The advantage of the "Super Sky Fortress" is not only the flight height, but also the speed advantage compared to the Zero. The Zero's fastest speed is 533 kilometers per hour, flying at an altitude of 4,200 meters. The "Super Sky Fortress"
Its top speed exceeds 600 kilometers, and the Zero pilot can't catch up even if he vomits blood.
Just as the Air Force was preparing to send bombers to attack Tokyo, the Southern African Air Force was engaging in frequent battles with Japanese Zero fighters off the coast of the Philippines.
The Combined Fleet is stationed in Manila, which is only 1,000 kilometers away from the northernmost field airport on Kalimantan Island. This is already within the combat radius of the Southern African Air Force. The "Cheetah" equipped by the Southern African Air Force is an excellent fighter aircraft with a range of 2,500 kilometers.
Can pose a threat to Manila's combined fleet.
Compared with the "Cheetah", the "Zero" has a range of only 2,200 kilometers. With the addition of auxiliary fuel tanks, the range can exceed 3,000 kilometers. It can fly directly from Manila to Changi Naval Base and can also pose a threat to Changi Naval Base.
The battle was very fierce. Japan's "Zero" limited production capacity was not large. The Southern African Air Force was well prepared and had a large number of pilots who had experienced the Battle of Britain, including more than 40 ace pilots.
During the seven-month Battle of Britain, the Germans lost 1,977 aircraft and the Allies lost 1,744 aircraft.
Frequent air battles have produced many ace pilots, and there are nearly a hundred of them in the Southern African Air Force.
More over in Germany…
According to data released by Germany, a total of 140 ace pilots emerged during the Battle of Britain. The most ace pilot shot down 52 Allied fighter planes, and each ace pilot shot down 15 Allied fighter planes on average.
This data is a bit ridiculous. During the Battle of Britain, the Allies lost a total of 1,744 aircraft. Germany's ace pilots alone shot down 2,100 of them. The extra 300 aircraft came from nowhere.
The Japanese Air Force has not received a real test since the outbreak of the war.
Pearl Harbor was a shameless sneak attack when the Americans were unprepared. It was not a test at all. No matter how glorious the record was, it was useless.
Now comes the real test. Starting from February, the Southern African Air Force and the Japanese Air Force began to erupt in air battles in both directions of Manila and the Philippines. From sporadic battles at the beginning, they began to fight frequently after the joint fleet stationed in Manila.
On February 17, after the Japanese army occupied Manila, six Japanese Type 96 carrier-based fighter jets flew to Palawan Island in the Philippines for reconnaissance, and encountered four patrolling Southern African Air Force "Cheetahs", and an air battle broke out immediately.
The Type 96 carrier-based fighter first flew in 1935 and participated in the invasion of China. It had almost no opponents at the time.
Compared with the "Cheetah" in southern Africa, the performance of the 96 Ship Warfare is seriously lagging behind. The range of this aircraft is only 1,200 kilometers. The armament system is two 7.7mm aviation machine guns. The empty weight of the entire aircraft is only 1,216 kilograms. The protection is insufficient, and the attack
He also lacks strength and has short legs, so he can only bully weaker opponents on the East Asian battlefield.
The armament system of the "Cheetah" is two 20mm cannons and four 12.7mm machine guns. Its firepower intensity is more than one level higher than that of the 96 Ship Battle.
All four "Cheetah" pilots had experienced the test of the Great British Air Battle, and there was also an ace pilot among them. Although the number of 96-ship battles was greater, the battle ended quickly. All six 96-ship battles were shot down. "Cheetah"
"Nothing was damaged.
Southern Africa could sit back and watch the Japanese occupy Manila, but not Palawan.
Once the Japanese army occupied Palawan Island and built a field airport on Palawan Island, Japanese bombers taking off from Palawan Island could directly threaten Changi Naval Base.
It doesn't matter that the Zero can fly to Changi Naval Base. If it is equipped with auxiliary fuel tanks, it cannot carry bombs. Even if it flies to Changi Naval Base, it has no ground attack capability.
Japan's bomber technology is also not good. It performed well in the East Asian battlefield because its opponents were weaker. There were not many light bombers and medium bombers, and there were no heavy bombers at all. Flying to Changi Naval Base without fighter protection was equivalent to giving
Southern African pilots were killed.
During the era of American rule, Palawan experienced frequent rebellions. Until the outbreak of the World War, the United States did not completely conquer Palawan, and there were still rebels on the island.
After the outbreak of the World War, the strength of the resistance forces in Palawan Island increased again. After capturing Manila, the Japanese army tried to launch an attack on Palawan Island, but ended in a disastrous defeat.
