Condition Zebra: The Next War - 2025

Chapter 31

Admiral Sun Wei was in a foul mood. The weight of the losses he had already sustained lay heavy upon him, and the battle was clearly not going as he had planned.

Our air assets are far too thin. They have been flaying us with their air power, and we have no credible defense beyond our SAM’s when their bombs come in hordes. Did I make a mistake in taking the fleet so far out into the Indian Ocean? Perhaps I should have just sat off the coast near our airfields in Yemen, using our SAM’s to help defend them. Then we could have moved up the coast of Oman, destroying all their bases as we went. With hindsight, this is what I should have done, but nothing can be done about it now. I still have 28 ships, and eight more at Aden. This is still a powerful fleet.

The alarms suddenly blared out a warning. They were under attack, yet there had been no sign of enemy planes. This was maddening, he thought. The enemy flies like vagrant spirits, unseen, unheard, until they strike like demons.

“Battle stations!” he yelled. “Prepare to repel incoming strike.”

“Dawnrider, this is Bertha, you are cleared hot on assigned targets.”

“Roger that, Big Bertha. Going hot now.”

“Whalesign, Bertha, Mark your targets. Cleared hot.”

“Roger Bertha, Whalesign engaging now. Over.”

The attack would come in two stages, because the GBU’s fell faster than the British SPEAR, which came at only 400 knots. The Chinese formation was like a great lambchop on the sea, and the tail end of the bone was the Gwadar Group, eight ships that were the focus of both F-35 squadrons. So 96 bombs would come in the first wave, pulling so many SAM’s from the VLS bays, that every last HQ-9 in the task force was expended, and the entire group had no more than 24 short range HQ-10’s left. Only one ship had taken a serious hit, the frigate Liuzhou, which was now on fire. DDG Zhengzhou also took a hit, but no systems were damaged. Yet now the entire task force was very vulnerable, and 96 British SPEAR’s were coming in that second wave. The bill they had been sent out to get paid was only seconds away from a very hard settlement, or so they hoped.

DDG Zhengzhou was soon ripped from one end to another with a series of flashing hits, and it was not going to survive. The ship that had started its war in Algiers would die here. Captain Yu Han’s squadron flagship Chilong, the Fire Dragon, was battered to a hulk, and the first ship to sink. Liuzhou took additional systems damage, but had no flooding, and was still limping north. Amazingly, all remaining ships were unscathed.

The attack did far less damage that had been expected. Even the GBU clusters from the Strike Raptors were roundly defeated, and one plane had been unable to release. In the Flag Group, the Admiral saw DDG Naning struck forward, a blow that destroyed its deck gun, but his five destroyers had put up terrible defensive fire, and survived.

As the enemy planes broke off and turned for home, he began issuing orders to reorganize the fleet. Instead of five task forces, he regrouped to three. His Flag Group of five took the vanguard, and behind him, seven ships formed the Chihai or Red Sea Group. The last TF was the Arabian Sea Group, with nine ships, northeast of his Flag. That made 21 warships, with frigate Liuzhou and three oilers detached, and two destroyers sunk.

The attack that Captain Simpson had sent out as a haymaker had not scored the knockout blow he was hoping for. Now it seemed there would be little he could do to save Salaha if the enemy was going there to use their deck guns as he believed.

Now Admiral Sun Wei was going to throw his strategic punch at the enemy. As his fleet approached the coast, he gave orders for the other two task forces to turn northeast, heading up the Omani coast. He would continue on alone with the five destroyers in his flag group, thinking their deck guns would be sufficient to destroy the naval dock. By 09:00 on the 2nd of December, he was coming into range. Since DDG Naning had lost its deck gun, he had four 130mm guns he could use to bombard the docks. It would be the first offensive use of naval deck guns in the war. All this time, they had sat mute, showing how naval combat had now left the big guns behind, relying almost entirely on missiles in 2025.

The bombardment raked the quays and docks with fire, but 130mm rounds were not all that heavy, and did not have much thump. Dock crews had been warned of this impending attack long ago, and most any equipment of value had been evacuated inland. If the guns had been bigger like those on the old WWII battleships, they might have pounded those docks in minutes, but here, half an hour into the bombardment, it was still like throwing pebbles at them.

Rounds were sending up tall sprays of water, others making direct hits. Some sailed wildly over the docks into the warehouses and marshalling yards beyond, blasting long rows of containers lined up there. The four destroyers fired for an hour, the shell casings bouncing onto their forward decks, guns reloading from the magazines, and firing again. They continued pecking away, like icepicks against great bergs, but it would take at least 240 good hits to really destroy just one of those heavy concrete docks. The results were so bad that the Admiral had to recall his Red Sea squadron and have it join the bombardment with six more destroyers.

After two hours shelling the harbor, one of the four major docks lay in smoking ruins, the others being damaged but none hit badly enough to prevent repairs. Admiral Sun Wei’s plan had run up against the limitations of the 130mm deck guns, and while he had put harm on the port, his blow was far from fatal.

Now he had a decision to make, where to go?

