Chapter 260
Lieutenant General Kim Yong-hyun gave an order to the communications director. “Request footage from the Apollo 2 satellite.”
“Yes, sir. I’ll relay the order.”
A moment later, screen 2 showed the 48 F-35C Lightning II jets flying low across the ocean surface in groups of flight wings. The scene made it seem as if a group of anti-ship missiles was flying across the ocean in sea-skimming mode. It seemed that the jets were trying to avoid being detected by the Corean anti-air radars.
“Based on their direction, they seem to be targeting the second expeditionary force’s vessels, sir.”
“Yes, I expected as much. Commence our defensive strategies as planned.”
“Yes, sir. We will begin with the 38th fighter wing’s 111th battalion defending the fleet.”
* * *
February 20th, 2021, 08:10
The skies above Fukuoka Prefecture, Kyushu, Japan
The air force command headquarters were contacted by the Joint Chief of Staff. They ordered the 24 Phoenix jets under the 38th fighter wing’s 111th battalion flying down the northern shoreline of Honshu and Kyushu to strike down the F-35C Lightning II jets headed north.
The 111th battalion’s 24 CF-21P Phoenix jets received the data link from the Apollo 2 satellite and started allotting their targets. The battalion commander ordered each jet to launch two rounds of their long-ranged air-to-air S-AAM-500 Cobra missiles.
The 48 rounds of S-AAM-500 Cobra missiles had a range of 500km and moved out from the interior chamber with blue flames coming out from their thrusters. They flew south at a speed of Mach 10.
* * *
February 20th, 2021, 08:10
The skies 146km west from Kuroshima Island, Oita Prefecture, Japan
Beep! Beep! Beep! Beep!
Inside the cockpits of the F-35C Lightning II jets that had taken off from the Gerald R. Ford (CVN-78), the radar alarm started to ring but then changed to the missile alarms soon after.
They were 495km away from the target. The jets had detected the general location of the enemy, but they required exact radar scans to fire their air-to-air missiles. The F-35C Lightning II jets were panicking from the enemy launching the air-to-air missiles when they needed to close the distance against the enemy to fire their own missiles. The VFA-510 flight battalion’s commander Lieutenant Colonel Joseph Baron made a request to the Gerald R. Ford (CVN-78) aircraft carrier.
-This is VFA-510 Goliath 1! We are being attacked by enemy missiles. We require radar scans for the targets. This is urgent. Over.
-This is Base 1! Stand by! Over.
-It’s urgent. The enemy missiles are moving at high speed.
A moment later, the GEO 8 satellite that was at geostationary orbit above Guam started to operate and data linked its scans to the F-35C jets. The radar display started to show the jets the vessels they needed to target with their missiles.
“This is the battalion commander. Once the targets have been aligned, fire the air-to-ship missiles and then make evasive maneuvers to approach the targets. Once the enemy planes are detected, attack under each flight wing commander’s discretion. Over.”
Once the flight battalion commander gave the order, the 48 F-35C Lighting II jets all split into flight wings of four. The jets started to open up their interior chambers and launched two rounds of their next-generation air-to-ship AGM-158D LRASM missiles with a range of 800km. Then, they started to make evasive maneuvers against the missiles flying towards them and scattered.
The AGM-158D LRASM Harpoon missile was equipped with multi-mode sensors and a GPS with powerful anti-digital jamming capabilities. The missile could detect a certain target from a group of ships and destroy it. This missile replaced the standard AGM-84 Harpoon missile being used by the U.S. Navy and was developed by Lockheed Martin and DARPA.
This next-generation air-to-ship missile had a range of 800km, and unlike the regular anti-ship missiles, it was equipped with an external GPS system that would function even if the missile lost the data link from GPS settings of a radar. It would be able to freely follow its target, and that was the key focus for the development of the missile. Also, the missile would not be fooled by flares and chaffs, while being able to precisely strike a moving target and able to mitigate the ECM waves being emitted by the enemy.
The high stealth capabilities of the missile were also designed to avoid the hard-kill interceptions that the enemy ship could use. The AGM-158D LRASM Harpoon had automatic evasive systems and powerful anti-jamming features that would allow it to chase the target once it has been set.
Ninety-six rounds of the AGM-158D LRASM Harpoon missiles opened up their lateral fins and started to fly towards the 2nd expeditionary force’s vessels at Mach 4. The Cobra S-AAM-500 missiles that flew at Mach 10 had reached 50km away from their targets in seconds, and started to tail the scattering F-35C Lightning II jets.
* * *
February 20th, 2021, 08:10
The seas 80km south from Yokosuka Port at Kanagawa Prefecture, Honshu, Japan
The 3rd carrier strike group that had arrived at Yokosuka Port first finished unloading the different military equipment and started to sail slowly out to the seas 80km southwest of Yokosuka Port. Aboard the John C. Stennis (CVN-74) carrier, which was the size of multiple football fields, many vested crewmen were moving busily on the flight deck while giving out signals.
At the flight deck, F-35C Lighting II jets were being loaded onto the tracks and standing by to take off. With the use of the catapult tracks, the jets would be able to take off at a distance of only 100m, thanks to the speed being raised up to 200km/h. The catapult was a piece of necessary equipment that allowed the aircraft carrier to function.
