Chapter 207: Great Start
“Hey, Jack, look over there, about five o’clock low!” Suddenly, Tom’s voice came over the radio, with a hint of urgency.
One-Eyed Jack immediately pushed down the nose, his gaze sharply directed toward the direction Tom indicated.
Although this guy only had one eye left, and by rights one eye couldn’t continue flying（ this was also why he was discharged from the U.S. Army Air Forces.）
But this guy managed to impress Doolittle with his one good right eye and proficient flying skills, and brought him to China.
He soon spotted a small black dot in the airspace about three thousand meters below. It was a single-engine aircraft, and from its wing shape and flight posture, it was very likely a Japanese reconnaissance plane!
“Got it… it’s a Japanese monkey’s Type 99 reconnaissance plane”
One-Eyed Jack muttered a curse under his breath, his tone instantly turning icy cold, “Tom, maintain altitude, stay alert! I’m going down to engage it!”
“Understood, sir! Good luck!” Tom replied, while pulling up a bit to provide cover and observation for One-Eyed Jack.
Jack took a deep breath and shoved the throttle forward hard.
The P-47’s powerful Pratt & Whitney R-2800 engine let out a higher-pitched roar, the nose suddenly dipped, and like a bird of prey hunting, it dove toward the Japanese reconnaissance plane below!
The massive g-forces from the high-speed dive pressed One-Eyed Jack tightly into his seat, but his one eye gleamed with excitement. The P-47’s dive speed was extremely fast, the gauges spun wildly, and the wind howled outside the cockpit like the grim laughter of the Grim Reaper.
The Japanese Type 99 reconnaissance plane below soon spotted the fighter pouncing toward it and began evasive maneuvers. But the Type 99 reconnaissance plane’s relatively slow speed and weak maneuverability were utterly negligible against the ferocious P-47.
One-Eyed Jack stuck tightly to the target, rapidly closing the distance. When he judged the moment right, his right thumb slammed down on the machine gun firing button!
“Da-da-da-da-da-da…”
The eight .50 caliber Browning M2 heavy machine guns at the P-47’s wing roots roared in unison! Thick tracers like eight angry fire whips instantly tore through the sky, precisely lashing toward that Type 99 reconnaissance plane!
The dense bullet rain hammered into the Japanese reconnaissance plane’s fuselage and wings like hail. The fragile skin was instantly torn apart, and the wooden structure emitted cracking groans.
Suddenly, a burst of flames erupted from the reconnaissance plane’s left wing, followed by thick black smoke billowing out. The plane lost control, spiraling toward the ground like a kite with its string cut.
“Got it! Just a rookie!” One-Eyed Jack said casually over the radio, while pulling up the nose. The P-47 executed a beautiful loop and returned to cruising altitude.
“Nice work, sir!” Tom shouted excitedly, “That guy didn’t even have a chance to fight back!”
“Hmph, that kind of trash isn’t even enough to pick my teeth.” One-Eyed Jack said disdainfully, though his tone carried a hint of pride.
This was the P-47’s first combat action in the Shanxi Militia Air Force, and his first time firing, a clean and decisive victory undoubtedly a good start.
“Eagle’s Nest… Eagle’s Nest… this is ‘Thunderbolt One’, have shot down one Japanese reconnaissance plane, coordinates XXX, XXX. Over.” One-Eyed Jack reported the results to the ground command post via radio.
“Received, ‘Thunderbolt One’! Nice work! Keep observing the surrounding airspace, return to base as planned. Over.” Doolittle’s slightly excited voice came through the headset.
After confirming no other enemy activity in the area, Jack and Tom turned their noses and began heading back to the Jiuqu River airfield.
However, just as they reached the airspace near the airfield and were preparing to descend for landing, the scene before them took them aback!
The Jiuqu River airfield below was suddenly alive with gunfire! Dozens of anti-aircraft machine gun tracers were spewing upward from ground defenses, targeting a Japanese aircraft circling over the airfield!
It was a single-engine plane painted with a conspicuous “meatball flag”, and from its shape, it seemed to be a reconnaissance plane or light liaison aircraft.
It was flying very low, almost skimming the treetops at the airfield’s edge, clearly conducting close reconnaissance and photography!