The Japanese don’t even think about who supports the rebels on Palawan Island. Even the Americans have suffered in Palawan Island. The Japanese have no ability to land on Palawan Island. Only the Japanese army in the Malay Peninsula
The little landing experience accumulated in the Philippines will not be useful against the Palawan rebels.
Oh, now the Palawan Island Resistance Army has changed its name to the Palawan Autonomous Army and does not accept the rule of the US and Philippine governments.
On February 25, 36 96-ships flew to Palawan Island again.
The Southern African Air Force sent 32 "Cheetahs" to fight. This time, the number of 96 ship battles was still superior. However, the result of the battle did not change, and it still ended with the "Cheetahs" victory.
All 36 96s dispatched by the Japanese army were shot down. Only one "Cheetah" in southern Africa had to make an emergency landing at sea when returning to the base due to a punctured fuel tank that caused a fuel leak. The pilot was subsequently killed by an East India submarine.
Rescue away.
The result is amazing.
If it is a "Cheetah", then after hitting the enemy aircraft's fuel tank, it will definitely detonate the fuel in the enemy's fuel tank, and just wait and see the fireworks.
The 7.7mm aviation machine gun used in the 96th ship battle had severely insufficient attack power and could not even penetrate the cockpit of the "Cheetah" pilot.
Even replacing it with a 20mm cannon will not work. The performance of the 20mm cannon produced by the Japanese is very different from that of the 20mm cannon installed on the "Cheetah". The initial speed of the bullet is not good, the range is not enough, and the trajectory is curved.
, falling before hitting the target.
What should I do if the performance is not good?
If you were an engineer from Southern Africa, you would definitely have to find ways to improve it until its performance surpasses that of your opponents.
Japanese engineers are not like this. They falsified the data to make the performance of Japan's 20mm cannon look similar to that of the 20mm cannon in southern Africa. The remaining problems were left to Japanese pilots to solve.
The key point is that due to the weight reduction, the Japanese fighter planes do not carry much ammunition. Often the Japanese pilots are not familiar with the performance of the 20mm cannon, and the ammunition they carry is exhausted.
So don’t blame the Japanese for their habitual simplicity in manufacturing cars. The same goes for the Japanese when building airplanes during the war. These are all traditional skills.
In the multiple air battles that broke out in February, Japan did not take any advantage. As long as the 96-ship battle was dispatched, there would be no return. In March, Yamamoto Isoroku finally couldn't stand it anymore and took the initiative to send the "Zero" to participate in the war.
Compared with the 96 Ship Battle, the "Zero" is relatively advanced and can at least pose a threat to the "Cheetah". In an air battle on March 5, a Southern African "Cheetah" was shot down. The Japanese army was fighting with the Southern African Air Force.
In the battle, a "zero" breakthrough was finally achieved.
The "Zero" that shot down the "Cheetah" also tried to attack the "Cheetah" pilot who was parachuting, but he was quickly shot down by the swarming "Cheetah".
The "Cheetah" was shot down, and the pilot could at least parachute.
The pilot of the "Zero" didn't even have a chance to parachute, and the plane was blown up in the air.
For the Japanese army, shooting down the "Cheetah" was a zero breakthrough.
Not so for the Southern African Air Force.
As early as a month ago, a "Cheetah" made an emergency landing at sea due to malfunction during a transition. Although the pilot was rescued, the aircraft sank to the bottom of the sea.
This is not the first time. When the Cheetah was deployed to the Far East last year, a transport ship carrying the Cheetah sank in a storm, resulting in the loss of 40 Cheetahs at one time.
So far, the number of fighter aircraft lost by the Southern African Air Force due to various non-combat reasons far exceeds those lost in combat, and the proportion is about 60%.
On March 7, the "Cheetah" flew to Manila for the first time.
The Japanese "Zero" and "96" warships were deployed in full force. More than 300 aircraft fought fiercely over Manila. The Japanese lost 65 fighter planes, and 14 were lost in southern Africa. More than half of them were caused by Japanese ground anti-aircraft fire.
shoot down.
This time it was not just the "Cheetah" dispatched, but also torpedo bombers.
The torpedo bombers in southern Africa did not attack the Japanese battleships, but focused their attacks on the "Akagi" and "Sangryu" that had not yet been fished out.
These two aircraft carriers were completely tragic. The decks of both aircraft carriers were completely destroyed. The "Akagi" caught fire and the deck superstructure was almost flattened.
The "Soryu" was not much better. The fire spread to the hangar inside the belly of the aircraft. All 16 "Zeros" that had not had time to be transferred were burned. Yamamoto Isoroku decided to give up salvaging "Akagi" and "Soryu" that night.
", the fleet evacuated overnight.
What if we don’t withdraw? Will we stay in Manila and get beaten?