If I turn west for Aden, the fleet could be trapped there. I would, in effect, be retiring, and giving up the field of battle. Going to Aden would re-unite the entire fleet, strengthening my force, but then the Americans would get between us and the Gulf. No, I will not concede.

So I must follow the lead of the Arabian Sea Squadron, and move northeast instead. Even if it means I leave the Aden group behind, we move to block the entrance to the Gulf of Oman and Persian Gulf. And we also gain the support of our bases in Pakistan, and perhaps even the Pakistani Navy. So we go northeast. There is time yet. They cannot rearm and strike for some hours, which may give me time to refuel some of the destroyers. I will now absorb the Red Sea Squadron into the Flag Group for better defense. We must move quickly. Time is of the essence.

Captain Simpson on the Roosevelt had been unhappy with the big strike. Debriefing showed that the Air Force Raptors had not coordinated well, and two had failed to release their bombs after coming under SAM fire when their position was discovered. As soon as the first planes released, the Chinese had just flung HQ-9s in that direction, and some went after the planes.

He also learned that one full train of British Spears had gone astray, missed its target, attempted retargeting and then ran out of energy. All told, they had hurt the enemy, but they should have done more. Checking the magazines, he had only three GBU-53’s left, and so had to order up underway replenishment from AOE Camden. They would airlift about 120 of those bombs, and some additional missiles for the fighters. So while Sun Wei was refueling, Roosevelt was replenishing, and then the race for the Gulf of Oman would be on.

“Sir,” said XO Ripley, “Independence is now 500 miles east of Sri Lanka, which puts them about 1800 miles from our position.”

“Good, but that’s sour grapes.”

“Well, word from Salaha is that only one of the four docks was damaged beyond easy repair. They’re already working on the other three. Salaha may still be an option for the Marines.”

“We’ll cross that bridge later,” said Simpson. “The Chinese have ships at Aden, and their main group now looks to be heading northeast.”

“Gulf of Oman, sir. They want to head us off, and get Pakistan to cover their backs.”

“Not if we get up there first. Ripley, you tell the destroyers we’re going to start turning the screws in another half hour—ahead flank. I’m not going to let them cut us off and block access to the Gulf.”

So as the Chinese fleet ran northeast along the coast, the Allied fleet was 330 miles out to sea, but on a parallel course. Between the two forces, there were three submarines, HMS Anson, USS Seawolf and Seatiger, all trying to get into position to ambush the Chinese as they advanced. Another kill, and Captain Drake would be top dog in the undersea world, and with the Chinese ships running at 25 knots, they would not hear these stealthy boats easily.

What Admiral Sun Wei dearly needed now was some air cover. He had three J-20’s at Ras Karma on Socotra, but the runway access point was a deep crater surrounded by bubble, and there were no earth movers at hand. The work had to be done the old fashioned way, with pick and shovel, and that took time. So those three Dragoons were shut in for the foreseeable future.

A Squadron of twelve J-10’s was based at Riyan airport, and six of those took off to cover the movement of the wounded frigate Liuzhou, which had been making for the coast near Al Ghaydah in north Yemen. There were AEW assets at that field, but they could not fly without fighter cover. So that J-10 flight would be reassigned to Al Ghaydah, There were six J-10’s left at Al Anad AFB near Aden, six more at Massawa on the Red Sea coast, and 15 at Sana’a, but that was 6550 miles to the west. No J-20’s were available at all on the Arabian Peninsula or Red Sea district. Any that remained were in Pakistan, at Gwadar and Jinnah near Karachi.

The planes at Gwadar, a dozen J-20’s, were the only assets he might call on as he moved northeast, and he angrily thought they would not be enough.

The Americans will have fighters at Muscat, and closer at Masirah. Those planes would be able to intercept anything flying south from Gwadar. This is simply unacceptable! And I have been remiss. Hong Buchan was to have brought his Bengal Bay Squadron to join our main fleet, but he stubbornly stayed well east of our position, thinking he ruled the Arabian Sea. Look what that got him. Now his ships are at the bottom of the sea, and he complains to Beijing that we failed to support him.

The Admiral was so upset that he sent a terse coded signal to Naval Headquarters in China:

“We have put heavy damage on the port of Salaha, and now move to interdict Muscat and the Gulf of Oman. Yet victory will elude us for lack of adequate air support. The enemy carriers strike us at will! This is unacceptable. Requesting all available J-20 Squadrons be transferred to Pakistan at once in support of this fleet before further losses are inflicted by enemy air strikes. Furthermore, request all units of Arabian Sea Fleet to be under my immediate command.”

Admiral Shen Jinlong, Commander in Chief of the Chinese Navy, made this request to the air force, demanding support, and made certain that the message was copied to appropriate civilian leadership. Wang Ziwen, Chief of the Air Force, had most of his better squadrons assigned to the Siberian front, and he might have said that no J-20 squadrons were available, but the drawdown of hostilities there was the excuse he needed to answer this call.

