At the end of the meeting, they discussed where to land the B25 on the USS Hornet aircraft carrier, and then set off on time on the morning of the 1st, and assembled with the USS Enterprise aircraft carrier that had set off early and was waiting in the designated sea area.
According to the previous plan, the B25 was to land on the aircraft carrier at the dock, but people from the intelligence department believed that this would attract too much attention, which would not be conducive to a raid. What if there were Japanese spies in the crowd?
Although after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, the vast majority of Japanese or Japanese people were put under centralized custody, this did not guarantee that secrets would not be leaked. Sometimes, experienced spies can judge the enemy's secrets from a trivial matter. Combat, action plan.
People from the security department believe that it is safer to land the B25 on the Hornet at the dock. The reason is that if the landing fails, the dock has more equipment for emergency rescue.
To put it bluntly, I was skeptical about Zhou Zhihan's landing on the aircraft carrier in his B25. After all, this feat of his was as much a first as his long-distance attack on that place, and no one could guarantee success.
The [Hornet] is the latest aircraft carrier, and there is no room for error.
The attack on Pearl Harbor has already caused the morale of the military to be unprecedentedly low. If the Hornet is injured again, the blow to morale will undoubtedly be worse.
In this regard, Zhou Zhihan said nothing. No matter how nice he said it, it was useless. Only by taking practical actions could all doubts be shattered.
Questioning is the right that everyone has.
Only by being able to withstand doubts can people continue to make progress.
When you are questioned by others, it is useless to just talk. Taking actions to defeat the doubts is the way to go.
"Colonel Zhou! You will fly a bomber to land on an aircraft carrier. What do you think about this matter?" Lieutenant General Haxi looked at Zhou Zhihan and asked, "How confident are you of a successful landing?"
This sentence has been asked repeatedly countless times.
As soon as Haxey received the order to lead the Hornet aircraft carrier to the designated location and wait for the B25 bombers to land, he immediately had huge doubts about the ability of the new Pacific Fleet Commander Nimitz.
Do you not understand the navy or carrier-based aircraft?
You land bombers on an aircraft carrier?
This difficulty is even greater than running a long distance to bomb that place.
Although Zhou Zhihan taught carrier-based aircraft pilots on the USS Enterprise and USS Yorktown before this, they learned to fly wildcats or fearless jump landings, but the weight of those two aircraft was only half of the B25 No, neither the sensitivity, nor the wing load, nor the lift of the wing are on the same level. What affects the landing are the angle of the aircraft when landing, the width of the wings, and the distance between the aircraft and the side of the aircraft carrier when jumping. distance and a series of problems...
Hearing everyone's distrust, Doolittle was a little embarrassed. He had invited Zhou Zhihan. As the top pilot in the United States, he knew Zhou Zhihan's abilities, otherwise he would not have gone to him.
After the B25 was refitted, they took off and landed on a simulated aircraft carrier on land more than once in order to be foolproof, and Zhou Zhihan performed with ease every time.
Doolittle stood up: "General! Before coming here, we have tried to land the B25 on land-based aircraft carriers many times. Colonel Zhou's skills are absolutely perfect." Then he looked around at everyone, "Colonel Zhou from China was at Pearl Harbor. His performance at the time is obvious to all, and he is fully qualified for this arduous task. Inviting him to participate this time was also specially approved by the President."
Doolittle's meaning is very clear. As a foreigner, he made greater contributions to Pearl Harbor than everyone here. He is our benefactor. Is it okay to question the benefactor like this?
Also, when you question him, do you also question Mr. President?
There was a sudden silence in the room.
Several people who questioned Zhou Zhihan just now also felt that what he said was a bit excessive and stopped talking.
"General! Everyone, I can land safely!" Zhou Zhihan stood up and said, "This mission is important, so I will naturally go all out."
Since you asked, I will tell you that I can. As for whether you believe it or not after I say it, that is your business.
"I think, in order to keep it secret, we can park the aircraft carrier in the sea forty nautical miles away from the dock, and I will fly the B25 to land one by one."
In order to be foolproof, just a month ago, Zhou Zhihan would enter the system every night and practice piloting a B25 bomber to land on an aircraft carrier. His proficiency was even better than piloting a Wildcat to land on an aircraft carrier.
This matter is of great importance and cannot be lost.
Haxi stared at Zhou Zhihan for a few seconds: OK! Then at 7 o'clock tomorrow morning, the aircraft carrier will be parked in the sea 40 nautical miles away from the port, waiting for landing bombers. "
7 o'clock the next morning.
"Here it comes! B25 is here."
A lieutenant officer standing on the deck of the Hornet aircraft carrier pointed at the bomber flying not far away and shouted.
Everyone immediately looked in the direction of his finger, and sure enough, a B25 appeared approaching. It was B25 No. 1, the plane that Doolittle was going to fly.
After Jack's modification, the weight of the B25 dropped significantly, from the previous 9,600 kilograms to less than 7,000 kilograms, not much heavier than a fully loaded Mustang.
Since he mastered the four consecutive jumps during the bombing of the aircraft carrier [Ruihe], Zhou Zhihan's skills have risen to the level where he can't stand the cold at high altitudes, and his air combat skills have gradually improved.
Zhou Zhihan didn't know at this time that just when he understood the four consecutive jumps, his most important opponents in recent years had also begun to become superb in their aerial combat skills.
The sun was rising, the air was fresh, the southwest wind was blowing at 12 knots, and the clouds were 1,200 meters high, reflecting beautifully on the blue sea.
The aircraft carrier USS Hornet, with no fighter planes on board, was traveling in a straight line on the sea. This steel behemoth was currently traveling at a speed of 18 knots.
Seeing the arrival of Bomber No. 1, we increased the speed to the 20 knots required by Zhou Zhihan, facing the wind, with the bow of the ship facing the sun, and the huge hull plowing through the blue water, which was very spectacular.
B25 No. 1 flew around the aircraft carrier for a circle, then slowed down and descended slowly. It flew around 20 meters away from the aircraft carrier on a horizontal plane, then pulled up again, flew in the opposite direction again, and then pulled up again.
Although Haxey was experienced in many battles, he couldn't help but feel a little nervous when he saw this, and asked Doolittle: "What's going on?"
Seeing that Zhou Zhihan did not land twice, Doolittle couldn't help but feel a little worried, but in order to comfort the lieutenant general, he calmly said: "This is normal, the bomber is not a carrier-based aircraft, and it has neither slats nor landing slats specially designed for landing on a ship. Hook, there is no landing supercharger gearbox, so it can only land at the lowest speed, which requires high lift of the bomber's wings. Colonel Zhou is seeking stability, looking for the best wind resistance and the best landing point. and establish an accurate course.”
At this moment, an aircraft carrier landing commander said loudly: "He hasn't put down the landing gear yet. Is he not sure?"
Hearing this, everyone's hearts tightened.
...
No matter how emotional you are, you have to be worthy of everyone’s constant updates.
I still have to write about bombings. This has been my long-cherished wish. If it doesn't work, I will release all the chapters at once. If I can pass it, please support me. However, I will go to Aunt Du's house to check it out.
