Chapter 214: Verbal Sparring
During World War II, although the pilot training processes of various countries had their own characteristics, the ultimate goal was the same: to train a large number of civilian youths into qualified pilots capable of performing combat missions in the shortest possible time.
Moreover, it was a high-intensity, high-elimination-rate process with distinct stages.
Overall, it involved going through these processes: screening and enlistment, pre-flight/basic training, primary flight training, advanced flight training, combat conversion training, and so on—five stages in total.
In peacetime, pilot training generally took eighteen months to two years to complete the transformation from civilian to pilot; for naval aviators, it even took three years.
In another time and space, after the outbreak of World War II, governments of various countries felt that such training times were too long, and the speed of training pilots in the rear could not make up for the speed of pilot losses on the front lines.
As the war intensified and demand surged, the cycle was drastically shortened（the United States later took about 7-9 months from civilian to combat troops, while Germany later took only a few months.
But that was nothing; the craziest was Japan.
In the later stages of the war, Japan’s training time for kamikaze special attack pilots was compressed to 2 to 4 weeks, and in the most extreme cases, even to just a few days.
This was no longer training pilots, but manufacturing “disposable” human missile operators, using the last bit of value from their young lives for desperate struggles.
Its cruelty and inhumanity represent an extremely dark page in both aviation history and military history.
And in training pilots, the Americans did the best job.
They relied on their massive industrial and educational systems to establish a highly standardized, assembly-line-style pilot training system（such as the famous “Army Air Forces Training Command” system）, training over 400,000 pilots throughout World War II.
The Japanese, while exclaiming in shock, were utterly baffled as to why their pilots dwindled the more they fought, while American pilots increased the more they fought.
The reason American pilots kept increasing was not only due to their massive industrial and educational systems, but also inseparable from the emergence of one thing: the Link simulator.
This device was invented in 1929 by a young man named Link, but since its debut, it had been ignored by everyone.
It was not until 1934, when more than a dozen Army Air Corps pilots crashed due to insufficient training levels, that the Army Air Corps became Link’s first customer.
After that, customers began coming in droves.
The training effect of the Link trainer was very obvious; it could greatly reduce actual in-air flight time while also preemptively avoiding some dangerous operational habits on the ground.
Previously, Doolittle believed that it took at least a year to train a qualified pilot, based on traditional training methods; now with the Link simulator, this flight time could be greatly shortened.
Seeing Doolittle’s delighted expression, Su Yaoyang stepped forward and patted his shoulder: “Jimmy, come sit down.”
After Doolittle got off the simulator and sat on the one nearby, Su Yaoyang handed him a cigarette and said sincerely: “Jimmy… I know you won’t stay in China too long; at most one or two years and you’ll return home.
I just hope that before you return, you can train as many pilots as possible for our country, so they can fly planes soaring in the blue sky and strike those Japanese invaders hard.”
Doolittle took the cigarette, and seeing the pleading look in Su Yaoyang’s eyes, a soft spot in his heart seemed to be touched.
He lit the cigarette, took a deep drag, and then said: “Boss… I understand how you feel.
You are an admirable patriot. Rest assured, I will do my utmost to help you train more pilots.
Moreover, your training facilities and equipment are very sufficient and complete; the only constraint is the number of qualified prospective trainees, but there’s nothing I can do about that.”
“Yeah!”
Su Yaoyang took a deep drag on his cigarette, a helpless expression on his face.
Unlike ordinary infantry, the air force is an unadulterated high-tech force, with exceptionally high requirements for pilots.
Pilots are required to have reading and writing abilities（manuals, instructions, reports）, basic algebra, geometry, physics knowledge（for calculating range, ballistics, fuel efficiency）, as well as aviation theory, mechanical principles, and navigation.
Given this, the screening for pilots is even stricter.
Countries like the US, UK, Germany, and Japan require pilots to have at least a secondary education（high school）; the Soviet Union and China are slightly lower, but at least junior high or upper primary school graduation, since illiterates cannot master such complex aviation systems.
For example, famous pilots like Gao Zhihang, Liu Cuigang, and Yan Haiwen—which one wasn’t a knowledgeable youth?
And in this regard, China happens to have a glaring weakness; as an agricultural country with an illiteracy rate as high as 80 to 90 percent, selecting qualified recruits is extremely difficult.
This time in selecting pilots, although many people signed up, after several rounds of screening, only about three or four hundred flight trainees were barely selected; after further layers of screening, Su Yaoyang estimated that at best 50 percent could become qualified pilots.
Thinking of this, Su Yaoyang felt that cultivating a qualified air force was truly a long and arduous task.
Tossing away his cigarette butt, he said: “Jimmy… I’ll head back first; I’m leaving this to you.”
“Okay, boss.” Doolittle, who was studying the simulator, waved his hand and continued studying it on his own.
Looking at the engrossed Doolittle, Su Yaoyang was somewhat amused; after all, he was his boss, yet this guy didn’t even bother with superficial pleasantries.
However, Su Yaoyang had no intention of blaming him; if this guy were a slick operator, he wouldn’t be Doolittle.
…………
US Embassy in Shanghai
Ambassador Nelson T. Johnson, a nearly sixty-year-old American diplomat with graying hair but sharp spirits, was sitting in his spacious, bright, and elegantly decorated office, somewhat surprised to see the furious Japanese Consul General Horiuchi Tatsuki barge in.
Ambassador Johnson had served as a diplomat in China for many years and was well versed in the subtlety and etiquette of Easterners.
For Horiuchi Tatsuki to come unannounced and “demand accountability” like this was truly rare.
“Consul General Horiuchi, long time no see. I wonder what brings you here today, and how I can assist?”
