Chapter 5: Golden Spears and Silver Wheels (Three)

  Three

  The "Southern Cross Expeditionary Force" of the Japanese Self-Defense Forces has completed preparations for 4 sky-blue F-2A/B fighter jets on the runway at Jakarta's Halim Perdanakusuma Airport, Indonesia's largest air force base. With a loud roar from the F110-GE-129 turbofan engine produced by General Electric Company in the United States, Colonel Kousuke Tasaka, the highest commander of the Air Self-Defense Force of the "Southern Cross Expeditionary Force", firmly grasped the control stick.

  "The final battle of the South Seas is here, I'm counting on you all." In the entire eastern airspace of Java Island, the Japanese Self-Defense Force has almost mobilized its full strength: 60 F-2 fighter jets, 20 F-1 fighter jets, and 24 F-15J fighter jets to intercept the incoming Chinese Air Force. However, even with such a large force, they still appear to be outnumbered in front of the powerful Chinese Air Force.

  More than 120 J-10 and J-11 fighter jets of various models are just the first wave of troops in the Chinese Air Force, followed by a grand battle formation of no less than this number of J-8D fighter jets from the People's Liberation Army Naval Air Force. To ensure that the transport fleet loaded with rapid reaction forces from all over China can safely reach the skies above Java Island, Indonesia, the air force and naval aviation units under the Southeast Asian Theater of Operations of the Chinese People's National Defense Forces also went all out to fight. More than 20 Russian-made A-50E and domestically-made "KJ-2000" airborne early warning aircraft with their huge bodies bearing red stars and August 1 insignia twinkled in the dark night, while JH-7A electronic warfare aircraft occasionally swept across the formation. Various electronic signals crisscrossed above the Java Sea.

  "Our target is the Chinese transport plane. Don't get caught up in a dogfight, cut into their formation!" Under the guidance of the E-CJ "Hawk's Eye" early warning aircraft, the Japanese Air Self-Defense Force fighter jets appeared from multiple directions. They adopted a mixed formation of F-15J and F-2 fighters to charge at the Chinese planes. "Come on!" A decisive battle in this airspace was unavoidable, and there was no other rule but that only the brave would win. More Chinese warplanes began to break away from their formation and fly towards the approaching enemy."

  The air battle unfolded in multiple directions, with F-15J and F-2, J-10 and J-11, the four types of fighter jets deployed by both sides surprisingly similar in appearance, just like the Chinese and Japanese people, who despite their similar appearances are sworn enemies. As usual, both sides began the brutal dogfight with a round of beyond visual range shots, leaving behind trails of the pilots' will to fight in the dark night sky with the PL-9S, R-27 extended-range missiles from the Chinese air force and the AIM-120A advanced medium-range air-to-air missiles from the Japanese side. Occasionally, planes were hit, extinguished as stars in the South China Sea tonight.

  But more missiles were induced to lose their targets by various electronic countermeasures. The "dogfighting" of the two sides' fighter jets - close-range combat was even more bloody and cruel, and the pilots' skills often took a back seat to willpower and quality in such large-scale aerial battles. From being locked on, evading, unlocking, and shaking off to locking onto the opponent, the ferocity of the air battle had already been forgotten by the pilots of both sides at this moment, with the only conviction being to shoot down the opponent.

  More J-8D fighter jets of the Chinese naval aviation joined the aerial battle, their long silver bodies outside the window of the Y-8S transport plane Yang Guohong was on at that moment were like sharp arrows shooting towards the chaotic battlefield.

  Indonesia should be arriving soon! Suddenly, the cabin of the Y-8S large transport aircraft was filled with a piercing radar warning, and the red alarm lights flashed constantly in the dimly lit cabin. Their plane had been locked onto by enemy planes.

  "Hold on to your weapons, check the seatbelts." The reminder from the crew members in the cockpit came through, but before the Chinese soldiers sitting in the cabin could react, the plane began to shake violently. A loud roar whizzed past Yang Gu's ears as the Y-8S large transport aircraft plummeted downwards at high speed. Two rows of infrared decoy flares shot out from the wings on both sides of the plane. The alarm in the cockpit stopped for a moment, but then sounded again. One of the incoming missiles was still closing in on Yang Gu's transport plane.

