attack on the aircraft carrier right from the start. Now, Band can only hope that Philger can hold out a little longer...

"report!"

The sound at the door made them all tremble. They stared intently at the servant who entered and heard him say in a trembling voice:

"HMS Ark Royal, HMS Southampton, and HMS Monmouth have sent farewell messages. Captain Howard of HMS Southampton has been killed in action, and Admiral Fellger is currently out of contact. According to reports from carrier-based aircraft, the waterline sections on both sides of the aircraft carrier have been severely damaged and are taking on a large amount of water, which has already submerged half of the hull!"

Upon hearing the news, Band felt dizzy and struggled to his feet to take the telegram:
[HMS Ark Royal R07, 1997/12/24 13:15
……

The ship was subjected to a saturation attack by enemy aircraft. All anti-aircraft ammunition has been exhausted, and the outer anti-aircraft ships have also lost their ability to retaliate.

The ship has been severely damaged and is unable to continue its combat mission. Assessment indicates that repairs are impossible under these circumstances. All fixed-wing aircraft and helicopters have been launched, wounded personnel have been evacuated, and codebooks and operational plans have been destroyed.

I have ordered that all personnel except for a few officers may evacuate on their own, and I have requested support from the remaining ships.

Please convey to the First Sea Lord: I have failed to bring victory, but I am determined to remain forever one with HMS Ark Royal in order to defend the honor of the Royal Navy.

May God bless the Queen.

sign:

L.F. Philger

Commodore, Acting Commander of HMS Ark Royal
Royal Ark

The farewell telegram was brief, but its power instantly left the generals bewildered and at a loss. From receiving the attack warning to the moment they were annihilated in just half an hour, before they could even formulate a response plan, an entire carrier strike group was wiped out.

Bander slumped back onto the sofa, dejected, staring blankly at his feet.

Britain currently only has three Invincible-class aircraft carriers. The lead ship, HMS Invincible, is still undergoing maintenance and upgrades, the second ship, HMS Illustrious, is in the Far East, and the third ship is HMS Ark Royal.

Although conventional aircraft carriers have shorter maintenance time, they can only maintain a maximum of two aircraft carriers in operational status at the same time, and one of them is mostly in training mode.

The sinking of HMS Ark Royal, the newest of the newest ships, was not just the loss of an aircraft carrier, but also a heavy blow to Britain's overseas operations. Especially at this sensitive time, with the world in turmoil except for the lost empire, Britain is heavily reliant on its overseas fleets to protect its interests.

After all, apart from the Prism Building, which has more than a dozen supercarriers (including those that have been decommissioned), what other country in the world can lose an aircraft carrier without suffering serious damage?
Miles, standing to the side, hadn't thought much of it. If he hadn't decided to give Filger some training, he would have been the commander of the Royal Ark. Now, finally deciding to ignore all that bullshit peace talk, he roared with fury:
"Let the Hunter-Mi strike, let the Beihai Inexhaustible strike! Those U-boats are even noisier than the Tu-95, can't we take them down?"

We can't hesitate any longer; the Third Fleet's objective is to destroy us!

At this time, Britain maintained a total of about 11 nuclear submarines, but only the Trafalgar-class attack submarines HMS Indulgence and HMS Raging Surge were truly capable of combat operations and staying on the mainland.

However, at this time, these two submarines had not undergone modernization and could only launch torpedoes, instead of the later version that could launch Tomahawks. If their existence were exposed, they would definitely be surrounded and killed by U-boats.

Therefore, the only force that can truly take action is the air force. A single Nemesis can carry at least nine torpedoes and anti-submarine bombs, which is powerful enough, but it has no survivability and is extremely dependent on its teammates for air defense.

At that very moment, Prism Building, through Convention Command, also learned that HMS Ark Royal had been destroyed and relayed the message to the Royal Navy:
摧毁能放飞战斗机的U艇迫在眉睫，第一批36架F15和12架F16、4架EF111和其余6架辅助机型均已准备好可以作战，将会掩护反潜机进行对海打击！

……

If Prism Building initially wanted to hold back a bit, now it's a matter of life and death, and they're doing everything they can.

The Royal Ark was destroyed in the time it takes to drink a cup of coffee, which is far from an acceptable development for the Empire. If a few more ships were to sink, Britain would not be able to participate in global operations for at least the next 10 years!
President Jefferson roared, "Send everything that can fly to England!" In addition to the fighter jets frantically gathering northward around Europe and the Mediterranean, the B-52H and B-1B strategic aircraft groups on the mainland had also been mobilized.

Such a massive mobilization is almost comparable to the height of the Cold War, reflecting not only Britain's critical position but also the Empire's determination to flex its muscles.
After suffering so many defeats against the lost empire, it's time to achieve a glorious victory at all costs.

However, there is another practical consideration beneath this:

"The Harrier pilot reported a very important development: the missiles used by the Gnats have been upgraded."

Although the Gnatant swarm unleashed its main firepower on the warship, a few retaliated against the attacking Sea Harriers, who immediately realized something was amiss:
只有3架蚊蚋发射了6枚AM9L，却击落了2架海鹞战斗机，这绝不是AIM-9B那种白天追着太阳跑的烧火棍能展现出的性能。

According to the Sea Harrier pilots who were still on their way back, the new infrared air-to-air missile is no worse than the AIM-9L they are equipped with, and its performance is almost on par with modern mainstream missiles.

If the grubs hadn't been focusing their efforts on the warships, the fate of those 12 Harriers would likely be uncertain!

(End of this chapter)