Republic of China: Ace Pilot

Chapter 867 Aircraft Carrier Modification Underway: British Command Analyzes Japanese Tactical Short

After three days of all-night discussions, Fang Wen's design for an amphibious aircraft carrier and rocket-propelled frigate, incorporating futuristic military concepts, took shape in the minds of British naval engineers.

They began to modify the structure according to the blueprints.

The upper decks of the two rocket-propelled frigates were removed. According to the design, only the forward command bridge was left, and the entire rear deck was to be converted into rocket launch decks, while the ammunition depots and ammunition supply compartments were located below the decks.

The refitting of aircraft carriers involves the largest amount of work.

According to Fang Wen's requirements, the upper flight deck of the aircraft carrier not only needs to be completed, but also needs to be made into an arc-shaped ski-jump deck at the end.

The lower hull of the aircraft carrier also requires extensive modifications.

The central section is the vehicle loading garage, and the rear section is the vehicle exit.

As for how these vehicles were used in amphibious operations, this era was not without its research.

Japan's dock landing ship "Shinshu Maru", and the United States' LSD dock landing ship, LST tank landing ship, and LVT amphibious tracked vehicle all use this technology.

Fang Wen's design is relatively simpler.

That is to build a boat hangar in the well deck at the stern of the amphibious aircraft carrier.

The principle behind this system is: ballast water is injected to sink the stern, the well deck is filled with seawater, and the landing craft can then float and sail out; after the voyage is completed, the ballast water is drained and the hull is raised to ensure the stability of aviation operations.

But tank landing craft is a problem.

Late December 1941, Sembawang Naval Base, Singapore.

The dry dock was brightly lit.

Hundreds of British naval engineers and shipbuilding technicians worked in shifts, three shifts a day, to transform Fang Wen's ship blueprints from paper designs into real warships.

The conversion of the two rocket-propelled frigates is already taking shape.

The redundant superstructure facilities in the middle and aft sections of the hull have been completely removed. The only protruding part of the hull is the command bridge at the front. The middle and aft sections of the hull have been completely flattened and converted into a dedicated rocket launch deck.

Below deck, workers are welding and reinforcing compartments in layers, including sealed ammunition depots, mechanical ammunition supply compartments, pipeline power supply systems, and so on.

Comparatively speaking, the amphibious aircraft carrier Taishan-1 is the core of the entire dock renovation and also the part with the largest workload.

On the upper deck of the Taishan No. 1, a large number of steel plates are being hoisted, spliced, and welded.

The flight deck, which was originally unfinished, was completed.

Everywhere you look, welders are holding welding torches, sending sparks flying everywhere.

According to Fang Wen's design, the workers also need to repair the end deck, polish it to create a smooth, upturned arc, and make it a ski-jump takeoff deck.

The renovation work on the lower hull below the flight deck is also in full swing.

The originally cluttered multi-level compartments were completely opened up and re-divided. The large central compartment was reorganized and transformed into a closed armored vehicle garage, with anti-slip fixed tracks laid on the ground to reserve space for the parking and dispatch of tanks and amphibious vehicles.

The stern of the ship was hollowed out and reshaped to create a wide passageway for vehicles to exit the ship and lead directly to the stern dock.

The stern dock is a crucial component of an amphibious aircraft carrier's ability to conduct armored vehicle landing operations.

Fang Wen's design for the stern boat hangar is a water-filled floating dock structure, which is simple in principle but very practical.

By flooding the ballast tanks to lower the stern, the dock is filled with seawater, allowing the landing craft to float up and sail out.

After the landing craft has exited its cabin, the ballast water is emptied and the ship's hull is raised, allowing for a rapid restoration of its aviation operational capabilities.

At the edge of the dock, Fang Wen, dressed in overalls, looked at the busy construction site, checking the progress of the renovation while finding the chief person in charge of the British Army project.

"The dock structure and vehicle loading platform are basically complete, but the supporting landing craft are still missing." Fang Wen asked, "I need to assign a group of technicians to build a simple armored vehicle landing craft. We don't need to pursue high speed, as long as the buoyancy meets the requirements, the structure is stable, and it can transport armored vehicles near the coast. Is this feasible?"

Upon hearing this, the British engineering chief replied, "Mr. Fang, there's no need to waste time building it. There are two brand-new LCT.m3 tank landing craft stored in the Sembawang base warehouse."

Fang Wen was stunned.

He was aware of the predicament of the British Far East Army. Throughout the Malayan campaign, the British did not have a single usable main battle tank and relied solely on infantry and fortifications to hold their ground.

It is certainly strange to have stockpiled two professional tank landing craft when there are no tanks.

Seemingly sensing his confusion, the project manager immediately explained, "The Far East Command originally planned to reinforce armored forces in the Malayan theater, and the supporting landing craft and transport equipment had already been deployed in advance. However, in the past six months, the Mediterranean and North African shipping routes have been relentlessly attacked by German submarines, and transport fleets have been repeatedly sunk, making it impossible to deliver the tanks and armored vehicles we need."