To make such a transfer, the planes would first have to fly all the way over the Taklamakan Desert to the farthest reaches of Xinjiang Province. There were no regular bases there, but two reserve fields could be used to refuel the planes, one at Kashi near Kashgar, and another at the old desert Silk Road city of Khotan (or Hotan). From there it would be an air ferry of a little over 1000 nautical miles to Gwadar or Karachi, up over the roof of the world in the Himalayas. Transport aircraft would also have to lift in more missiles for the planes, and diplomatic channels had to clear the way first with Pakistan.

It was clear to Beijing, at least on one level, that their fighting Admiral was instinctively moving to maintain communications with Pakistan, and by extension, the homeland. If he had gone to Aden, there is no doubt that the entire fleet would have been isolated, and either have to fight its way out of the Gulf of Aden, or simply sit out the war in the Red Sea.

As to their other fighting Admiral, Hong Buchan, a private communique from Sun Wei to Beijing revealed his lack of cooperation, and the subsequent destruction of so many ships when they were isolated from the main fleet. Hong was therefore ordered to assume a new post as Military Liaison to Pakistan, and facilitate the buildup of air units as planned, much to his chagrin.

“Sun Wei seeks to blame me now for his incompetence!” he would complain to subordinates. “He must have poisoned the tea in Beijing with my name, saying I am to blame for the loss of those ships, while it was he who insisted on bombarding that port, losing valuable time. The fleet needs to be near the Gulf of Oman! Now the Americans are increasing speed to try and get there first. Liaison to Pakistan? See that the air reinforcements are properly based? I am not in the Air Force. I am a Navy Admiral!”

He complaints fell on the ears of all around him, but he did not say anything further to Beijing. Yet his heart darkened with ill will towards Sun Wei, and he was scheming on how he could recover face, and besmirch the Admiral, making all right again under heaven and earth, and with him in charge of the Indo-Arabian Fleet.

Captain Sir Francis Drake was on the prowl again, and he had come a long way to get into the position he now held. There were seven contacts ahead, skunks on the sea, and the closest had been identified as DDG Chaoyong, Type 052D. The destroyer was the outer picket of a formation moving at 25 knots, hastening up the coast of Oman. Behind it, five more contacts were detected in its wake. Chaoyong was now about 9 miles away, and Anson was creeping at 5 knots. As the destroyer came on, the range would diminish rapidly to about eight miles, and he would fire his first Spearfish.

“We have to be stingy here, gentlemen,” he said. “We’ve only four Spearfish left, so make tube one ready.” Normally, he would have used two torpedoes to ensure his kill, but the ammo was running low.

“Tube one ready, sir!”

“Sonar?”

“We have him sir. Generated bearing good. Solution confirmed.”

“Range to target?”

“Sir, eight point five miles and closing.”

“Good enough,” said Drake. “Shoot on generated bearings. Then come left twenty degrees and steady at five knots. Make your depth 500 feet.”

“Sir, aye, torpedo away, coming twenty degrees left to 380 and diving to 500 feet.”

“Torpedo running true,” said the fire control station. “Sir, torpedo has not acquired. Circling…. Reacquired target, and closing at 80 knots….”

“Explosion in the water,” came the sonar report. “It’s a hit!”

“Good show. Give me fifteen knots.”

“Aye sir, ahead fifteen.”

That hit was fire and flood aft aboard Chaoyong. Its towed sonar array equipment was destroyed, along with a triple 324mm torpedo tube. The fires had spread to one of the two 32 cell VLS bays, and it was now useless as the crews desperately tried to extinguish the flames before the missile blew.

A Z-9 helo that had been on ASW watch was now hovering at 150 feet, and using its dipping sonar, but it had a very short range. Now it moved toward the location where they fleet had heard that torpedo launch. It then hastened southwest, finding another spot to dip, but could not find the stealthy British sub.

Chapter 32

Chaoyong’s flooding went from bad to worse, and the ship slowed to three knots. The rest of the fleet hastened on, like a herd of bison running from a leopard

“Come about,” said Drake. “Make your heading 122 degrees southeast, and steady on sixteen knots.” The undersea pirate had just taken the number one spot in for hits, and only time would tell as to whether that hit would become a confirmed kill. That would happen at 18:30 that night, and Drake was now the top Sea Dog.

It was the first bite by the undersea predators lurking nearby, and now a tiger was about to pounce. The three Chinese oilers, a pair of Type 908 Fusu Class, and one Type 933 Fuchi class replenishment ships had been trailing the formation, about 30 miles behind. They would have the misfortune of being found by Captain James Wade, USS Seatiger, and they got six torpedoes sent their way, all but one struck hulls, the last registering as a dud.

While the blow was not as colorful as that delivered by Captain Drake, who had braved the entire formation of enemy ships to get his kill, it was nonetheless a significant hit. All three tankers had fire and flooding, and were mission killed in terms of being able to lend any further support to the fleet. A Z-9 investigated, dipping three times, but could not get a whisper of the stealthy Seatiger.