“Damn! Another one!” One-Eyed Jack roared, “How did this guy sneak in?”
Alarms blared across the airfield.
On the tarmac, several P-47 “Thunderbolt” fighters that had just finished maintenance and were preparing for the next patrol were being hastily taxied to the runway by their pilots, attempting an emergency takeoff for interception.
But that Japanese plane was evidently very cunning; after one low-altitude circle, it immediately pulled up and fled at high speed toward the distant mountains.
“Tom! Follow me! Don’t let it get away!” Jack decided on the spot, shoving the throttle forward again. The P-47 dove once more like an angry eagle, targeting the fleeing Japanese plane.
Tom followed closely behind, the two P-47s carving sharp arcs in the sky as they chased at high speed.
The Japanese reconnaissance plane clearly hadn’t expected the “Thunderbolts” that had been patrolling high above to arrive so quickly. Its speed was far inferior to the P-47, and it was soon overtaken.
“Watch this!” A cold glint flashed in One-Eyed Jack’s eye as he pressed the machine gun button again.
Another burst of dense bullets! This time, the Japanese reconnaissance plane’s pilot seemed prepared and desperately maneuvered to evade.
But the P-47’s firepower was too ferocious; several .50 caliber rounds accurately hit its tail and engine.
The Japanese plane shuddered violently, black smoke poured from the tail, its flight attitude became extremely unstable, wobbling like a drunkard toward the ground. Finally, with a dull explosion, it became a burning wreck.
“Number two! Luck’s good today!” One-Eyed Jack whistled, his tone much lighter.
“Haha… we’re practically the airfield’s saviors!” Tom said excitedly.
After confirming no other enemy activity, the two P-47s descended, landing smoothly one after another on the Jiuqu River airfield runway under ground tower guidance.
When One-Eyed Jack and Tom Gold climbed out of their cockpits, they were greeted with heroic cheers from the airfield ground crew and pilots.
“Hey… buddy, nice work! I almost thought that Japanese plane was gonna get away earlier.” Doolittle came up too, grinning as he slapped Jack hard on the shoulder.
“Boss… don’t worry, it won’t get away.” Jack thumped his chest, then remembered something, “Right, boss… I remember the boss said before that there’s a reward for every plane shot down. Does the boss’s promise still count?”
“I knew you’d bring this up, you bastard.” Doolittle glared at him helplessly. This guy mentioned it right after landing, not humble at all.
But prepared in advance, he pulled a wad of bills from his pocket, extracted four hundred-dollar bills, and slapped them into Jack’s hand, “Here… your bonus…”
“Hahaha… I love Franklin…” Jack grinned wide as he took the bills, turning to the crowd with a laugh: “Guys, club tonight, anyone off duty come on over.”
“Haha… long live Jack!”
Jack’s words instantly sparked even greater cheers…
The first air combat victory at Jiuqu River airfield was like dropping a huge stone into a calm lake, rippling outward. Militia officers and men were jubilant, morale high.
However, beneath this victorious joy, Su Yaoyang, Pi Ruoyu, Jimmy Doolittle and other core command personnel were overshadowed by a layer of worry.
As they had feared, the Shanxi Militia’s large-scale recruitment of pilots, airfield construction, and introduction of American pilots and fighters in the Wutai Mountain area was on such a grand scale and so noisy that it couldn’t possibly completely evade Japan’s omnipresent intelligence agencies.
In fact, as early as when the militia’s recruitment posters blanketed urban and rural Wutai County and American pilots appeared in Wutai County town, scattered intelligence had already flowed through various channels like snowflakes to the Japanese North China Area Army First Army headquarters in Taiyuan.
At first, this intelligence didn’t attract enough attention from Japanese high command.
In their view, for the Chinese forces with outdated equipment mainly relying on guerrilla tactics, building a modern air force was nothing but a pipe dream.
They were more inclined to see it as Chinese deception or some local warlord’s unrealistic fantasy.
However, as subsequent intelligence kept confirming, especially with keywords like “American pilots”, “new fighter planes”, “Jiuqu River airfield” appearing more frequently, and linking to Su Yaoyang’s forces’ powerful ground fire demonstrated in Wild Wolf Valley and the frequent aircraft sightings over Wutai County skies, Japanese high command finally realized the severity.