Fang Wen understood.

This was the British army's predicament in the Far East, because the German submarine tactics in the open sea were almost severing Britain's connection with its colonies.

Since that's the case, why not use it for yourself?

Fang Wen immediately went to the British Far East Command to meet with Lieutenant General Percival and discuss the transfer of the landing craft.

Inside the commander's office, Percival was quite decisive, directly stating the terms of the deal:

"The two LCT.m3 tank landing craft can be transferred to the Taishan Fleet, but I need to exchange conditions. You need to train our soldiers so that they can master the use of rocket weapons as soon as possible."

"Okay," Fang Wen agreed.

In fact, the Taishan Storm 2.0 rocket launcher is much simpler to operate than the first generation. It is a modular design, and you only need to be taught how to operate it once or twice to understand how to adjust the firing direction and launch.

In the days that followed, Fang Wen began a busy routine of going back and forth between three points.

He selected rocket operators who had accompanied the fleet and stationed them at a training base specially designated by the British Army to provide face-to-face practical training to British officers and soldiers.

Fang Wen would naturally not teach them spatial calibration methods.

The training only covers basic operations such as windage compensation, area coverage firing, loading, unlocking, firing, emergency ejection, and troubleshooting.

Thus, Fang Wen traveled back and forth between the training base and the Sembawang shipyard every day, keeping track of the progress of the ship conversion and supervising the British army's training progress.

He also maintained communication with Penang Island and closely monitored the situation on the northern front.

According to the news we've received these days, the situation on Penang Island is becoming more manageable.

This is also related to Fang Wen.

The Japanese detachment that was destroyed in the Strait of Malacca was likely en route to Penang Island to support the Japanese landing operation.

As a result, the main ship was sunk by a barrage of rockets.

This also deprived the Japanese forces on the northern Malayan front of the heavy firepower suppression from their naval fleet.

With the Japanese fleet gone, the Penang Island battlefield was left with only artillery fire between the two armies, resulting in daily casualties and a stalemate.

The Japanese army also organized troops to board ships several times, attempting to land on the island under the cover of their own artillery fire. However, without the firepower of the naval fleet to clear the area, the landing troops were exposed to the firepower of the British coastal defenses, and each time they returned empty-handed, only increasing casualties.

In this situation, there is naturally no need for Fang Wen to go back to provide assistance.

This allowed him to focus on ship modifications and British military weapons training.

Time passed day after day.

Two weeks passed. It was the end of December 1941.

Just as the refit of three ships in the Taishan Fleet was more than halfway complete and the British rocket training was showing initial results, a British military staff officer made a special trip to the shipyard and training base to find Fang Wen.

"Mr. Fang, the commander requests that you proceed to the Far East Army Headquarters for a meeting immediately."

Upon hearing this, Fang Wen temporarily put down his work and drove off with the staff officer.

Upon arriving at the command center building, Fang Wen was led into the operations room.

The venue was packed, with all the high-ranking officers from the Malayan theater present, creating a solemn and serious atmosphere.

Lieutenant General Percival sat in the main seat and, upon seeing Fang Wen arrive, addressed the crowd.

"Now, let me report on the latest fighting situation across Malaya."

The operations staff officer immediately stood up, walked to the large map hanging on the wall, and began to explain.

"The Japanese army on the northern front completely occupied the northern plains of Malaya, and its main force steadily advanced southward. Our northern field troops were completely defeated. Some of the remaining troops retreated to Penang Island and held their ground by relying on coastal fortifications, barely stabilizing the front line with the help of the sea barrier; another part of the remaining troops retreated to the Perak River and built a temporary defensive line by relying on the river system, barely stopping the Japanese advance. They were already in a desperate situation of being passively attacked and retreating step by step."

"The situation on the southern front is equally dire. Japanese assault troops have crossed the heart of the Malay Peninsula and penetrated directly into the outskirts of Kuala Lumpur. The fighting on the outskirts of the city is ongoing day and night. If Kuala Lumpur falls, the north-south transportation on the peninsula will be completely cut off, and all our land forces will be completely divided and surrounded."

(Red British Army, Green Japanese Army)

After listening to the operations staff's explanation of the battle situation, the atmosphere in the conference room became increasingly oppressive and suffocating.

Everyone could see clearly that the British army had completely lost the initiative on the battlefield and was now on the defensive and retreating in defeat.

Since the start of the war, apart from Penang Island where the defenses were stabilized by the terrain and the Strait of Malacca where the Tai Shan Fleet broke the blockade, the British army has had almost no notable victories.

Lieutenant General Percival, looking at the dire situation on the battle map, swept his gaze over the officers present and broke the silence with his voice:

"The Japanese army relied on rapid infiltration tactics to forcibly divide our Malayan troops into three parts: north, central and south."