At this juncture, OMCOM took stock of the situation and concluded that short of engaging them immediately by air strike from Roosevelt, they could not stop the Chinese from reaching the Gulf of Oman. Given the results after three strikes, and with so many ships still operating in the Chinese fleet, Captain Simpson informed Theater Commander Admiral John Randall that he did not have sufficient ordnance to make more than one good strike. It was therefore decided to wait for the Independence to get into range, and then combine the weight of two carriers.

What this meant, of course, was that the 1st USMC Division could not go to Muscat, not if the Chinese reached the Gulf of Oman in strength. Admiral Randall explained the situation to Military Sealift Commander, Admiral Thomas Shannon.

“Alright,” he began, “another change of plans. After the bombardment at Salaha, we opted to try and bring the Marines into Muscat, but that isn’t going to happen any time soon. Repairs to the naval docks are going round the clock at Salaha, and so we’re going to stick with the original plan.”

“They thought they were going to burn the place down.” said Shannon.

“That they did, but only one of the four major docks was really beaten up to a point where it couldn’t be helped, and we had time to move most of the cranes and other dock equipment out of harm’s way. So now we think that port will be operational by the time the Marines get there. We’re moving the Roosevelt group, and the Royal Navy units, into a position where they will block any movement towards Salaha from the gulf of Oman. The Chinese may roost there a while. They’ll be needing fuel, because we got three of their oilers, so we think they may put into Karachi.”

“Better there then out where they can get after my transports.”

“Don’t worry, we won’t let that happen. But there is one other task force we have to deal with. We hit it earlier, and it retired to Aden. Those ships could make a stab towards Salaha from the west, so they’ll have to be engaged if they do. All the more reason to have the Independence in position.”

“Good enough. What’s happening at Singapore?”

“That port is still functional. They threw some DF-21’s at it, but not enough to close it down. In another couple of days it will be 90% operational. The Chinese withdrew to Vung Tau, near the Mekong Delta, but they will regroup there and could make another move south. That’s a problem, because the Royal Navy pulled out the last five ships they had there. They just don’t have any real offensive punch beyond 100 miles, and so they’d just be targets.”

“Well damn, John, who’s holding the fort?”

“At the moment, the light elements of the Singapore Navy. They lost their frigates, but still have a good number of patrol boats.”

“Patrol boats?”

“I know, its damn thin. Well, the Siberians are down in that area with that hot battlecruiser of theirs, so given the situation, I ordered Hap Turner’s group to meet up with them.”

“Turner… You mean the New Jersey Group?”

“Right. We reinforced it with the last two destroyers that were part of that SAG, Stoneman and Sumner. They were late getting out of Guam with some sensor repairs. There were also a three Virginia Class boats on escort with the Independence, and we assigned two of them to join the British sub Trafalgar. They’ll set up a defensive screen. Beyond that, the Air Force is going to ferry in some air assets to Singapore. We beat up the Chinese airfields down there pretty good, so this will buck up our control of the airspace, and with those three subs, we’ll control things under the wavetops as well.”

“What about Enterprise?”

“Can’t move her just now. That group is holding the watch on the East China Sea. Washington reached Pearl, and will be escorting in the next sealift you set up there, bound for Japan.”

“Sounds like we could use a couple more flattops.”

“Six was plenty for peacetime operations,” said Randall, “and we kept readiness at the top of our list. Never more than one ship in extended maintenance at a time. But with this war, we wish we had ten. They’re rigging out JFK, and if this thing gets any worse she just might cut her teeth in real combat. For now, Ike is in bed at Norfolk, and Truman is in the Eastern Med to provide air support for the Saudis. So the best we can do is get two big decks together, and right now, that’s going to be in the Arabian Sea.”

“At least the Army stopped Saddam.”

“For the moment. Yes, it seems we’ll hold the line there, but we’ll need everything you can bring us to roll them out of there. So with your permission, I’ll issue orders to retool 1st USMC to Salaha as we planned.”

“I hope you keep a sharp eye out for their subs,” said Shannon. “The undersea boys have been having a field day out here.”

That was an understatement.

While those course changes were underway in the Arabian Sea, Kirov and Kursk were still in the Karimata Strait. Karpov had thought to take the Sunda Strait to get into the deep water of the Indian Ocean. Gromyko would certainly prefer that to the shallow waters here. But He had received a message from the Americans, requesting he make a rendezvous with the New Jersey Surface Action group.

The big battleship had lingered to wait for its other two destroyers, which left Guam late. When DDG’s Stoneman and Sumner came up, the Black Dragon got orders to meet up with the Siberians. That would make a seven ship Surface Action Group, and with two of the most powerful ships afloat in that order of battle. Karpov had plenty of time to meet his supply ship in Jakarta, and replaced the Zircons he had fired. He was thankful that the Soviets had even made the missile in this history, but as Fedorov often said, sometimes the details of an altered time were remarkably true, while on the macro scale, things could be must different. That was certainly the case here.

The “air assets” that Admiral Randall had referred to in his meeting with Shannon were fighters and support planes transferring in from US bases on Yap and Palau. There would be six Raptors, another flight of six Avenger II’s and an E-3G Sentry. Bombers from Guam were always available, and could weigh in with air strikes as needed.

