The defeat of Japan and Germany was their fate! Even if they won some battles, as the war evolved into a pure competition of manpower, material resources and mobilization power, the German, Italian and Japanese fascists quickly lost the spirit they had at the beginning of the war.
They may be able to achieve one or two more major victories during the war, but these victories are almost all based on the massive consumption of their few elite troops and the gradual shortage of logistical supplies. I wonder, can this kind of victory be repeated again?
How many times will it be reproduced?
The global anti-fascist allies can afford to fail in these battles many times, as long as the United States remains a super-large arsenal, transfusing blood for all allies! Furthermore, the United States itself is also a huge war machine.
Only in the first half of 1942, the United States had only six major aircraft carriers. Even if the United States urgently started construction of a batch of Independence-class light aircraft carriers modified from Cleveland-class destroyers, the first ship was only launched in February.
The U.S. military won the Battle of the Coral Sea, but it also sunk the Lexington and seriously injured York City. The U.S. military's strong damage control and subsequent emergency repairs allowed York City to still fight with injuries. Now the United States has to order the city to "recuperate"
"She rushed to the battlefield, but had no choice but to repair the Yorktown while rushing to Midway Island.
This battle can be described as a battle of fate!
The Japanese Combined Fleet is ambitious. In this summer when they are gambling on the fate of the country, they believe that after this strategic decisive battle, they can destroy the main aircraft carrier of the United States in one go. Not only will they avenge Shuanghe, but they also believe that Japan will be able to launch a war without any worries.
Raiders of Australia, and even marched eastward to capture Pearl Harbor!
Arrogance was written on the faces of Nagumo Chuichi and all the carrier-based aircraft pilots. The so-called empire would rise and fall in this battle. The battle finally broke out on June 4!
Just as it should have happened, the U.S. military had deciphered the Japanese communications and already knew when the Japanese troops would arrive in the waters near Midway Island. Therefore, at the right time, the road-based torpedo planes of the U.S. military defenders at Midway Island took off, starting the Midway
The prelude to the great island battle.
In that plane, the Best Surprise Attack, the Five Minutes of Fate, or the Flying Dragon Riding on the Face, these details of the battle that are praised by everyone in later generations, the reasons for their occurrence are somewhat luck. Who would have thought that three SBDs
A coincidental air strike by a bomber could destroy a batch of carrier-based aircraft that were busy exchanging bombs for torpedoes in the hangar with one aerial bomb, but there was not a single Japanese aircraft in the sky to escort Chicheng?
Who would have thought that York City, which was already injured in the battle, could still survive in this battle because of its super damage control emergency repairs, so it was attacked twice by the Japanese army! And the destroyer USS Hamann sacrificed its life to block torpedoes for York City.
.
Undoubtedly, in the Battle of Midway on that plane, Chicheng's sudden sinking may have been an accident, but Kaga's sinking was not an accident.
On this plane, Japan's losses in the Coral Sea were even worse. The fact that the Auspicious Twin Cranes were sunk by a swarm of SBD military aerial bombs proves just how bad the Japanese army's anti-aircraft firepower is?! Now,
The "crispy" Chicheng Kaga, as well as Canglong Feilong, rush to the new battlefield in high spirits. What awaits them will be even more terrible losses!
The battle started on June 4th, Western Hemisphere time (June 5th for Japan). The battle lasted for two days. With all four Japanese aircraft carriers sinking, the battle ended!
In this battle, there was indeed no such thing as the Best Raid and the so-called five minutes of fate. Even though the York City was seriously damaged again, it did not sink, and the Hamann did not block mines for it.
Because something happened in this battle that shocked both parties involved - the Japanese commander Nagumo Chuichi and all his fleet commanders were suddenly killed!
In this new season of gambling on national destiny, the luck of the Japanese navy has been exhausted in the Yellow Sea in 1895, Tsushima in 1905, and Pearl Harbor in 1941.
On June 4, the Japanese army bombed the Midway Island land-based airport, and there were not many US military aircraft available. The US military dispatched B26 bombers, hoping to use their high-flying capabilities to escape the interception of zero combat and fly from high altitudes.
Dropping heavy bombs and praying to hit the enemy ships. Undoubtedly, the sight of this high-altitude bombing was too poor, and their efforts were all in vain.
Moreover, the Japanese aircraft still successfully completed the strangulation, and one B26 fell into the sea.
There was only one unyielding B26. When it ignited thick smoke and fell rapidly, the pilot saw clearly the Japanese aircraft carrier under the clouds. This burning B26 still had a total of 4,000 pounds of bombs that had not been dropped in the cabin.
And lots of fuel!
The entire crew knew that there was no hope of escape at sea, and they also knew that they were facing an excellent opportunity.
So in this Pacific War, it was the US military that took the lead in using the "Kamikaze"! The target of this burning B26 bomber was none other than Chuichi Nagumo's flagship, Kaga.