The Combined Fleet did not carry many fighter planes when it went south. The Japanese suffered heavy losses in the air battle on the 7th. If they did not leave, it would be too late.
This decision is correct.
On the 8th, 160 "Cheetahs" flew to Manila again, and this time the "Flying Fortress" cooperated with the operation.
Manila is only 1,000 kilometers away from the airport in Kalimantan. The "Flying Fortress" can be fully loaded with ten tons of bombs. The incendiary bombs carried by one "Flying Fortress" can destroy all buildings within about 10,000 square meters.
In order to ensure the bombing effect, the "Flying Fortress" drops bombs at an altitude of about 3,000 meters, and it does not fly in formation. Only one "Flying Fortress" drops bombs at a time, which absolutely guarantees the attack effect.
When the combined fleet sees that the situation is bad, it can run away, but the Japanese army has no way to escape.
After the Battle of the Philippines, the Japanese army transferred part of the troops that attacked the Philippines to the Malay Peninsula to participate in the war. The Japanese army currently deployed in Manila is the Japanese 56th Division from Kurume.
Within the Japanese army, the code name of the 56th Division is Dragon, so the 56th Division is also called the "Dragon Division". During the Philippine Campaign, the 56th Division performed outstandingly and was hailed as the "King of Jungle Warfare" by the Japanese army.
.
The 56th Division was composed of reserve members of the Japanese 12th Division. The soldiers came from miners in the Kurume area. They were physically strong and tenacious. During the attack on the Bataan Peninsula, the 56th Division played a huge role.
Unlike other main divisions of the Japanese army, the 56th Division has a total strength of about 20,000 people. After the Philippine Campaign, this unit received a lot of equipment from the U.S.-Philippine coalition, and its equipment level has been improved.
Facing the southern African army on land, the 56th Division was not without its strength.
However, facing bombing from the air, the 56th Division lacked the means to respond and suffered heavy losses in the bombing on the 8th.
At this time, Angel was not in a hurry to send troops to attack the Philippines, but instead used more troops to encircle and annihilate the Guards Division and the 18th Division.
The Japanese army in desperate situation did not collapse. Many Japanese troops fled into the mountains in the central part of the Malay Peninsula after running out of ammunition and food, which brought huge difficulties to the clearance work.
The opinion given by Percival was to trap the Japanese troops in the mountains, and it would not be long before the Japanese troops surrendered.
This can only be a fantasy. The Japanese now know very well that even if they surrender, they will be executed if they fall into the hands of the southern Africans.
There is no point in surrendering to the British army. A few days ago, a desperate Japanese army surrendered to the British and Indian troops. The commander of the British and Indian troops was ecstatic. Since the war began, no Japanese soldier has ever surrendered to the British army, let alone
They surrendered collectively, so the commander of the British and Indian troops immediately decided to send the prisoners by boat to the Lion City to demonstrate their military exploits.
A miraculous accident happened again. The transport ship carrying prisoners hit the rocks and sank before arriving in the Lion City. All more than 500 prisoners died, and no one survived.
Miraculously, more than a hundred soldiers and crew members responsible for escorting all escaped smoothly without any casualties.
This time it was really a shipwreck. The data are all real and there are photos to prove it.
This made Percival very angry. He was very happy when he learned that the Japanese army surrendered to the British army. He also prepared a surrender ceremony for these prisoners. Officials from the Straits Settlements and generals from Southern Africa would also be invited to participate.
.
Percival wanted the generals in southern Africa to prove that British and Indian troops could also play a huge role in combat.
So far in the war with Japan in southern Africa, not a single prisoner has been taken.
The British and Indian troops captured more than 500 people as soon as they took action, which was indeed extraordinary.
Now that the grand surrender ceremony has come to nothing, and the transportation company has to compensate for the cost of the sunken ship, Angel gives Percival a surprise and decides to hand over the task of wiping out the Guards Division and the 18th Division to the British army led by Percival.
Responsible, the southern African army has more important tasks.
After the capital Kuala Lumpur, the next one is Saigon.
Although Vichy France claimed to remain neutral, it actually entered the war after opening French Indochina to Japan.
There are Japanese troops in French Indochina, and the southern African army can invade French Indochina in the name of wiping out the remaining Japanese troops.
It would be fine if the French just accepted it in a low-key manner.
If the French dare to object, then the southern Africans will beat France's poor colonial servants together with the Japanese army.
The previous bombing of Saigon's airport in Southern Africa was strongly opposed by Vichy France.
Roque did not talk nonsense to the French and instructed the Executive Council of the League of Nations to directly expel Vichy France from the League of Nations.
Instead of protecting the Japanese, France was worried that southern Africa would launch an air raid on Paris like the air raid on Saigon.
After all, there are German troops stationed in France. We provide you with the fastest updates and free reading.