As always, the US wanted to keep a sharp eye on what the Chinese were doing in the South China Sea, and waiting for satellites wasn’t always the best option. Guam also had a special asset, the SR-72 Aurora, a 2900 MPH strategic recon plane which was able to take a look at the situation from 85,000 feet, which was 5000 feet above the service ceiling of the Chinese HQ-9B, so the plane could loiter or scoot by with impunity, fuel being the only limiting factor, as Guam was a long way off, over 2000 nautical miles.

The report was sent to Captain Henry “Hap” Turner on the New Jersey, and he did the courtesy of sending in on through to Kirov. Karpov was on the weather deck when it came in, using his field glasses to see if he could spot the tall battlements of the American Battleship. Nikolin came out to say he had a message decrypt, and Karpov headed for the warmth of the bridge. He saw that Fedorov was hunched over the light table where the digital display was marking the positions of ships in the region. The Admiral hung his field glasses on the hook where he always left them and read the message.

“My,” he said, handing the message off to Fedorov. “Have a look at this.”

Fedorov glanced at it darkly, seeing the one thing that was cause for concern. “Twenty-five ships?” he said, giving Karpov a sour look.”

Even as he read the message, the digital display was already updating with the positions of the contacts being reported.

“The Chinese never do things small, Fedorov. They have regrouped, and here they come again. This crab like formation just south of the Mekong Delta is built around the carrier Shandong. It looks like the one we hit earlier is still in port, Zhendong.”

“That’s a relief,” said Fedorov.

“Oh? Look here, the intelligence indicates they think there is a second carrier—Taifeng. It would be in this group to the east. This means they’re upping their game here. That carrier is the flagship of the East China Sea Fleet, but obviously things are at a low boil there now, and this is a much more strategic situation. It means they could have as many as 60 fighters on those carriers. It makes sense, because the US took out their local bases and they were soft on air power. They can’t just rely on satellites. They need eyes in the sky to find and fix our position, and now they’ll be able to do that.”

“And we’ll need to find them as well, because that recon plane can’t loiter there very long.”

“Oh, I wouldn’t worry about that. The one thing the Americans do better than anyone else is reconnaissance. They’ll have the Chinese order of battle chapter and verse before long.”

“So, it looks like you’ll get another crack at a carrier.”

“Indeed it does.”

“Yet that’s a lot of ships, Karpov. We have only seven, ten if we count the submarines. We’re outnumbered over two to one.”

“Well,” said Karpov, “we have about 120 missiles we can throw with our ships. The American’s have another 150. That’s 270 offensive missiles, enough to put at least ten on every one of those enemy ships. So we’ve got some clout, and they’ll soon know it. It’s likely that we’ll get air support, and those three subs will be very dangerous for them. They haven’t really learned their ASW operations yet. But once bitten, twice shy. Zhendong is really still in port because that British sub put torpedoes into it. For my money, as good as my Zircons are, a torpedo is the most dangerous weapon in all naval combat. The Chinese may have subs out there too, so I hope Tasarov has the wax out of his ears.”

Wu Jinlong was a skilled and dedicated Admiral, but he was also a realist. Speaking with Admiral Zheng Bau, Chief of Naval Operations South, he asked the one question that still rankled the Chinese naval command structure.

“Suppose I reach Singapore in strength. What then? What am I to do there? Sun Wei attempted to bombard the port of Salaha in Oman, and sat there for nearly three hours wearing out his deck guns. Yet he was only able to put serious damage on one of the naval docks there. Surely you do not want me to attempt to destroy Changi Harbor the same way.”

“Of course not,” said Zheng. “Your mission is to control the Singapore Strait. From that position, you also shut down the Sunda Strait. So you must drive off any naval forces the enemy still attempts to muster there. This time, it is the Americans and Siberians. Consider it a defensive operation. They are using those waters, and we will take that away from them. If we had done so earlier, they would not have a second carrier ready to enter the battle for the Arabian Sea.”

Both men knew that was the main concern now, for things had not been going well in the Indo-Arabian theater. “So then you wish me to drive off these forces, and then maintain a strong naval presence there?”

“Precisely…. But one thing more. Putting pressure here may compel the Americans to recall that second carrier here again, and that would aid our operations in the Arabian Sea. We must think of these two campaigns as one. Sun Wei is the right hand, you are the left, and our Kung Fu must be good. Stated simply. If Sun Wei can prevent the arrival of strong American forces in Oman, then we hold a strong bargaining chip in Saudi Arabia. The Iraqis can trade ground gained there for all of Kuwait, and we can insist on nothing less.”

“And what if the Americans see that theater as the decisive front?” said Wu Jinlong. “That is where they did send that second carrier, and they leave only one small surface action group here guarding Singapore. My mission would be different here if we actually posed a threat to that island. Yet with the largest standing army on earth, we do not have the means of seizing Singapore. It’s disgraceful. Why did we commit all our airborne and Marines to the Ryukyus?”