  "Hold on."

  The Y-8's two engines roared in unison as the plane desperately evaded but that AIM-7F

  The Mideast peace process is still inching along.

  "It's done!"

  Like all the warriors on this flight, Yang Guohong began to despair. A violent explosion occurred on the left wing of the plane, but the plane was unscathed. Just as the missile was about to hit the Y-8S transport plane, a J-8D fighter jet from the Chinese People's Liberation Army Navy calmly used its own body to block the way in front of Yang Guohong and 175 Chinese Marine Corps soldiers, directly blocking the incoming missile. Such a scene had also appeared in Hollywood blockbuster "Air Force One", but that was to protect the president's plane. Today, however, Yang Guohong witnessed a real-life drama: to protect himself and his 175 comrades, a fighter jet and a young life turned into a brilliant flash of light that forever disappeared into the night sky over the South China Sea.

  "Full speed ahead."

  Yang Guhong's eyes were filled with tears, and he tightly grasped the automatic rifle in his hand, shouting angrily towards the cockpit. Not far away, another Y-8S large transport plane was not so lucky, 2 AIM-7F

  The missile pierced through the thick infrared decoy flares and hit the left wing of the plane, and a burst of flames erupted from the cockpit... At this moment, Yang Guhong could only wish them good luck.

  On the other end of the Java Sea, around the military airport on Weli Island, which was already under control of Chinese special forces, 40 radar soldiers from China's national defense army were fully testing the newly acquired Japanese Self-Defense Forces' improved US-made AN/TPY-2

  MPQ-53 phased array radar group. It should be said that in terms of radar technology, the United States is at the forefront of various countries, AN

  The MPQ-53 represents the forefront of air defense radar systems in the world.

  Using frequency hopping spread spectrum technique on H's working band, AN

  The operating frequency of the MPQ-53 phased array radar can be freely selected from more than 160 frequency points, making it easy to counter ordinary monopulse active jamming.

  "What a great thing!" Looking at the clear radar screen, Captain Li Gang's excitement was like meeting an old lover. "How is it?" Ignoring the almost naked male soldiers in the sultry tropical rainforest, Colonel Leng Ziyun, the commander of this "Autumn Subway" special infiltration attack operation, walked directly into the information coordination vehicle hidden under layers of camouflage nets at the temporary airport air defense command center.

  "Ah! You've come just in time. Up until now, the 4 US-made PAC-2 'Patriot' missiles you had high hopes for..."

  The missile defense system hasn't been put into use yet. I've warned you before, those Taiwanese bastards are unreliable, who knows if they're *elements...”

  Leng Ziyin's sudden appearance also startled Captain Li Gang, who was not wearing his military uniform and hastily used the towel around his neck to cover himself. Under the light, his two copper-colored pectoral muscles flashed, and he said discontentedly.

  "Note your words and deeds, they are also soldiers of the People's Republic of China. At this moment, they are also working hard on their own posts."

  The recovery of Japan's original air defense system deployed near the airport to resist the possible bombing of Torishima Island by the Japanese Air Self-Defense Force is a crucial part of Cold Ziying's special infiltration operation this time. According to intelligence, in order to militarize and fortify the originally barren Torishima Island, the Japanese Self-Defense Forces had previously deployed an air defense system near the military airport under construction, including 5 US-made PAC-2 "Patriot"

  Missile defense system, 12 "Hawk" missile defense systems in the inner four companies of air defense weapons. However, such an affiliation is biased towards defending against large-scale aerial strikes by enemy forces across the entire airspace, but is powerless to counter low-altitude, near-sea invasion by special forces. As time ticks away second by second, Leng Zixing hopes to re-establish the most important link in the airport's air defense network - PAC-2 "Patriot".

  The missile defense system was unable to be used normally for a long time, the reason is not in debugging the missile itself, but in changing the identification code of friend or foe on the missile.

