Bright Sword: The Flowers of War

Chapter 208 Large-Scale Air Raid

Fenglingdu Airport, east bank of the Yellow River
Rows of Japanese warplanes, painted with blood-red "plaster" markings, gleamed with a cold metallic luster in the autumn sunlight.

Type 96 land-based attack aircraft, Type 97 heavy bombers, Type 97 fighters... all kinds of aircraft are densely packed like bloodthirsty locusts, and ground crew members shuttle among them like worker ants, busy carrying out refueling, bomb loading, maintenance and other tasks.

The piercing alarms shattered the sky from time to time. The pilots, dressed in heavy flight suits, with their usual arrogance and bloodlust on their faces, gathered in twos and threes by the hangar, waiting for the order to take off.

The air was thick with the pungent smell of aviation fuel and the tense atmosphere before the impending war.

The atmosphere was tense in the makeshift operations briefing tent next to the tarmac at Fenglingdu Airport.

Colonel Tetsuji Iga, commander of the 60th Flight Squadron of the Japanese Army's Shanxi Expeditionary Force, was giving final operational instructions to dozens of pilots and junior officers.

Yi E Che Er was not tall, but he was unusually burly. His dark face was covered with thick, fleshy muscles, and a hideous scar stretched from his left eyebrow to the corner of his mouth, making his already fierce face even more menacing.

He was dressed in a crisp air force uniform, with a command sword at his waist, and his eyes were sharp.

"Gentlemen!" Iga Tetsuji's voice was hoarse and low. "I know you always complain that the Chinese air force is too weak. Your daily task is to bomb some worthless mud houses and Chinese infantrymen who have no power to fight back."

"Now your chance has come! Commander Yoshio Shinotsuka has just issued an order: the Shanxi militia of China, entrenched in the Wutai County area, are courting death and daring to attempt to seize control of the skies and establish a so-called air force. This is a blatant provocation against the majesty of the Imperial Japanese Army Air Force! It is also a despicable obstruction of the great cause of 'holy war'!"

He slammed his fist on the table in front of him, causing the water glass on the table to jump up and make a jarring sound.

"We have only one mission!" Iga Tetsuji's gaze swept over every pilot present, his eyes filled with coldness and bloodlust. "That is... to completely destroy the Nine-Bend River Airport!"

"Turn those arrogant Chinese pilots, along with their planes, runways, and hangars, to ashes! Let them know that this sky will forever belong only to the eagles of the Imperial Japanese Army!"

Upon hearing this, the Japanese pilots present all had a bloodthirsty glint in their eyes and let out a low murmur of agreement, like the roar of wild beasts.

Most of these pilots were experienced veterans whose hands were stained with the blood of Chinese soldiers and civilians. They were already adept at this kind of mission to "punish the tyrannical Chinese," and even enjoyed it.

Yi E Tetsuji picked up a thin baton and pointed to the Jiuquhe Airport area, which was highlighted on the map.

"According to intelligence, although Jiuquhe Airport has just been built, it already has a certain defensive capability and may have a small number of fighter jets obtained from the United States."

"But in the face of the Imperial Army's overwhelming air power, it's nothing but a mantis trying to stop a chariot, utterly overestimating its own strength!" said Tetsuji Giga with a hint of disdain.

Just as he was about to continue speaking, a major leaned over and whispered, "Commander, the two reconnaissance planes we sent out haven't returned yet, and the second reconnaissance plane just sent back a telegram, but it was only halfway through before the message stopped. Should we send someone else to investigate again before we formulate a plan?"

What plans are there?

Yi E Tetsuji sneered, "That second reconnaissance plane has already sent back the situation and location of the Chinese airport. Now that it has disappeared, there are only two possibilities: either the radio is broken, or they were shot down by the Chinese."

If it's the former, then there's no need to waste our energy; if it's the latter, then we have an even greater need to avenge them. Don't you even understand that?"

"Hai!" The major quickly lowered his head.

Iga Tetsuji ignored him and then shouted, "Now everyone listen to my orders!"

"The first wave of attacks will be carried out by our Type 97 heavy bomber formation! Targets: airport runways, hangars, and all visible ground facilities! We must disable their take-off and landing capabilities immediately!" He slammed his baton down on the runway and hangar icons on the map.

"Second wave of attack, Type 96 land-based attack aircraft formation follow up! Conduct supplementary bombing and strafing of the remaining targets at the airfield! Focus on eliminating its air defense strongpoints!"

"Our Type 97 fighter squadron will escort the bomber group throughout the entire flight! Eliminate any Chinese aircraft that dare to take off to intercept! I want all Chinese aircraft and pilots to be pulverized like paper under the firepower of the Imperial Army's fighters!"

"This operation is codenamed 'Thunder'!" Tetsuji Yoga raised his voice. "Gentlemen... you must be swift, accurate, and ruthless! A single, fatal blow! Give the enemy no chance to breathe! Let those Chinese who dare to resist the Imperial Army tremble under our thunderous wrath!"

"His Majesty the Emperor! The Imperial Japanese Army!"