“That was necessary to secure the First Island Chain, and as a prerequisite to further action against the Japanese.”

“The Japanese? What action? Don’t tell me we are contemplating the invasion of Kyushu!”

“Nothing of the sort, but we must end their meddling once and for all in this war. They will hanker for their islands back, and we must crush their navy to show them how futile their designs are. From this day forward, the Ryukyus belong to China, and that includes Okinawa. We have eliminated those chokepoints at the edge of the Pacific.”

“And what business do we have there? We saw what happened when we attempted to overreach and take Iwo Jima.”

“That was unfortunate, and perhaps premature, but we will go one day, and beyond. In time we will push all the way out to the Second Island Chain. Then it will be the Americans complaining when we make these so called “freedom of navigation” patrols through the Marianas. They have few bases left to roost here in the Western Pacific. If we are to truly control this region, we must push them out, push them east, all the way back to Hawaii.”

“Very ambitious,” said Wu Jinlong. “Well, I will tell you that we will never do this with the carriers we have now. We were not yet ready for a major conflict like this. We should have waited five more years, and conducted these operations in 2030.”

“Yes,” said Zhang Bao, “with at least two more fleet carriers. That is in the past. The situation is before us now, and we must act accordingly. So, go and show the Americans we can drive them off—and the Siberians. Yes, we have a bone to pick with them. Pass like thunder and lightning. Move like the wind. Topple mountains, overturn seas! If the Gods block you, slay them. If Buddha stands in your way, kill him! You must prevail.”

Chapter 33

The last hours of December 2nd were slipping away as the Chinese fleet moved south towards Ranai on Riau. That airfield was still not in any shape to receive aircraft, but repairs were ongoing. A KJ-200 out of Tan Son Nhat airbase was loitering over the fleet, its radar eyes extending out 240 miles to the south.

Three task forces made up the fleet. First came the SAG Saigon, a mixed group of four Vietnamese destroyers and five older Chinese frigates. Forty miles to the north, Admiral Wu Jinlong now set his flag on China’s last real fleet carrier, Taifeng, and he was escorted by a strong surface group.

A new ship was about to make its debut in the war, the next evolution of the Type 055, designated the Type 057A guided missile cruiser. It was built on a modified Type 055 hull and superstructure, but instead of having only two 64 cell VLS bays forward, a third bay, with 32 cells was mounted on the island above the helicopter hangars. It was entirely dedicated to SSM ordnance, carrying 32 YJ-18’s. The main VLS bays were then primarily loaded for air defense with 96 HQ-9’s between them, with room left over for 8 Yu-7 ASROC missile torpedoes, 16 long range YJ-100’s and another eight YJ-18’s. A medium range SAM system, the HQ-16A, was also added in a separate small bay forward, with 16 missiles, and the ship had two laser turrets augmenting its three 30mm Gatling guns. It was the first of its kind, and a dangerous harbinger of things to come in the Chinese Navy, christened as CG Zanshi, the Warrior.

Two other Type 055’s escorted the carrier, Fengshen, the Wind God, and Daishen, the Lightning God, appropriately named ships to accompany a carrier named Taifeng. Both were strongly weighted for air defense, with each carrying 100 HQ-9’s. A single Type 052D destroyer was positioned for close escort, and there were four new Type 054B frigates, the latest evolution of that design.

On these newer ships, the Chinese had removed the traditional triple mount 324mm torpedoes. Experience had shown that they would almost never be used in actual combat, as they required the firing ship to be right on top of the enemy sub. In fact, they often became a liability when the ship was hit, easily damaged or even exploding when hit by shrapnel or any SSM ordnance. Instead, they were replaced by the YU-7 ASROC, which could fire from a VLS bay at an undersea target up to 30 miles away. On these new frigates, the two older Quad YJ-83 SSM mounts were also replaced by three triple YJ-12 mounts. The older missile could only range out 100 miles, and the newer one could reach 215 miles.

So the Chinese were evolving their navy to increase SSM range and air defense across the board. The appearance of Zanshi, the new Warrior class ship, was sobering. While not as powerful as either New Jersey or Kirov, it showed Chinese ambitions and interest in heavy surface combatants. At that time, no one knew that ship had sailed from Shanghai. It was actually thought to be a third Type 055 escorting the carrier, and no one knew how many more were in the shipyards.

It is clear that Beijing does not want this carrier harmed, thought Wu Jinlong. That said, I must be aggressive here, as Zhang Bao exhorted. Pass like thunder and lightning. Move like the wind. And there they are, a pair of Type 055’s, cruising off my bow named after lightning and wind. My enemy is strong, but we are stronger, and yes, we must prevail.

TF Saigon would be called upon to deliver the first blows of this campaign. The Vietnamese destroyers were French built, and carried the Naval SCALP cruise missile, a land attack weapon with a 550 mile range. DDG Da Nang was selected to fire its 16 missiles at Changi Airfield, and see if they could put more damage there to impede enemy operations. Basically a Storm Shadow, the missiles were very stealthy, and not seen by a pair of F-22’s on CAP until they were almost right below them.

