Chapter Thirty-two: Desperate Illness Leads to Frantic Searches for Doctors

  Within one day, four J-10 fighter squadrons of the Chinese Air Force entered Pakistan. In addition, the Pakistani Air Force also received 36 FC-1s, also known as "Thunder" fighters, from China. For a time, the combat effectiveness of the Pakistani Air Force was restored to its pre-war level.

  Unlike the high-profile deployment of a naval fleet to the Indian Ocean, China has been very low-key about sending fighter pilots into combat.

  Chinese official media reported on this matter only once, and the broadcast time was less than five seconds, a very brief sentence: Pakistan will recruit combat personnel from China in the form of employment.

  On 5 July, with China's intentions unclear, the Indian Air Force temporarily ceased offensive operations.

  This was not just a decision of the Indian Air Force commanders but also of Santos.

  Learning that naval aviation bombed the workers' dormitory in Guadalcanal Port, Santos felt that China would not make a big deal out of this matter.

  As the most important naval base of Pakistan, when Gwadar Port was still in the planning stage, Pakistan signed a secret agreement with China to undertake the design and planning work, dispatch high-quality construction teams, provide half of the construction costs, and share usage rights after completion. Although the first phase of the project is for the service of the Pakistani Navy, the main project of the second phase is the submarine cave depot for the Chinese Navy submarines. The construction team that was bombed was responsible for the construction work of the submarine cave depot, to be precise, it was the engineering corps of the Chinese Navy.

  If China were to retaliate strongly, with military personnel being hit and suffering heavy casualties, domestic outrage and pressure from the military would force the government to declare war on India. Santos firmly believed that China would not declare war on India. US intelligence also supported his view, as China did not want to get involved in this war.

  To boost morale, Santos did not blame Dass but instead publicly announced the results of the bombing of Guadalcanal.

  What he didn't expect was that China not only avoided mentioning the casualties of military personnel, but also made a very strong response. By the time Santos regretted it, it was too late to retract the news announced several hours ago.

  Under duress, Santos immediately got on a hotline with US President Jabeur.

  Japal failed to get valuable information from the ambassador of China in the United States, so he could not give Santos a definite reply. He could only remind Santos to pay close attention to China's every move and hint that the US would help the Indian Navy intercept the Chinese fleet.

  At the critical moment, Santos hesitated.

  Should we intercept the Chinese fleet?

  If the Chinese fleet is allowed to roam freely in the Indian Ocean, India's prestige in the region will be challenged, and even countries like Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, and the Maldives that are friendly to India may turn to China. The Chinese fleet will definitely go to the Arabian Sea, sandwiched between the Indian fleet and Pakistan, using the phased array radar on the destroyer to monitor every move of Indian warplanes, making Indian naval aviation a mere decoration. Not only can Indian warplanes not bomb Pakistani ports, but even the Indian fleet cannot continue to blockade Pakistan, losing its overwhelming advantage over the Pakistani navy. If Chinese submarines make some moves, they may even be able to assist Pakistani submarines in attacking Indian aircraft carrier battle groups.

  If China's special mixed fleet is intercepted, it will inevitably lead to an escalation of conflict and give China more reasons to go to war.

  Just as Santos was hesitating, an intelligence report from the United States made up his mind.

  A senior Pakistani military officer was turned by US intelligence, providing information that Pakistan had hired Chinese pilots on a contract basis and acquired J-10 and FC-1 fighter jets from the Chinese air force.

  That is to say, before Liang Guoxiang and his party arrived in Pakistan, Santos had already grasped the situation.

  Now, Santos doesn't have to worry. Even if the Chinese fleet didn't exchange fire with the Indian fleet, Chinese soldiers still participated in the war. If China is determined to go to war, there's no reason that can't be fabricated. If China doesn't want to go to war, even the most sufficient reasons are meaningless. China has already taken substantial steps towards war; if India swallows its anger and remains silent, national dignity and international status will suffer a devastating blow.

  We must resolutely counterattack China's provocative actions.

  On the night of the 4th, Santos ordered Das: concentrate all forces to intercept the Chinese fleet and launch a preemptive attack if necessary.

  Santos then contacted Russian President Dmitry Medvedev.

  Like Pakistan, India also faces a severe shortage of pilots.

  In air combat, the exchange ratio of Indian and Pakistani pilots reached 2.4:1. That is to say, for every Pakistani pilot sacrificed, India lost 2.4 pilots. Mainly because the Indian Air Force lacked training during peacetime, with an average annual flight time of only 120 hours, compared to 360 hours in Western developed countries, 300 hours in China and 220 hours in Pakistan.

  The Su-30MKI has already achieved domestic production, and the reserve of 230 aircraft is sufficient for consumption.

  No matter how good a fighter jet is, without a suitable pilot, it's just an ornament.

  At this time, Santos thought of not America, but Russia, which he had once "spurned".

  The Su-30MKI is a Russian-made fighter jet, and even if American pilots can get it airborne, they would find it difficult to perform aerobatics. Only Russian pilots are familiar with the performance of the Su-30KI and can quickly get used to this fighter jet specifically sold to India.