When it fell rapidly, its unique trajectory already proved that it was going to hit the aircraft carrier! This was the most critical moment in Nagumo Chuichi's life. At this time, his fate was no longer in his hands, it all depended on these escorts.
Fighters, and anti-aircraft guns on the aircraft carrier!
The B26 is a solid medium bomber. It ate some more shells, but the overall crash course did not change significantly. The crew made the final maneuvers, shouted "Long Live America", and slammed into Kaga's ship.
bridge.
In fact, there was also a damaged B26 bomber in that plane that almost hit Kaga. That time, the plane almost crashed into the sea next to Class A. Only this time, Japan had no luck!
The burning wreckage of the plane quickly covered the entire flight deck, and aviation gasoline was poured onto the entire bridge, immediately forming a fire tower! In the explosion, Tadashi Nagumo was seriously injured, but he did not die on the spot.
However, when the Japanese firefighters started to put out the fire, a huge explosion occurred!
The high temperature finally caused the 4,000-pound bomb to explode. The powerful shock wave tore into pieces the burning scabbard and took away Chuichi Nagumo's life. A fifty-meter-long crater was blown out of Chicheng's hull! The hangar
A large number of backup aircraft fell into the sea in fragments, and then the hangar ignited with shocking flames!
The thick black smoke ignited by the Kaga soared upwards, like a beacon, immediately attracting the attention of the US SBD troops who were looking for the Japanese aircraft carrier.
Soon, Kaga was hit by U.S. dive bombers, and she was unable to fight back! Those ships waiting to land to replenish fuel and ammunition had to either make an emergency landing on the sea due to exhaustion of fuel, or change course to look for Chicheng.
Landing.
Only an hour passed from the time the B26 hit Kaga to the time it sank.
The planes trying to find Chicheng to land on the ship were pursued by the US military. Soon, Chicheng was also hit by fire. Her flight deck was hit by ten aerial bombs, and she lost combat effectiveness in an instant. The first aviation battle and the First Air Fleet had already
In name only.
Nagumo Chuichi died suddenly in battle, which was something that both the Japanese and American armies had not expected. The American army had no idea that the war situation would develop so dramatically and that victory would come so quickly.
The Japanese army quickly learned of this tragedy, and Yamaguchi Tawen, the commander of the Second Air Fleet, clearly realized that their strength was far inferior to that of the U.S. Navy.
Even so, the battle was no longer easy for the Japanese to withdraw if they wanted to. Furthermore, as a war fanatic, Yamaguchi's desire to avenge Chuichi Nagumo became the reason for him and his officers and soldiers to continue fighting.
But on the afternoon of June 4, Cangkong was besieged by U.S. carrier-based aircraft. The U.S. military used only one attack wave to completely paralyze her. Canglong was already a piece of fish on the chopping board and ignited a raging fire. When night fell, the flames
It's as scary as an undersea volcano erupting!
On the morning of June 5th, the Japanese army only had one aircraft carrier, Hiryu, to fight! In the past day, the Japanese combined fleet suffered a heavy loss. Although Yamaguchi Tawen was unwilling to accept it, under the current situation, it was difficult for the Hiryu to fight again.
Three enemies! In yesterday's battle, the deck of the Hiryu was damaged. Due to a near-missile bomb, the hull below the waterline was damaged. The Japanese army's damage control was very poor. After a night of repairs, there was still a hole in the front part of the deck, so the ship was
The plane must take off in a short distance. If the pilot is negligent, the plane may be affected by a big hole and cause it to fall!
He made a helpless choice that completely changed his own destiny.
As the acting supreme commander, Yamaguchi Takan ordered all the remaining warships of the two air fleets participating in the war to return home, leaving only the submarine as the rearguard!
So at 7 a.m. local time on June 5th on Midway Island and 3 a.m. on June 6th Tokyo time, the Japanese army began to return with infinite regret and desperate attempts to intercept and kill the U.S. military. The U.S. reconnaissance battalion discovered the retreating figure of the Japanese army.
, but it was too late to continue the pursuit. After weighing the situation, the US military gave up the pursuit.
This battle ended in just two days, and the real war lasted a full 24 hours! Of the three US aircraft carriers, only York City was seriously injured again. Fortunately, because the Japanese I-168 did not discover her, York City was not injured.
sink.
The three U.S. aircraft carriers began their return voyage at noon, and the news of the victory of the battle had reached Washington one hour in advance. This was a great victory for the United States, and the victory news was immediately broadcast to the world, so there was a second broadcast by the Soviet Tass News Agency. The content of the broadcast was naturally also
It was streamlined, and when Yang Mingzhi learned about it, he only knew that the US military lost no aircraft carriers in this battle, while the Japanese lost three.
However, the opposite of the victory of the United States was the defeat of the Soviet Union. Where should the Southwest Front go?