Chapter 188
February 2, 2021, 16:00, office of the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Jongro-gu Borough, Seoul
Ambassador Willy Gold entered the Foreign Affairs Minister’s office, wearing an expression that betrayed his uncomfortable mood. He had been summoned to the Ministry just as he was about to knock off from work and head home.
“Ambassador Gold, please come in. I can see from your face that you look as if you were forced to come here, even though you didn’t want to.”
Minister Kim Jae-hak rose from his seat and spread both arms, greeting his guest warmly.
“Ha ha, does it seem that way? That’s just because my stomach isn’t feeling too good as I was on the way here.”
“Ah! So that’s it. Well, please, sit down. What kind of tea would you like?”
“Seeing as my stomach is upset, I’ll skip the tea. So, why did you ask me to come here?”
“I see you’re in a hurry. Let’s get straight to it.”
Minister Kim Jae-hak took a single sip of the tea he had been drinking. He set the cup down and got straight to the point.
“This is about the US military bases stationed in Japan.”
“Yes, what about our bases there?”
“Didn’t you clearly say that the US would be taking a neutral position in this war? That the US will simply observe?”
“Yes, that’s correct. The US will not be involved in the Japanese-Corean War.
“Then, if that is the case, why are the US bases in Japan stationing Japanese Self-Defense Forces? Aren’t they supposed to be neutral territory? Our sources have determined that many air defense forces are being shifted to those bases and stationed there.”
“Is that so?”
“If the US hopes to maintain its neutrality, we sincerely hope that it will immediately send away the Japanese Self-Defense Force troops in those bases.”
Ambassador Willy Gold, who had lost about half of his hair, rubbed his head and spoke with an embarrassed look on his face.
“That is not an issue that I can immediately address.”
“I’m aware of that. Looking at it from America’s point of view, I can see how it would be an embarrassing situation.”
Ever since Corea had prevailed in the Sino-Corean War (even while engaging in a marine conflict with Japan over the issue in the waters around Dok-do Island), the US, and more specifically the USSC, had decided on a type of proxy conflict through Japan in order to keep Corea in check. They did this by selling military equipment to Japan, going beyond the limits of its export caps. The US even loaned some of its cutting edge weaponry to Japan. When Corea confronted America with documented evidence of Japan’s brutality and claimed it as justification for all-out war, the US reverted to its neutral position.
But this was simply the official stance of the US. The decisions of the USSC never changed. Even while they recognized that this could potentially lead to problems with Korea, they allowed the Japan Self-Defense Force’s troops to station in the US bases.
“I will confirm with our Defense Department about this matter and contact you again.”
“Yes, I understand. However, as we are currently in the midst of a war, I hope you can confirm this at the soonest available opportunity.”
“Yes, I understand.”
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February 2, 2021, 23:06, OSCAR Bunker in Daegu (Control Room of the deep sea defense satellite Poseidon 3)
A large screen right in the middle of the control room displayed all vessels, including submarines, within a 200-kilometer radius. It showed all kinds of strategic symbols and colors that were as easy to read as the back of your hand. However, as even small fishing boats and merchant vessels were displayed, even the large 200-inch screen looked a little crowded.
Today, the Deck Officer, the Watchman and ten or so operators were attending to their tedious and monotonous deck duties in the control room. But suddenly, the voice of a lone operator cut through the silence and turned the day into a notable one.
“Sir, detecting an unidentified submarine, 67 kilometers off the southwest edge of Jaeju Island, at an azimuth of 2-3-1 32° 37’58.04″ N, 125° 59’17.13″ E, depth of 120! Its current azimuth is 0-4-1, meaning it’s moving towards Jaeju-do Island at a speed of 25 knots.”
The location of the unidentified submarine appeared on the center screen in great detail. At this, the Deck Officer stood up from his seat and immediately asked a question in response.
“What’s going on? Why didn’t you detect the submarine before it reached 67 kilometers of Jaeju-do Island?”
“It may be because Jaeju-do’s position weakened the signal of our ultra-sonic detection rays.”
Whether it was the intent of the unidentified submarine’s pilots or just pure luck, in this situation, Jaeju-do Island was located precisely between Poseidon 3 and the submarine. This meant that the landmass was blocking the satellite’s ultrasonic detection rays.
“And what do you mean by ‘unidentified’? All submarines, even the average ones, are included in the Identification Friend or Foe (IFF) Database.”
“That’s the thing, sir. Whatever this thing is, it looks like it’s a state-of-the-art model that’s not listed in the IFF Database.”
“Could it be the latest model of the US submarine?”