  If the identification friend or foe system code set by Japan's Self-Defense Forces cannot be deciphered and changed, then "Patriot"

  No matter how good the performance of the missile is, it cannot lock onto the incoming Japanese fighter jets.

  "Six o'clock direction. Unknown target appeared, altitude 120, speed......" As the four bright and dim fuzzy signals appeared on the radar screen, Li Gang and Leng Ziyun simultaneously realized that their worst fears had finally materialized.

  "Attention all units, this is Lieutenant Li Gang, in charge of air defense systems. All 'Hawk' missile air defense systems that have entered normal working procedures are now ready for combat. I will transmit target data to you through the automated command system, take care of it."

  Li Gang's firm voice echoed on the island of Wuri Diao at the same time,

  "Southern Cross Expeditionary Force" Air Self-Defense Force's highest commander, Lieutenant General Kōsaka Suketaka, personally commanded the "Special Attack Unit" composed of 4 F-2A/B fighter jets, which had approached the coast of Muroto Island.

  "Ladies and gentlemen, the despicable Chinese should have controlled our air defense weapons on the island. But it doesn't matter, as long as one of us throws a bomb at the target, Indonesia is ours."

  Takahashi's words are not empty threats. Although the Japanese Combined Fleet was defeated in the Java Sea, the Japan Air Self-Defense Force still has an advantage in terms of distance. From China's most forward military airport to the straight-line distance to Java Island is over 2,000 kilometers. Deploying a large-scale air formation like today to escort transport planes is absolutely a long-distance raid for the Chinese Air Force. However, the Japan "Nanyang Expeditionary Army" Air Self-Defense Force can take advantage of its geographical location and wait for the enemy to tire itself out within its own combat radius, without considering fuel problems at all. Without the Morotai Island airport, the "Nanyang Expeditionary Army" can at least firmly grasp air superiority until the arrival of the second batch of reinforcements or changes in the international situation.

  "The electronic countermeasures pod is working." With a glance at the 4 JDAM precision-guided bombs under the wing, Kōsaka Sukū skillfully maneuvered the fighter into low-altitude flight.

  "Target locked." Through the positioning of active electronic interference from incoming enemy aircraft, using triangulation between two radar units, Li Gang commanded his AN/SPG-55 radar to track the target.

  The MPQ-53 phased array radar initially determined the specific location of the enemy fighter group. Using this data, the "Hawk" missile air defense system assigned to AN

  MPQ-35-type hollow target search radar and AN

  The MPQ-39 type low-altitude target search radar network quickly intercepted and tracked the target, and transmitted this information to the command center of the front-line assault air defense battalion. Here, 3 operators manually controlled 3 "Hawk"

  Anti-aircraft missile launcher.

  9 "Hawk" anti-aircraft missiles ignited and launched, Takasugi had already taken a step ahead with the "Snake" maneuver relative to the radar direction, easily evading the radar search. However, his comrades were not so lucky, the fragmentation warhead of the "Hawk" missile exploded just a few meters away from 2 F-2A twin-seat fighter jets, instantly riddling the two planes with holes and sending them crashing into the jungle on Merville Island, trailing smoke.

  Another F-2B fighter jet, still shaken, descended to an altitude of less than 50 meters to avoid the radar warning lights, but was hit by several "Forward-2" man-portable surface-to-air missiles carried by Chinese special forces and exploded in mid-air. Now only Takasaka is left, with the airport just ahead.

  "Beep, beep......" The ominous warning sound echoed again, and the multi-functional screen displayed that his fighter had been locked onto by the enemy's anti-aircraft missile, type - PAC-2 "Patriot". Desperate Kōsaka desperately controlled the plane trying to shake off the incoming missiles with the F-2's maneuverability, but there were too many. More than 8 PAC-2 "Patriot" anti-aircraft missiles almost simultaneously targeted him. Above the airport on Torishima Island, Kōsaka and his plane turned into celebratory fireworks for the completion of the Chinese military airport.