  Just as Santos had refused to receive Russia's special envoy at first, the Russian president did not give Santos a good face.

  Russia does not want to get involved in the Indo-Pakistani War, and as China's attitude becomes increasingly clear, Russia is even more unwilling to take the risk of a rupture or even hostility with China, putting aside several billion dollars in Sino-Russian trade each year to provide substantial assistance to a small brother who has betrayed itself. Not to mention sending military personnel to participate in the war, even when selling Russian-made weapons and equipment, such as the AL-31 aircraft engine that India has not yet domestically produced, Russia strictly follows the contract without "special treatment".

  It is obviously a fool's dream for Russia to send pilots to India in an official capacity.

  After eating a humble pie, Santos had no choice but to consider using "despicable" means.

  In the middle of the night, he called Markri over and assigned a task to the head of Indian intelligence: to recruit excellent pilots from Russia by means of high pay or even subversion.

  Figuratively speaking, this is digging at the corner of Russia's wall.

  Although India will pay a hefty salary to the Russian pilots it hires, these pilots are trained by Russia at great expense. If something goes wrong, the loss will be borne by Russia, not India. Considering the diplomatic risks that Russia would have to bear for this, Nedmov probably has the guts to get rid of Santos. If the actions of Indian intelligence agencies are exposed, Indo-Russian relations will definitely be greatly affected.

  When the situation is critical, one will try every possible means to save it, and Santos can't afford to think so much about it either.

  At this point, Santos was already in a state of confusion and disorder.

  Unlike the interim prime minister, Rear Admiral Patel, commander of the Eastern Fleet, received orders and not only did not lose his composure but also gained confidence.

  Operating in the Arabian Sea, he came under the command of Commander Western Fleet.

  "Vikramaditya" and "Vikrant" aircraft carrier battle groups fought in the Bay of Bengal, he became the highest commander, all the aircraft carrier battle groups of "Vikrant" had to listen to his command.

  At dawn on the fifth day, the aircraft carrier "Vikramaditya" turned first.

  General Patel, who was in a state of excitement, did not waste any time. While the aircraft carrier battle group was reorganizing, he gathered his staff and began to formulate a combat plan to intercept the Chinese fleet.

  There are only three sea routes available for a Chinese fleet to enter the Indian Ocean.

  The Strait of Malacca, the Sunda Strait and the Lombok Strait. The first two are major shipping lanes, while the Lombok Strait is too remote and would increase the fleet's journey by a lot. According to intelligence provided by the United States, at least two Chinese Navy attack nuclear submarines have entered the Strait of Malacca, with another two arriving in the Sunda Strait. Patel was almost certain that the Chinese task force would either go through the Strait of Malacca or the Sunda Strait.

  Although the two straits are not far apart, they have a great impact on fleet operations.

  If the Chinese fleet passes through the Malacca Strait, it will head to the Bay of Bengal and challenge the Indian Navy. If the Chinese fleet passes through the Sunda Strait, it will enter the heart of the Indian Ocean, bypassing the range of the Indian naval shore-based aviation strike, avoiding the Indian fleet, and heading towards the Arabian Sea.

  Different tactics should be adopted in response to different situations.

  Whether the Chinese fleet is heading for the Bay of Bengal or rushing to the Arabian Sea, it must not be allowed to succeed, and even more so, it must not be allowed to penetrate deep into the Indian Ocean.

  It must be intercepted near the strait!

  For this purpose, two aircraft carrier battle groups will disperse and operate separately, one deployed in the southern waters of the Andaman Sea and the other deployed in the southwestern waters of Sumatra.

  When considering this issue, Patel did not think dispersing troops was a serious problem.

  The Chinese fleet does not have an aircraft carrier, and outside the range of shore-based air cover, it relies only on a few air defense destroyers and general-purpose destroyers, as well as several general-purpose frigates with limited air defense capabilities, which cannot withstand the attack of carrier-based fighter jets. Two waves of attacking aircraft are enough to annihilate the Chinese fleet.

  The battle will be fought in a one-sided situation and it will definitely be another great victory.

  At the thought of this, Patel felt a strange excitement and agitation. Sinking Pakistani warships anchored in the harbor was not enough to show the strength of the Indian Navy; only by sinking Chinese warships on the high seas could it be proven that the Indian Navy was the master of the Indian Ocean.

  In Patel's view, he had only one problem to solve: getting to the blocking position in time.

  The Chinese fleet sets out from the Zhanjiang military port, and if it advances at a speed of 24 knots, it will enter the Malacca Strait within four days, or pass through the Sunda Strait in 104 hours. The Indian fleet sets out from the waters off Kem Pard Bay, also sailing at a speed of 24 knots, but it will take 80 hours to reach the Andaman Sea, or 86 hours later to reach the southwestern waters of Sumatra Island, and searching for the Chinese fleet will require several more hours. Time is indeed extremely precious for the Indian fleet.

  What Patel saw was victory, a decisive victory.

  What he did not see was the latent danger and the huge risk that the psychology of eager for victory brought to the fleet.

  As the Vikramaditya and Vikrant carrier battle groups turned south, the Swordfish submarine arrived stealthily at the ambush site.