If we continue to passively defend, our units will only be gradually devoured by the Japanese army. Once our forces are exhausted and our defensive lines have completely collapsed, we will lose all resources for counterattack, and there will be no chance of turning the tide.

He paused, then raised his voice.

"Therefore, I decided to take the initiative. No matter the cost or the risk, we must launch a counterattack. If we win, perhaps we will still have a chance to turn the tide."

Upon hearing this, there was no enthusiastic agreement or heightened fighting spirit in the meeting room; instead, an even heavier silence fell over it.

All the senior British officers present had expressions of hesitation, pessimism, and deep helplessness on their faces.

After days of fighting, the British troops were already terrified of the Japanese army's rapid infiltration tactics.

They had no tanks, not enough fighter jets, no mobile forces, low morale, and severe equipment damage.

Having already suffered repeated defeats while on the defensive, the prospect of launching a counterattack now seems tantamount to suicide to everyone.

The brigadier general sighed, "Your Excellency, our troops are currently exhausted from defense and have lost all fighting spirit. The Japanese offensive is fierce and their morale is high. How can we launch a counterattack?"

Another artillery colonel chimed in, "The Japanese army's infiltration speed is extremely fast and their tactics are flexible. Our infantry simply cannot keep up with the pace of the enemy, and we lack the basic conditions for a counterattack."

Everyone shared the same opinion: holding on was barely enough to survive, and a counterattack had absolutely no chance of success.

Despair and a lack of self-confidence were deeply ingrained in the hearts of every British officer in the South Seas.

Percival saw this and felt helpless. He understood his subordinates' mindset and knew the shortcomings of the troops, but he also knew that sitting and waiting for death would only lead to their demise.

In the dead silence, Percival's gaze shifted and landed on Fang Wen, who was sitting in the back row.

At this moment in the conference room, only this foreign Chinese commander had achieved victory in the battle against the Japanese army.

Perhaps he is the only one who can see the true nature of the battlefield.

Percival spoke up: "Fang, do you think we still have a chance to fight back?"

All the British officers turned around instantly, their eyes falling on Fang Wen with curiosity, doubt, and a sliver of hope.

Fang Wen did not give a yes or no answer. He stood up and walked to the military map hanging on the wall.

I began to try to analyze it using his line of thinking.

"I dare not be certain that the counterattack will be victorious, but judging from the Japanese army's combat tactics, although they seem to be unstoppable, they actually have huge loopholes and are not invincible."

The entire audience was astonished and listened intently.

"The Japanese army's rapid deep penetration tactics were essentially a replication of the German Blitzkrieg strategy, but they simply did not have the hard power to support them."

"The true German Blitzkrieg was centered on large-scale armored formations, with heavy tanks leading the way, mechanized infantry following, and air and ground coordinated suppression, relying on heavy weaponry to break through the stalemate. But the Japanese army could not do this."

"Their so-called rapid assault relies on a large number of bicycle infantry, Type 95 and Type 97 light tanks, and lightweight infiltration by infantry carrying them at high speed. They win by mobility, by suddenly dividing the defensive line, and by taking advantage of our panic, rather than by overwhelming us with absolute strength."

Upon hearing this, many officers present showed subtle changes in expression, as if deep in thought.

These days, they only see the Japanese army advancing rapidly and infiltrating swiftly, and they are exhausted by the enemy's pace, but they have never calmed down to dismantle the Japanese army's tactical weaknesses.

Fang Wen continued, "The advantages of this tactic are its flexibility, speed, extremely low cost, and suitability for the Malayan environment, but its shortcomings are extremely fatal: weak attack capability, poor frontal resistance, and a lack of heavy armor."

"As long as the British army holds its line, avoids panic, and concentrates its forces to confront the Japanese army head-on, the Japanese army's lightweight assault system will lose its advantage."

In a brief analysis, the illusion of the Japanese army's invincibility was accurately exposed.

The British senior officers present were stunned and shocked.

They were constantly intimidated by the rapid advance of the Japanese army, and subconsciously accepted that the Japanese army's combat strength far exceeded their own.

But only after Fang Wen dismantled the unit did he suddenly realize that this Japanese army, which had been crushing the enemy all the way, was actually just a "lightweight rapid advance force" and had no heavy armor strength to fight head-on.

The intense atmosphere of despair that had filled the conference room subtly eased a bit.

A glint of light flashed in Percival's eyes.

He immediately raised his hand, ending the group meeting.

Meeting adjourned.

The officers got up and left, many glancing at Fang Wen as they went.

After everyone had left, only the two of them remained in the empty conference room. Percival stood up and walked to Fang Wen, saying solemnly, "Fang, come to my office."

The two men walked into the commander's office, one after the other.

The door closed gently, shutting out all outside noise.

Percival turned around, looking intently at Fang Wen, his tone earnest and serious: "Now, please tell me your truest thoughts. Can this counterattack succeed? And how can it succeed?"

(British Army LCT series tank landing craft) (End of this chapter)