Chapter 1114 Missiles in the Atlantic Ocean 27

"Damn it, they are actually twin-engine Ju188 torpedo bombers! Where did they come from?" With the help of the searchlight, Rear Admiral Mullinix finally saw clearly what the invading enemy planes looked like.

They are not carrier-based aircraft taking off from an aircraft carrier, but the famous shore-based night torpedo aircraft Ju188E-2 torpedo bombers! However, the range of this kind of aircraft is only 3,000 kilometers at most, and the combat radius is 1,000 kilometers at most. How can it fly here?

There are no German bases within 1,000 kilometers nearby! Could it be that they all took off from an aircraft carrier?

"Fire! Fire quickly!" Rear Admiral Mullinix looked at the Ju188E-2 torpedo bombers flying closer and closer, and no longer thought about where they came from? The order to fire was issued repeatedly.

"Boom boom boom..."

Almost at the same time as Rear Admiral Mullinix shouted, the 127mm high-level dual-purpose cannon installed on the port side of the Soviet Union began to fire wildly. Orange-red fireballs kept flashing in the night sky, but the density was not too high.

The Soviet-class anti-aircraft gun system has been upgraded in the United States. The anti-aircraft gun configuration standards are exactly the same as those of the Iowa-class battleships. It has only 20 127mm high-level and flat dual-purpose guns, 10 of which are installed on the port side of the battleship. Because there is no radar fire control, the shooting accuracy at night is not high, and you can only rely on radio proximity fuses to try your luck. Unless the aircraft is "caught" by a searchlight, it is unlikely to be hit.

"Don't worry about the 127mm guns." Colonel Peltz, who led the attack with 24 Ju188E-2 torpedo bombers, was experienced and naturally would not take the firepower of 10 127mm guns too seriously.

"Maintain altitude and speed." He gave the order through the throat communicator, "Launch torpedoes from a distance of 2,500 meters, and then immediately pull up and leave the battlefield."

Ten 127mm guns are not scary, but the threat of dozens of 40mm anti-aircraft guns and 20mm machine guns cannot be ignored, so Peltz did not dare to get too close.

Dropping torpedoes at a distance of 2,500 meters is a bit far for ordinary torpedo aircraft attack methods. Although the range of airborne torpedoes is sufficient, it is difficult to hit if it is too far away. However, when using golden comb tactics for high-density crossfire, 2,500 meters is already a distance that can pose a huge threat to surface ships.

The 24 Ju188E-2s are now divided into two teams, each with 12 aircraft, forming a triangular six-plane formation in the air - one in front and one in the back - this is a fairly high-density formation, that is, a torpedo attack at night. It can be used at all times, but if it had been during the day, it would have been dispersed by enemy fighter jets and 127mm anti-aircraft guns.

Colonel Peltz personally led a group of 12 Ju188E-2s to attack from the port side of the Soviet Union battleship, and another 12 Ju188E-2s attacked from the front of the Soviet Union battleship formation. Each Ju188E-2 carries 2 F-5 airborne torpedoes, a total of 48 torpedoes, like two combs, pounce on the prey from below the sea water at the same time!

"5000 meters!"

"4800 meters!"

"4600 meters!"

"4400 meters!"

"4200 meters!"

"..."

As the navigator Sergeant Schmidt reported the count, Colonel Peltz had already piloted the aircraft into the fire range of the 127mm anti-aircraft gun. At this time, the 40mm anti-aircraft gun on the Soviet Union also started firing, and the firepower density suddenly increased. Countless 40mm tracer bullets were like lightning, piercing the night sky, weaving a dense fire net in the sky.

"3000 meters!"

When Sergeant Schmidt called out this number, the plane piloted by Colonel Peltz shook suddenly. He knew that his plane had been hit by a 40mm shell!

However, this shell obviously did not cause fatal damage to the sturdy Ju188. This aircraft is quite strong!

The Ju188E-2 aircraft trembled violently and continued to fly forward. It would soon reach the designated position for releasing torpedoes.

"Colonel, there's a fire in the right engine..."

Peltz heard someone reporting the loss of the plane to him, but he didn't care at all and just asked loudly: "Distance?"

"2700 meters!" Sergeant Schmidt shouted.

"All attention!" Colonel Peltz gave the order through the throat communicator, "Prepare to drop bombs!"

"2500 meters..."