As Tetsuji Iga raised his arm and shouted, the Japanese pilots and officers present were also energized, shouting in unison with such fervor that the sound almost lifted the roof of the briefing booth. After the instruction was finished, the pilots dispersed and went to their respective aircraft.

Ground crew were conducting final checks, loading heavy aerial bombs into the bomber's bomb bay, and replenishing the machine gun ammunition belts.

The roar of engines rose and fell, and the huge propellers began to turn slowly, bringing up gusts of wind.

Meanwhile, around Wutai County, four radar stations urgently constructed at the order of Su Yaoyang are also racing against time. Among them, the radar station located on the west side of Wutai County, built on the top of a steep mountain, undertakes the most important westward early warning mission.

The core equipment of this radar station is the Chain Home (CH) radar that Su Yaoyang delivered on his promise.

This radar was the backbone of British air defense in the early stages of World War II in another time and space. Although it is considered relatively primitive in later years, for example, it could not directly measure the height of the target and needed to estimate it through cross-location of multiple stations or based on signal strength, and it was huge, with the antenna array resembling a giant metal forest.

But on the Chinese battlefield in 1938, this was absolutely a revolutionary weapon that was ahead of its time.

At this moment, the massive steel antenna stands majestically atop the mountain, its long feeder connecting to the camouflaged radar control cabin inside the cave. Inside the cabin, several young radar operators, personally selected and trained, are sweating profusely as they perform final equipment adjustments.

The diesel generator emitted a low rumble, providing power to the radar system. On the oscilloscope screen, green scan lines rotated steadily in circles, emitting a faint fluorescence. The air was filled with the distinctive ozone smell and tense atmosphere characteristic of equipment operation.

"Old Wang, is the voltage stable?" A radar operator in charge of the power supply asked his colleague beside him, his eyes fixed on the instrument panel.

"No problem, everything is normal!" Old Wang wiped the sweat from his forehead and responded loudly.

Sitting in front of the oscilloscope, the young radar operator in charge of observation stared intently at the screen.

His task was to distinguish genuine enemy aircraft signals from the constantly rotating green light and occasional clutter. This required immense patience and concentration.

"Captain, this thing... can it really see planes hundreds of miles away?"

The young radar operator muttered to himself, somewhat unsure of himself, but his eyes never left the screen.

This was his first time encountering this foreign gadget known as "clairvoyance," and although he had received short-term training, he was still somewhat apprehensive.

The head of the radar station was a relatively experienced veteran surnamed Zhang, whom everyone called Captain Zhang.

He patted the radar operator on the shoulder and said in a deep voice, "Li Quanyou, don't overthink it! The commander said that this thing can see farther and hear better than our eyes and ears! As long as we operate it properly, we can detect those Japanese devils in advance! This will buy our brothers at the airport precious early warning time!"

Although Captain Zhang spoke casually, he was equally nervous inside. He knew that whether this radar station could operate normally was directly related to the safety of Jiuquhe Airport and the lives of countless comrades.

Just then, Xiao Li, who had been staring intently at the screen, suddenly exclaimed "Eh!" and leaned forward abruptly, almost touching the oscilloscope screen.

Suddenly, a cluster of tiny, dense dots of light appeared on the previously calm green scan line, like scattered silver fragments on a still lake. These dots appeared steadily in a certain sector of the screen and flickered rhythmically as the scan line rotated.

"Captain... Captain... look!" Xiao Li's voice trembled with excitement and nervousness as he pointed at the light spots on the screen. "What... what is this?!"

Upon hearing this, Captain Zhang's heart tightened, and he immediately moved closer. When he saw the unusually clear and numerous dots of light on the screen, his expression changed drastically!

As a radar operator with basic training, he knew all too well what this meant! This was no ordinary clutter or natural interference! This was... this was a reflected signal from a large swarm of aircraft!
"Damn it!" Captain Zhang gasped, feeling a chill run from his feet to his head. Almost instinctively, he slapped the still-stunned Xiao Li on the back of the head with such force that it almost knocked Xiao Li unconscious.

"What are you all standing there for! It's enemy planes! A large formation of enemy planes!" Captain Zhang roared, his voice trembling. He didn't bother to explain further, shoved Xiao Li aside, grabbed the receiver of the hand-cranked military telephone next to him, and turned the crank with all his might.

"Hello?! Hello?! Is this Jiuquhe Airport?! Emergency alert! Emergency alert!"

Captain Zhang's voice, sharp and shrill from extreme tension and anxiety, echoed in the small radar cabin, "West! A large number of unidentified flying targets have been detected in the west! Extremely numerous!"
Approaching our airspace at high speed! Repeat! A large number of unidentified flying objects have been detected to the west! Extremely numerous! Approaching our airspace at high speed! Requesting immediate activation of Level 1 combat readiness!

On the other end of the phone was the command center of Jiuquhe Airport. When the communications staff officer on duty heard the alarm from the radar station, the pencil in his hand fell to the ground with a "thud".

(End of this chapter)