Woosh.
When the first F-35C Lightning II jet took off into the sky, the opposing runway started to send out jets as well. Also, the jets taking off into the skies were not only from the John C. Stennis (CVN-74) but also from the 9th carrier strike group’s Roosevelt (CVN-71) and the 1st carrier strike group’s Carl Vinson (CVN-70).
From the three aircraft carriers, a total of 162 jets took off into the sky. There were 72 F/A-18E/F Super Hornet jets, 72 F-35C Lightning II jets, and 18 EA-18G Growler jets. Each aircraft carrier had sent out half of their aerial forces.
Also, the 44 F-22SR Super Raptor jets that had landed on the Japanese Air Force’s 7th fighter wing base under the central air force had taken off as well and were starting to fly at low altitudes towards the Corean seas. Four B-1 Archer bombers tailed the F-22SR Super Raptor jets silently.
* * *
February 20th, 2021, 08:10
The seas 70km southeast of Jeju Island (the 7th maritime flotilla’s location)
While the F-35C Lightning II jets were being struck down by the S-AAM-500 Cobra missiles, the vertical launchpads aboard the three Hocula destroyers standing by 70km southeast from Jeju Island launched their GTAS-150 Haegung ship-to-air missiles to intercept the AGM-158D LRASM flying towards their target.
“The three destroyers have launched 96 rounds of Haegung missiles! 55 seconds away from impact!”
Colonel Ahn Hyung-gyun, the commander of the 71st fleet and captain of the Gwang Hae-goon (DDG-1001), gave orders when he heard the report from the battle station of his ship.
-Arms man! Prepare for the second interception attempt! If our first attempt fails, then fire the second round of missiles.
-Yes, captain!
When the AGM-158D LRASM missiles detected the radar signals aimed towards them, they emitted a powerful anti-jamming signal. When the evasive systems activated, the missiles started to make evasive maneuvers towards inner Kyushu.
“Target 1 is 12 seconds from impact!”
The AGM-158D LRASM missiles boasted a range of 800km, but since their speed was only Mach 4, the 96 rounds were being caught up by the GTAS-150 Haegung missiles.
Boom! Boom!
“Forty-four out of 96 rounds have been taken down! The remaining 52 rounds will be targeted again for the interception.”
Forty flashes of lights started to show up above the Kyushu skies. However, about 60 rounds had survived the interception and continued to fly north. When the first interception attempt failed, the three Hocula destroyers set the targets a second time and launched their Haegung (GTAS-150) missiles.
A few minutes later, 52 rounds of Haegung (GTAS-150) flew off into the sky to tail the AGM-158D LRASM missiles and attempted to intercept them.
Meanwhile, the surviving 29 F-35C Lightning II jets, excluding the 19 jets that had been taken down by the S-AAM-500 Cobra air-to-air missiles, were aided by the GEO military satellite and closed the distance between them and the Phoenix jets by 75km. When they closed in on the enemy, the F-35C jets launched two rounds of their AIM-120C missiles and started to actively engage the enemy.
* * *
February 20th, 2021, 08:15
Seoul, Yongsan-ku B2 bunker (ROK military joint command center)
As the Joint Chief of Staff was monitoring the battle the Hocula destroyers and Phoenix jets were fighting, reports bearing bad news started to come in.
“Multiple enemy planes coming in from N34°41’25.04″ E136° 132°58’59.14″, sir.”
“There are 162 jets total consisting of 72 Super Hornet jets, 72 Lightning jets, and 18 EA-18G electronic warfare jets. Pulling up their location on the main screen.”
The newly detected enemy jets showed up as red dots on the main screen.
“How far away from the expeditionary force?” Lieutenant General Kim Yong-hyun asked hastily.
“340km, sir.”
“What? What have the radar forces been doing this whole time?”
The radar forces that Lieutenant General Kim Yong-hyun was referencing were the forces operating the Apollo 2 and 3 reconnaissance satellites, the numerous Aegis destroyers and Hocula destroyers, and the E-737 early warning planes in the southern seas. He could not understand how the enemy could approach 340km away from their forces without being detected when they were operating numerous layers of radar scans.
“It seems that the EA-18G Growler planes jammed our radar signals, sir,” the operator reported sheepishly as if he was being scolded.
“Operations director!”
“Yes, Chairman Kang, sir!”
“Deploy the 110th fighter wing battalion, and the 159th and 162nd battalion for the interception, and contact the 11th and 1st fighter wings to guard the expeditionary force’s ships.”
“Yes, sir. Right away.”
“Prepare the Zeus 1 and 2 satellites for the interception as well.”
“Yes, sir.”
However, there was something that the Joint Chief of Staff was not aware of. Forty-four F-22SR Super Raptor jets and four B-1R Archer bombers had taken off from Japan’s 7th fighter wing’s Iwakuni Base and 65 F-22SR Super Raptor jets and eight B-1R Archer bombers had taken off from Okinawa at the Kaneda Air Base. Also, there were four B-3 Tarantula space bombers above the Corean sky’s atmosphere standing by.
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