"Let go!" As Colonel Peltz shouted, all the bombardiers pressed the button to release the torpedoes. 22 torpedoes fell into the water one after another (one Ju188 was shot down during the attack). Dozens of seconds later, the Ju188E-2 attacking from the front of the Soviet Union also dropped 20 torpedoes (one of the 12 Ju188s attacking from the front) 2 were shot down). Just when 42 torpedoes formed two "golden combs" in the water, cutting through the sea water, dragging a trail of bubbles, and pounced towards the huge battleship Soviet Russia, the bomber piloted by Colonel Peltz fired another fierce burst. Shaking, and then the cold wind with the salty smell of sea water poured into the cabin.

"Colonel, we've been hit again!"

I don’t know who shouted, but Colonel Peltz ignored him and just pulled up the control panel with all his strength. The nose of the plane lifted up with great effort, relying on the only remaining engine to climb upward. At this time, several beams of light suddenly shot at Colonel Peltz’s plane, followed by a fierce artillery attack. One of the 127mm radio proximity shells exploded in the air less than 10 meters away from the plane. The flying shrapnel swept the left wing of the plane, not only making more than a dozen large and small holes on the wing, but also ignited the left engine!

This Ju188E-2 plane could no longer continue to fly, and Colonel Peltz could only try to control the plane to make an emergency landing on the sea. At the moment when the belly of the plane hit the sea, Colonel Peltz suddenly saw a huge fireball from the corner of his eye, rising on the port side of the battleship on the sea!

Colonel Peltz and his crew members then successfully escaped from the sinking plane, but they were too far away from the three cruisers responsible for the rescue, including the Vienna. Finally, they were picked up by the American light cruiser Denver and imprisoned in a prisoner-of-war camp in the United States, where they spent the last years of the war and met some friends from Japan...

...

Boom boom boom...

The Soviet battleship was hit by a torpedo! Not just one, but as many as eight 450mm F-5 torpedoes slammed into the underwater part of the port side and bow of the Soviet battleship. Four of the torpedoes hit the Pleiser double cylindrical anti-torpedo system between the keels of the Soviet battleship No. 64-153, which did not cause serious consequences. It was just that the energy of the explosion tore open the curved anti-torpedo armor, causing more than 3,000 tons of water to enter.

However, the Pleiser anti-torpedo system of the Soviet battleship was only 123 meters long, which was not enough to protect the entire underwater part. As a result, the remaining four torpedoes all hit outside the protection range of the Pulese anti-torpedo system near the bow and stern.

One of them hit the vicinity of the auxiliary rudder steering room at the rear of the port side, tearing a huge hole. Within minutes, the flooding range spread to all cabins in the area, the stern sank, and the warship collapsed.

Another torpedo hit the vicinity of the storage room at the front of the port side, creating an 11-meter × 9-meter hole on the surface of the hull, which also caused a large amount of seawater to rush in and quickly submerged the diesel generator at the bow, causing the power system to fail. As a result, the four pumps stopped working, and the influx of seawater reached thousands of tons and could not be discharged.

Another torpedo hit the front oil storage tank less than 20 meters away from the front storage room on the port side, and also penetrated it with one blow, opening an 8×5-meter hole, which not only caused a large amount of fuel leakage, but also caused more than 2,000 tons of seawater to rush in.

The last torpedo hit the most vulnerable part of the Soviet Union - the outward-inclined side of the unprotected stern area, causing extremely serious water inflow, and up to 4,000 tons of seawater poured into the hull.

Although the aerial torpedoes that hit the Soviet Union had limited destructive power and did not hit the vital parts, they were too numerous to withstand. A total of 8 holes were opened on the port side and bow of the Soviet Union, and more than 20,000 tons of seawater poured in in just over ten minutes. As a result, the hull tilted seriously to the left, and due to the failure of the water pump, the seawater could not be discharged for a while.

When more than 20,000 tons of seawater rushed in, the damage control of the Soviet Union battleship had a big problem! Not only did the "new American sailors" on the ship have poor damage control skills, they were also in a mess when they encountered a large amount of water inflow.

Moreover, there were problems with the quality of many leak-proof and damage control equipment on the ship - these equipment were produced by the Soviet Union itself, and due to the lack of relevant experience and shoddy workmanship, they could not play a role at critical moments. The "old American officers" on board were not prepared for the quality problems of Soviet-made products, and were at a loss when they encountered a lot of equipment failures. As a result, precious time was wasted.

At 4:10 a.m. on September 7, 1944, the captain of the Russian battleship, Rear Admiral Mulliniks, painfully discovered that his battleship could not be saved.

At 4:15, Rear Admiral Mulliniks issued an order to abandon the Russian battleship. At this time, the Russian battleship was seriously damaged, and the bottom of the starboard side even exposed the water.

At 4:44, after most of the crew evacuated, the Russian battleship with a standard displacement of 59,150 tons capsized and sank in the cold Atlantic Ocean.