“Sentry, Boxer. We have Vampires, low. Very close. Over.”

“Roger Boxer, rough ‘em up. Cleared hot. Sentry, over.”

That would send out the AMRAAM’s after those cruise missiles, and also sound the alarm at Changi and Singapore harbors. There were two strike packages on the field, loaded with ordnance, and they were ordered up at once to save the planes from damage, along with two more Raptors.

“Sentry, Boxer. No Joy. Over. Vampires are ghosts.”

“Roger Boxer. Standby. Over.”

The AMRAAM’s had little luck in their hunt, with five of six failing to find targets. Word was flashed to Changi, and radars on the SAM defense sites switched on. Singapore had bought the French Mamba, which was basically a land based TEL mounted Aster-30 missile system ranging out 60 miles for long range defense. The inner circle was an older RBS-97 I-Hawk system, ranging about 20 miles. Six Avenger-II’s carrying LRASM and six more British Typhoons with Storm Shadow roared aloft, heading north up the Malay coast with their Raptor escort.

Minutes later, both the E-3 Sentry and the flight of Avenger II’s got the next whiff of those incoming Vampires, just eleven miles from the orbiting AEW plane, down at 300 feet elevation. That was a latecomer, first of the missiles were already making their attack on the airfield. One was engaged and hit by the short range Israeli built SPYDER battery they had overflown. Four got through and raged into the open tarmac space with thundering explosions. Four more followed them. The missiles mostly tore up concrete, but one of the last found a Poseidon slated for ASW patrol and blew it apart. Neither the I-Hawks nor the Mambas got off a single shot. Being positioned in the center of the island, they could just not illuminate the Vampires to get a good lock. It was therefore decided to move them close to the airfield on the eastern end of the island.

“Sentry to Avenger 1. Come to four zero degrees. Tasking order hot. Put it all on the Gator. Over.”

The E-3 had pegged the position of Shandong, which the US now called the “Gator,” after the smaller Marine carriers that supported their fleet. That flight of six planes could send 24 missiles out, and they had the range now….

Aboard Kirov, Nikolin had been listening closely to the radio traffic between the E-3 Sentry and those aircraft. He was able to determine that a strike order was sent, and informed Karpov at 07:00.

“Sir, they have fired SSM’s at one of the Chinese task forces.”

“Could you determine the target?”

“I’m not sure what it is, sir… Something called a Gator.”

“Gator…. Alligator…” Karpov’s eyes narrowed. “That’s what the Americans call their light amphibious assault carriers. It must mean they have found Shandong, the only light carrier the Chinese could have operational out there now. Samsonov, standby for missile combat.”

Karpov rushed to the tactical screen, zooming in on the targeted formation. There it was, Shandong, surrounded by a cluster of eight escorts. Now his screen finally updated from the network, and he could see the intended flight paths of the SSM’s.

“They are LRASM’s” he said, “The air launched version, which is a sea skimmer at 600 knots. Good, that gives us time to warm up the Zircons. Samsonov, give me eight, in two sets of four. I want you to send them up here, northwest and behind that carrier. Make your attack vector 115 degrees.”

“Aye sir. System responding. Missiles being keyed.”

“Send the first salvo when ready. Hold the last four.”

“Ready Sir. Firing as ordered.”

It was the same strategy he had used to hit this carrier earlier, but the ship had been struck in non-vital areas, and the damage repaired in a single long day in port. Now Karpov was gunning for Shandong again.

The Chinese CAP of J-31’s would detect the missiles, storming out at over 4000 knots, altitude unknown. They raced over the fighters, which were powerless to stop them, and passed the Chinese formation, about 50 miles to the west. They might have thought they were ballistic missiles because of their profile, heading north towards Vietnam. Then the missiles made their first of three planned turns, coming to about 65 degrees, now at just over 3000 knots. When they made the second turn, coming to 115 degrees on the assigned attack vector, the ships began to fire the only missiles that might catch them, the HQ-9B. That turn had slowed the Zircons to 2600 knots, still faster than any other SSM on earth.

DDG Xining was trailing about 3 miles behind the carrier, and was first to fire two SAM’s. DDG Jinlong, the Golden Dragon, had also put two missiles out. The first pair both missed their blazing fast targets. Those fired by Jinlong wheeled and were able to get one Zircon. Then the Type 052D class DDG’s Xining and Xiamen poured out more fire, putting six missiles in the air to get after the last three Vampires. The Zircons made their final turn, two more found and killed, but the last was inside five miles and coming at just over 2000 knots. It could close to the target in ten seconds. Both HQ9’s missed it, the guns fired and failed, chaff rockets bloomed around the carrier, but could not fool that demon, then the jammers screamed out in vain, and Karpov had his first hit.

It was a glancing blow, and in fact, one of the frigates actually clipped the missile with its gunfire just as it was about to strike the carrier, but it forged on through, achieving a partial penetration of the hull, and exploding with angry red fire, very low on the waterline. White smoke and steam was hissing as the seawater extinguished the flames, but the threat would not come from fire, but from water. There was soon serious flooding reported forward, beneath the ski lift bow of the carrier.