When the intelligence analysis staff presented a comprehensive report to Shinozuka Yoshio’s desk, this commander pondering how to make his mark after taking office looked grim after reading it.
The report clearly stated: The Shanxi Militia had secretly built an airfield capable of operating advanced fighters in the Jiuqu River area of Wutai County under its control;
At the same time, a group of experienced American pilots had arrived and begun assisting the militia in training pilots and forming an air force; intelligence also indicated that model-unknown but advanced-performance U.S. fighters had been delivered to the airfield.
“Baka yaro!”
Shinozuka Yoshio slammed the table, jolting his teacup and splashing hot tea on his hand, but he didn’t notice. His eyes filled with shock, anger, and a trace of disbelief.
“Shanxi Militia… Su Yaoyang… they’re really building an air force?!” Shinozuka Yoshio almost squeezed the words through his teeth.
His chief of staff for operations, Major General Iida Shojiro, looked equally grave.
“Commander,”
Iida Shojiro said gravely, “If the intelligence is true, this poses an extremely serious threat to our ‘holy war’ in Shanxi and even all of North China!
Currently, the Imperial Army’s greatest advantage on the China battlefield is our powerful air forces.
Once the Shanxi Militia gains air power that can contend with us or threaten our rear, our ground combat superiority will be greatly weakened, with unthinkable consequences!”
Shinozuka Yoshio of course understood this. He knew well the decisive role of air superiority in modern war.
If Su Yaoyang’s air force developed, the Japanese “flying fortresses” and “land aviation flowers” they prided themselves on would no longer rampage unchecked over Shanxi skies.
Their ground troops, logistics lines, even command posts would be exposed to enemy air strikes.
“This Jiuqu River airfield must be completely destroyed! Su Yaoyang’s air force must be strangled in the cradle!” Shinozuka Yoshio’s eyes gleamed with ferocity, his tone carrying unquestionable resolve.
“Yes, Commander!”
Iida Shojiro immediately replied, “The two reconnaissance planes we sent earlier, though they failed to return, had already radioed back the exact location of Jiuqu River airfield, its approximate scale, and observed partial defense deployments before being shot down.”
He walked to the huge military map and heavily circled the Jiuqu River position in the Wutai Mountain area with a red pencil.
“Based on the last intelligence from the reconnaissance planes, Jiuqu River airfield already has preliminary combat capability with fighters taking off and landing.
Our reconnaissance planes were probably shot down by enemy fighters that took off from that airfield.” Iida Shojiro’s tone carried a hint of frustration and reluctance.
Hearing this, Shinozuka Yoshio’s face grew even darker. He hadn’t expected Su Yaoyang to move so fast; the airfield just built already had fighters capable of rising to combat and even shot down his reconnaissance planes. This was undoubtedly a blatant provocation to the Imperial Japanese Army!
“Very good… very good…” Shinozuka Yoshio sneered, “Su Yaoyang, you do have some tricks. But you think this can stop the Imperial Army’s iron hooves? Too naive!”
He stood abruptly, walked to the window, gazing toward the distant Wutai Mountains, his eyes like a starving wolf about to pounce.
“Iida-kun.”
Shinozuka Yoshio’s voice was ice-cold and firm, “Immediately convene the aviation corps commander and relevant operations staff for a meeting! I will personally formulate a devastating strike plan against Jiuqu River airfield! I want Su Yaoyang to know what it means to make an enemy of the Imperial Japanese Army!”
“Hai!” Iida Shojiro bowed sharply in acknowledgment.
The atmosphere in the Japanese First Army headquarters in Taiyuan suddenly grew tense.
Various combat orders flew out like snowflakes; aviation corps staff worked day and night on detailed plans, ground crews hurried with aircraft maintenance and ammo loading, and pilots were assembled for pre-war mobilization and mission briefings.
Just as Su Yaoyang and Doolittle had anticipated, though those two shot-down Japanese reconnaissance planes didn’t bring back photos or direct intelligence, the key information radioed back was enough for the Japanese to confirm the existence and threat of Jiuqu River airfield.
And this reconnaissance failure, plus the fact of the planes being shot down, stung the Japanese high command’s fragile and sensitive nerves, forcing them to resolve to uproot this thorn in their side with the fastest speed and fiercest means.