The Deck Officer massaged his forehead in thought. He was visibly worried.
“Do I need to contact the Control Commander and report this?” he thought to himself.
The Deck Officer quickly made up his mind, and he decided to report this incident to the Field Officer.
“Communications Officer, send a call out to the Field Officer!”
“Yes, sir.”
Shortly after, the Field Officer entered the control room of Poseidon 3.
“What’s going on? Did you discover something?”
Field Officer Oh Myoung-ho asked as soon as he entered the room. In response, the Deck Officer pointed to the screen.
“Just look at the screen, sir.”
The main screen’s digital map clearly displayed three submarine-shaped symbols located near the southwestern edge of Jaeju-do Island. The symbols were flashing red.
“Submarines? But then why don’t we have their exact information?”
“That’s why I contacted you, Field Officer Oh.”
“Huh, so we have no information about these vessels? Their acoustic signatures can’t be found in the IFF database?”
“Yes, sir, that’s correct.”
Field Officer Oh Myoung-ho folded his arms, lost in thought. He took a few seconds before he gave his orders.
“Call the Commander. And prepare to launch a Trident!”
At this, the operator in charge of arms delivered some bleak news.
“Mr. Field Officer, sir! I’ve already calculated the direction of the submarine’s trajectory. The Trident doesn’t have sufficient range to reach the submarine, even if we move closer to Jaeju-do Island. It would be possible to hit if they went in a straight line, but if they navigate around the island then we’ll be out of range.
“Damn! Do we have any ships or submarines near those waters now?”
Several of the vessels and submarines closest to the area flashed on the central main screen.
“At the present time, the closest naval vessel to the unidentified submarine is the Navy destroyer Dae Jo-young (DDG-977) of the Second Fleet, which is 89 kilometers away. And for submarines, there’s the Hong Beom-do (SS-079) at 50.4 kilometers away, then the Lee Beom-seok (SS-080) at 73 kilometers away, and the next closest is the Lee Oek-ki (SS-070) which is 122 kilometers away.”
“So they bypassed our anti-submarine screen... Alright then, declare a Level 1 situation to the Joint Chiefs of Staff and the Naval Operations Command. Contact the Naval destroyer Dae Jo-young as well as all our submarines in the area of those waters. Then implement data linking with each of the vessels that you make communications with.”
“Yes, sir.”
Then the ten or so operators each contacted the General Staff members and headquarters they were in responsible for, declaring a Level 1 situation.
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February 2, 2021, 23:12, Bunker B2 (Situation Room of the Korean Army Command and Control Center), Yongsan-gu Borough, Seoul
The Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Kang I-shik, Vice Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Choi Ho-il, the General Staff of the 3rd Corps, and the rest of the Korean military’s commanding officers were convened in casual dress in the situation room after having received the declaration of a Level 1 situation from the control room of Poseidon 3 in the Daegu OSCAR bunker just five minutes earlier.
“I will now report on the current situation.”
While the officers were still settling down, the Director of Operations, Lieutenant General Kim Yong-hyun, began the meeting.
“At 11:06, just ten minutes ago, the Poseidon 3 spotted three unidentified submarines located 67 kilometers off the southwest tip of Jaeju-do Island, now just 60 kilometers away. Poseidon 3 declared a Level 1 situation to the Second Fleet and three of our submarines that are currently in the area. Four P-3CK marine patrol aircraft have also been dispatched from the Seventh Carrier Task Group’s base on Jaeju-do Island.”
This simple and direct description of the current situation was met with a barrage of questions from some of military officers present.
“Did you just say these are unidentified submarines? How can that be? Maybe they’re American or Russian vessels that we don’t know about?”
“We cannot know for sure at the present time, Mr. Chief of Staff of the Army, sir.”
“Does this mean that our anti-submarine net has been penetrated? Or is it that these unidentified submarines have such advanced underwater navigation capabilities?”
This question came from General Kim Byoung-hwan, the Chief of Staff of the Air Force.
“At this current time, we don’t know if it was planned or just luck, but Jaeju-do Island is positioned directly between the unidentified submarines and our Poseidon 3. Because of this, Poseidon 3’s detection radar was affected, and the crew only detected the submarines much later than they normally would.”
“Can we capture these submarines on video? Do we have sights on them?”
“Sir, the Apollo 1 is still investigating the area around these waters. We have deployed infrared vision, as it’s currently night time.”
“Fine, let me know once we have obtained visual confirmation.”
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February 2, 2021, 23:12, Emergency Safety Situation Room of the Japanese Cabinet, Tokyo
Anxious energy was coursing through the Emergency Safety Situation Room, located 80 meters underground. The atmosphere was more intense than it had ever been before. This was because everyone present was about to witness Japan’s first retaliation since the war had begun.
