The information given by Stilwell clearly stated that the U.S. Navy would dispatch the 10th Mixed Battle Group, a combined fleet composed of five main aircraft carriers, to conduct interception operations.
Due to the just-ended Battle of Okinawa, the old U.S. Navy also suffered a large number of casualties, and many ships also needed repairs and supplies. Faced with this time, the fleet headed by the Yamato did not use the "luxury lineup" as it did in history. Five aircraft carriers and some supporting escort fleets were dispatched.
Although oversized battleships like the Yamato are almost obsolete in the eyes of modern naval experts, after all, the tonnage is there and cannot be manipulated casually.
Therefore, MacArthur, commander of the Western Pacific Theater, also had to ask for help from land allies in Southeast Asia and asked their air forces to cooperate with this operation.
The current situation in Southeast Asia is dominated by the Chinese Expeditionary Force. The US and British Allied Forces are blocked north of Mandalay and are doing some air support and logistics tasks. Liao Mingyu refused to let the other party reach out at all. At least in terms of military matters, most of Myanmar was left to the latter alone.
Stilwell had no choice. Who could let the expeditionary force fight? Baldhead had transferred both the Indian Army and the Western Yunnan garrison back to the domestic battlefield. Currently, only Liao Mingyu's troops could be mobilized in name.
The battlefield for this joint naval and air force operation was in Malaysian waters. Stilwell mobilized a large number of fighter planes to fly a long distance, and the airport must be refueled midway. This required the full cooperation of Liao Mingyu's several airports.
In addition, the expeditionary force's own air force is not weak now. If they are brought together to help, both the deterrent effect and the success rate can be greatly increased.
At the same time, Stilwell was also testing Liao Mingyu's reaction to see what this young Chinese officer who had become bigger and stronger in his own hands would do and whether he could still obey his orders.
At this time, Liao Mingyu held his chin and thought for a moment, then made an arrangement with a wave of his hand:
"Isn't it the end of Fang Jingyao's side? Let Jamie's No. 1 Squadron return to the Heihe base, form a fifth fighter squadron from the trainees, and let the veterans take them to participate in the ground attack mission on the Yangon front line. "
Young eagles have to grow up through actual combat. It is definitely not possible to participate in dangerous sea missions, but it is more than enough to practice dive bombing and attack the little Japanese besieged in the Yangon area.
"Convey this U.S. military's combat plan, order all airports to fully cooperate with the Allied operations, and then prepare Andre's two fighter squadrons to participate in this operation to encircle and annihilate the Yamato!"
"In addition, the offensive plan for the Yangon battlefield is still the same. The third division and the armored brigade will be withdrawn first, and the 50th division will be replaced for two days, and then all parties will launch a general offensive."
Meng Fangli's eyes lit up. Judging from the current situation, this arrangement was quite reasonable, and sending two squadrons of fighter planes to participate in the operation was considered a good deal.
He just doesn't know if he can take down the Yamato in the end. After all, the battle between the strong ship's cannon and the fighter group at sea is not something he can understand.
"Then we really have to follow the Americans, but if Long Wenwen is asked to withdraw now, will Sun Tzu agree?" Meng Fangli thought.
As one of the main offensive forces, the Honorable Third Division fought fiercely with the Japanese army for more than half a month. The losses were certainly not small, but this also ignited Long Wenwen's competitive spirit.
I heard that that guy has been staying at the front line day and night recently. If his chief of staff hadn't stopped him, he would have been ready to lead the team himself. It would be strange to not be hasty in withdrawing them at this time.
"Who has the final say in the army? I'm not happy about it!"
Liao Mingyu cursed angrily, and at the same time he was thinking in his mind that the Yamato battleship had a very unique emotion for the little devil.
Haven’t you heard of Yamato for men? Many members of the Japanese navy are proud to be on duty on the Yamato. Although it has no record, it is still the largest battleship in human history. It is not an exaggeration to say that it is the pride of their national defense power.
In fact, there are two Yamato-class battleships. The No. 1 ship "Yamato" and the No. 2 ship "Musashi" were built to the same standards, but the latter was sunk by U.S. warplanes when it participated in the Battle of Leyte Gulf last year.
This existence, which symbolizes the dream of a strong nation and the Japanese national significance, is now the only one left with the Yamato number.
If it dries up and sinks, you can imagine the psychological impact it will have on the little devil.
Liao Mingyu smiled when he thought of this. Anyway, his family is not fighting alone. It is still necessary for him to participate in this important historical moment.
However, the smile on his face quickly froze and was replaced by surprise and surprise.
In addition to the first combat plan for the Yamato, there is also a secret military report, which clearly states that former Japanese Southern Army Commander Juichi Terauchi has arrived in Saigon, Vietnam, and will enter Siam in a few days to meet with the King of Siam. , the specific intention is not yet clear.
Liao Mingyu immediately fell into deep thought. It can be said that this news shocked him even more than the previous plan to encircle and annihilate the Yamato. So why did the old devil go to Siam? ?
Could it be...
He was aware of the news that Juichi Terauchi had been dismissed as the commander of the Southern Army. It was nothing more than that his continuous combat disadvantages were brought to the fore by domestic hostile factions, and the Japanese cabinet had no choice but to punish him.
But this guy still has a certain prestige in the military, and the Japanese base camp did not immediately recall him to the country, but chose to let him stay in Southeast Asia to assist Seishiro Itata.
But now that he suddenly went to Siam, he definitely had an ulterior motive. Otherwise, how could he do such useless work?
In fact, this old devil who has lived for most of his life does not want to stay in Singapore and help the younger generations, because he knows that if he does not seek a breakthrough, there is no way to revitalize the situation in Southeast Asia.
For example, the strategic intention proposed by Seishiro Itagaki to rescue the troops trapped in Yangon and Ayeyarwady Province and preserve their strength to defend Malaysia was just scoffed at the temple.
It's not like he hasn't thought about this idea. He would have saved him long ago. Why are he still waiting for you to talk about it? The key point is now that you are choking on eggs, and you are in a dilemma. Even if you succeed, you will pay a huge price, and it is simply not worth the gain.
So this old guy decided to find another strange idea and planned to go to Vietnam to organize the 17th Japanese Division stationed here. In terms of contacting Siam, he prepared to launch an attack on Myanmar from multiple directions. To put it bluntly, it was a strategy of encircling Wei and rescuing Zhao.
It's just that Shouichi Terauchi underestimated the confidence of Siam's domestic people in the Japanese, and even underestimated the depth of Siam's military and political prime minister Luang Phibun Songkram.
He had no idea that as soon as he arrived in Vietnam and before he even rushed to Siam, his whereabouts would be betrayed by the Luang Phibun government, which he had always regarded as an ally...
(End of chapter)