When Samsonov confirmed the hit, Karpov beamed.

“Outstanding!” he said, clapping his CIC man on his broad shoulder. Samsonov, quiet, stalwart, was only too happy to take the praise.

“How do you like that, Fedorov? We hit them on the very first salvo of the battle, and that will hurt them here. Mark my words.”

Fedorov could see how Karpov clenched his fist, and noted the light of battle in his eyes. He was his old self again, the shroud of sorrow thrown off. Now he looked to the tactical board, watching the first of the LRASM’s begin to make their approach.

The Chinese had found they could still launch fighters, and now the engines of their J-31’s were revving up to take off, the planes leaping off the end of that ski jump bow, and streaking off to the west. More enemy missiles, down on the water, had been seen by the Falcon CAP patrol off that carrier, and it was already engaging them.

Shandong was slowing, the real extent of the damage forward now being reported to the Captain Zheng. The 30mm gun that had been fired by a nearby frigate had clipped the missile, tilting it downward so it hit very low on the water, and at a glancing angle. That had ripped the hull open like a fiery dagger, and the carrier was in serious trouble of foundering, the pumps unable to control the incoming rush of the sea. Crews were desperately sealing off watertight doors, but the flooding spanned many compartments, and the ship was already down at the bow.

As if realizing their peril, J-31’s were still bravely trying to take off to gain the safety of the open sky, rather than facing an ignominious end in the sea. They leapt off the ship, one by one, like dark birds from a tree limb. As the first trains of LRASM’s began to vector in, FFG Jingzhou fired off her HQ-16 SAM’s in defense. The American missiles were stealthy, and only ships at certain angles to their advance seemed to be able to get any radar illumination on them.

Karpov nodded his head, smiling.

“Now, Samsonov. Fire the second salvo, the same as the first.”

“Aye sir! Missiles away!” the excitement of the moment was catching. Fedorov came over to watch on the radars with Rodenko, and Nikolin was leaning to try and get a peek. Only Tasarov sat, unmoved beneath his headset, his mind and thoughts in another world, deep beneath the sea.

Brave Jingzhou was able to take down one train of four Vampires, which had even befuddled DDG Chilong, the Red Dragon. From that ship’s angle, they could just not resolve a firing solution on the American missiles. Now the J-31’s began to swoop lower, like the falcon hawks they were named after. They were adding their PL-15’s to the defense, and getting hits from above.

In the heat of that action, four lances came in from the west at a terrible speed, and DDG Xining was the only ship that had a firing solution. It sent eight HQ-9’s out after them. They killed three of the four, the last forging on through after Shandong. It was guns and jammers that saved the carrier from a second hit, but three more LRASM’s had weathered the gauntlet of fire, and now they were bearing down on the target.

Even at a range of just eight miles, the destroyers Xiamen could not get a target lock. Frigate Wenzhou, was equally frustrated, but two others, Weifang and Wuzhi, were inside three miles from the carrier, and had a better angle for their HQ-16’s, but they were not getting hits. Then Shandong fired its secret weapon.

The Chinese had installed them on all their high value ships, lasers, and a light sword flashed at the missiles, getting a hit on the leading Vampire. The turrets hummed and fired again, knocking down the second missile. Weifang fired two more missiles, but they would not get the last before the lasers found it and knocked it down. Those turrets had saved the carrier from what looked like certain destruction, a light speed close in defense weapon that had weighed heavily in the balance. The SAM missiles seemed like slow dogs by comparison.

“Did you see that?” Karpov looked at Fedorov. “That white line there indicates a laser burst. The Chinese have raised the stakes.”

“Didn’t stop our first Zircon,” said Fedorov.

“I think it took them completely by surprise. The LRASM’s were slower, and the lasers had to come on line, apparently just in time to get those last three American missiles. But look how close they came. Even the J-31’s were unable to get at many of them. Tomahawks would have never gotten through that defense. There were ten escorts around that carrier! Look, it’s turning to head north. I think we mission killed the damn thing with that first hit.”

“Amazing,” said Fedorov. “This indicates that 32 missiles were fired in this engagement, and only our Zircon got through in that first salvo, but you may be right. The carrier is turning.”

“They’ll be angry,” said Karpov. “Expect a counterattack, and soon. I’d fire again, but look how they are surrounding the carrier with all these frigates. They are literally forming a wall of steel around that ship.”

“Message from the Americans, sir,” said Nikolin. “It’s their E-3 Sentry aircraft.”

Karpov inclined his head, somewhat puzzled to be contacted by the orbiting Sentry. Then Nikolin conveyed the message.

“Congratulations, Cyber One. Sentry confirms Gator down. Repeat, the Gator is going down.”

“Acknowledge that,” said Karpov smiling. Then he turned to the CIC station. “Comrade Samsonov, you have just sunk another aircraft carrier!”

Everyone on the bridge gave a cheer.