Prime Minister Abe was also there. He sat in a chair at the very end of the Situation Room, where he silently watched the events unfold.
“They should be arriving at their strike targets right about now,” he thought to himself.
Chief of Naval Operations Murakawa glanced down at the watch on his wrist, and gently bit his lower lip. He sent a silent signal to the Chief of Air Operations, Kitano Takeshi. Takeshi simply nodded, and made contact with the Air Operations Headquarters.
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February 2, 2021, 23:15, the airbase of the 11th Air Wing of the Western Air Defense Force, Kyushu, Japan
This was a new airbase for Japan’s Air Self-Defense Forces. It was set up to dispatch the F-35A Lightning II fighters that Japan had purchased from the US. It was also the base for the first of the X-1 Stealth Fighters, a new kind of fighter plane that was developed using Japan’s own technologies, and commercialized under the name of JX-1 Zero. In the case of an air assault, the recently constructed Kanoya Air Base could store its fighter jets in a hangar. This hangar could also be referred to as a house or an igloo for the fighter planes. It boasted much more robust capabilities than other airbases and could also transport all of the planes underground by an elevator in case of an emergency.
At the time of the first ballistic missile attack by Korea, the base of the 11th Air Wing was also under attack. However, only its runways and parts of its buildings were hit, while the F-35A Lightning II fighters and the JX-1 Zero fighters had been moved to the underground bunker and were completely undamaged.
There were currently two squadrons, with a total of about 52 fighter planes, sitting on the airstrip of the 11th Air Wing. The aircrafts had just undergone emergency repairs and maintenance, and now, they were revving their powerful engines and preparing to take off. Within a few minutes, the pilots received the go-ahead to take off and the jet planes took to the skies of Kanoya in a great cacophony of sound. One by one, they took off, starting with the lead jet plane.
It only took a few quick minutes for all the 28 F-35A Lightning II fighters and the 24 JX-1 Zero fighters to reach their target altitude. The planes turned their nosecones towards Busan and set off, all the while maintaining their tight squadron formations.
At the same time, a group of about 300 missiles were launched from the missile battalion that was stationed at one of the US bases. It was a combination of rockets that included the J-ONE tactical ballistic missile as well as the 12-style, 12B-style, and 09-style Sakurabana cruise missiles. The missiles rocketed up to the heavens and then moved in unison toward the Korean Peninsula. The 09-style Sakurabana missile, a recently developed model that could fly at supersonic speeds of up to Mach 3, led the way. Although there were less than 50 Sakurabana missiles in the air right now, the Mitsubishi Heavy Manufacturing Corporation and the Kawasaki Heavy Manufacturing Corporation were mobilizing their production lines and were churning out more of them.
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February 2, 2021, 23:15, deep in the southern seas near Jaeju-do Island, latitude 32°41′, longitude 126° 1′
In a spot 60 kilometers off the southwestern edge of Jaeju-do Island, moonlight glistened off the water’s surface while the nighttime waves rolled. From deep under water, three black shadows gradually became larger. Soon, they pierced the surface of the ocean in a huge spray of water. The shadows were revealed to be the JS Wakashio (ss-601), and its sister ships, the JS Natsushio (SS-602) and JS Arashio (SS-603).
The three Wakashio-class submarines had been making their approach to Jaeju-do Island. Along the way, they had continually released multiple rounds of chaff in their wake. Because of this, the neighboring deep sea was filled with chaff that emitted the same acoustic signature as the submarine. The chaff interfered with the sonar detection used by the Korean submarines and marine patrol aircraft, as well as Poseidon 3, that were trying to lock on to the fleet.
Now that they have bought some time for themselves, the three submarines had made an emergency trip to the surface at the pre-determined time. The 18-roof door vertical launchers opened up (2×9) as 18 missiles were launched up into the sky. These missiles were the improved version of the Sakurabana 09-style cruise missile, the Sakurabana 09-style SL, a surface-to-surface cruise missile, spraying white trails behind them as they shot up.
The 54 Sakurabana 09-style SL missiles that launched from the three submarines reached a certain level of elevation before diving back down towards the water. Just as they reached the water surface, the missiles leveled themselves and switched to a sea-skimming maneuver as they made their way towards Jaeju-do Island.
The missiles flew true, leaving a spray of water in their wake. In the blink of an eye, the 54 Sakurabana 09-style SL cruise missiles reached the shoreline Jaeju-do Island, where they quickly scattered, each flying towards their assigned target area.
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