That Time When I Was Suddenly Reincarnated in a Fleet Battle

Chapter 74 - American Fleet Attacks

The military strength of the US forces far exceeded my expectations. In the early morning of June 11, 1944, 300 B-24 bombers took off from Truk and swarmed Guam's airfield. While Guam's friendly fighters were engaged with the B-24s, F6Fs took off from American aircraft carriers and launched air raids on Tinian and Saipan. It was reported that approximately 250 aircraft attacked Tinian, and Saipan faced an onslaught of over 300 planes. At that time, Guam, Tinian, and Saipan each deployed nearly 200 Zero and Shiden fighter planes. They bravely engaged in interception battles against the superior enemy. Guam's fighter squadron reported shooting down about 100 B-24s, and Tinian and Saipan's fighter squadrons claimed the destruction of over 200 F6F planes each. However, the losses on their side were significant, and they had no room to counterattack the enemy task force.

As night fell, the American battleship fleet launched artillery attacks on Guam, Tinian, and Saipan's airfields, completely destroying the runways. However, anticipating such a situation based on hindsight, I had warned about it in advance. Most operational aircraft had evacuated to Iwo Jima and Yap Islands beforehand. The ones destroyed were mostly damaged and inoperable planes. According to local reports, on the following day, early in the morning, there was another air raid by over 500 American carrier-based aircraft, targeting airfields and Japanese military positions on Guam, Tinian, and Saipan.

Among these events, there was a dispute between the Marianas aviation unit and the battleship fleet regarding the battleship's artillery bombardment. Tinian, Saipan, and Guam were equipped with the latest land-based bomber, the Ginga. It was the Imperial Navy's highly anticipated land-based attacker with a speed surpassing the G3M and G4M. Naturally, with such aircraft, the Imperial Navy wanted to conduct night torpedo attacks against American battleships approaching for artillery bombardment. However, knowing that the Americans had night-fighting F6Fs, I also understood that these planes were protecting the battleships overhead.

Therefore, I requested Admiral Nagumo, the commander of the Combined Fleet, to prohibit night torpedo attacks and promptly evacuate the local aviation units to avoid ground destruction. Admiral Nagumo, like a good-natured man who listened to anything his grandson said, accepted my advice immediately and ordered the aviation units deployed to the Marianas base, in the name of the Combined Fleet commander, to refrain from night torpedo attacks and to evacuate early to avoid ground destruction.

"It seems that the Americans have pushed us with a force far beyond our preliminary estimates."

Vice Admiral Ozawa spoke to me on the bridge of the flagship Taihō, which served as both the flagship of the 1st Mobile Fleet and the Third Fleet. His eyes showed no signs of criticism.

"Well, I miscalculated. Since we sank eight ships, including the Essex and Independence classes carriers, in the Third Battle of Midway last year, I thought the United States Navy had significantly weakened. While my estimates were nearly accurate regarding the number of ships and aircraft, on the other hand, the quality of their soldiers doesn't seem to have dropped much compared to before. Despite losing a large number of crew members and pilots in the two battles of the Coral Sea and the three battles of Midway, they've maintained this level of proficiency. It seems that the American military's training and education system is quite refined and efficient, both in peacetime and wartime. I can't believe an organization that lost tens of thousands of sailors and aviators in the past two years could still maintain such high levels of expertise. Training naval personnel, the engineers of naval warfare, should take a considerable amount of time, whether in peacetime or wartime. However, the Americans seem to have achieved this effortlessly."

Vice Admiral Ozawa also seemed to have concerns about the resilience of the American forces. He appeared to be contemplating the situation for a moment.

"Well, it's safer to make an upward revision to the enemy soldiers' proficiency than our initial assumptions. By the way, Jun-san, what are your thoughts on our achievements? Shooting down 100 four-engine heavy bombers and 400 enemy fighters is a considerable accomplishment."

"If we think rationally, the actual achievements would be about one-third or one-fourth of that. Well, even if we generously estimate, it's unlikely to exceed half."

"If what you say is correct, then the number of enemy fighters shot down would be around 100 to 150, and heavy bombers would be around 30."

"Even so, it's still a significant achievement. Our losses include about 100 planes that didn't return and a similar number that suffered irreparable damage. Despite being numerically disadvantaged and inferior in all aspects except for turning performance, our fighters imposed equal or even greater damage on the enemy. So, the Mariana fighter pilots did a commendable job. Besides, if they shot down that many, the number of enemy aircraft they destroyed should also be considerable."

"Are you suggesting that the American carrier-based air squadrons are weakened?"

"That's my belief. And I intend to further weaken that weakened enemy fleet."

As I grinned, Vice Admiral Ozawa, however, looked at me worriedly.

"But, is it okay, Jun-san? I acknowledge that you've dedicated yourself without fearing danger before, but this time it seems excessively perilous. Moreover, if anything were to happen to you, Nagumo-san will have my head."

The tone became somewhat joking at the end, but it seemed like genuine concern. So, with reassurance in mind, I made my determination clear.

"There's only one strategy to defeat the enemy fleet while minimizing losses. I'm not being arrogant, but I'm the only one who can do this. If you're counting on me, I'll see it through. And don't worry, I'll definitely come back here."