Ambassador Johnson wore a professional smile on his face, but his tone carried authority as he asked.
He gestured for his assistant to pour Horiuchi Tatsuki a cup of coffee, then leisurely took a cigar from the humidor, trimmed it with a silver cigar cutter, lit it, took a deep puff, and slowly exhaled a cloud of white smoke.
Horiuchi Tatsuki had no mood to savor coffee right now, nor the patience to wait for Ambassador Johnson to enjoy his cigar leisurely. He rudely interrupted the ambassador’s pleasantries and slammed a document onto the desk（”evidence” regarding the P-47 fighter appearing on the Shanxi battlefield and causing major Japanese losses）.
“Ambassador Johnson! On behalf of the Imperial Japanese Government, I lodge the strongest possible protest with your government over its blatant sale of advanced fighters to a local militia in Shanxi, which directly caused major losses to our forces!”
Horiuchi Tatsuki’s voice was sharp with anger as he pointed at the document on the desk and said sternly: “These advanced fighters, according to our confirmed intelligence, were precisely provided by your country!
And Su Yaoyang! That damned militia leader! Used your American planes to slaughter our empire’s excellent pilots! You must take responsibility for this!”
Ambassador Johnson’s brows furrowed slightly; he picked up the document on the desk and carefully flipped through it. It included some blurry photos of plane wreckage, as well as so-called “eyewitness testimonies” and “intelligence analyses.” The more he looked, the tighter his brows furrowed.
Although he was not a professional soldier and didn’t know much about weapons, he had some familiarity with his own country’s planes.
From the photos, the wreckage on the ground did indeed resemble American aircraft in style.
Although Ambassador Johnson was full of doubts inside, he remained outwardly composed. As an experienced diplomat, he knew that without irrefutable evidence and clear instructions from home, he absolutely could not admit anything lightly.
He set down the document, looked up, still with that professional, inscrutable smile, gazed at the furious Horiuchi Tatsuki, and said slowly: “Consul General Horiuchi, forgive my bluntness, but this ‘evidence’ of yours is really rather… speculative.
First, regarding this advanced fighter in your photos, as far as I know, I personally have never seen it.
Second, even if these planes are indeed American-made, that doesn’t rule out the possibility that they flowed out through certain unofficial, uncontrollable secret channels by our government, such as some profit-driven arms dealers, or… private actions by certain ‘international friends’ sympathetic to China’s resistance.”
Although Ambassador Johnson’s tone was mild, the subtext was very clear: the US government officially did not sell fighters to Su Yaoyang’s militia.
As for how these planes got into their hands, who knows—anyway, it has nothing to do with our government.
“Nonsense! Evasion! This is absolutely a conspiracy by your US government!”
Horiuchi Tatsuki trembled with rage at Ambassador Johnson’s “Tai Chi” style response; he abruptly stood up, pointed at the ambassador’s nose, and cursed: “Ambassador Johnson! I warn you! Don’t try to shirk responsibility! We have irrefutable evidence that these planes came from official US channels!
Moreover, we also know that some so-called ‘American volunteer pilots’ from your country participated in this attack on our Imperial Army! You are playing with fire! You are making an enemy of the Empire of Japan!”
“Consul General Horiuchi, mind your words!”
Ambassador Johnson’s face darkened; he dropped his smile, his tone turning serious. “Regarding your claim of ‘American volunteer pilots’ participating in the attack, that is utterly baseless slander! The US government has always adhered to a policy of neutrality and would never allow its citizens to participate in armed conflicts between other countries.
If any American citizens privately participated in the so-called ‘attack,’ that is their personal action, unrelated to the US government; we express regret and will investigate. But you cannot blame the US government for it!”
“Neutrality policy? What a huge joke!”
Horiuchi Tatsuki sneered, his eyes full of contempt. “The whole world knows that you Americans have been secretly providing various aid to the Chongqing government! Now you’ve escalated, even selling the most advanced fighters to a small militia! Your so-called ‘neutrality’ is nothing but a facade to deceive the world!”
“Consul General Horiuchi, I reiterate once more: the US government has never sold any model of fighter aircraft to any Chinese local armed forces, including the Su Yaoyang militia you mentioned, let alone advanced models!”
Ambassador Johnson’s tone also hardened; he stood up, confronting Horiuchi Tatsuki head-on. “As for your demands for ‘compensation for losses’ and ‘guarantees to stop selling weapons,’ they are utterly groundless, and we firmly reject them! The United States is a sovereign nation; we have the right to decide whom to sell weapons to and whom not to, and no other country has the right to interfere!”
In an instant, the ambassador’s office was filled with tension. The two diplomats, representing the interests of Japan and the US respectively, engaged in fierce arguments and debates over this batch of suddenly appearing fighters and the complex international relations and national interests behind them.
Horiuchi Tatsuki insisted it was the US government scheming behind the scenes, demanding the US side take responsibility and pay compensation. Ambassador Johnson firmly denied any official US government involvement, absolving responsibility entirely, while hinting that Japan should not make a fuss and trying to contain the matter’s impact to the minimum.
The two traded barbs, citing precedents（though mostly mutual accusations and threats）, arguing for nearly an hour until their voices were hoarse, but neither convinced the other.
In the end, with no satisfactory response and having been rebuffed, Horiuchi Tatsuki stormed out in a huff, throwing down harsh words before leaving, claiming the Empire of Japan would never let it rest, would thoroughly investigate, and reserved the right to take further action.
Ambassador Johnson watched Horiuchi Tatsuki’s furious departing back with an expressionless face until the office door slammed shut; only then did he slowly sit back in his chair, the hardness on his face gradually fading, replaced by deep worry and confusion.
He picked up the document on the desk and once again carefully examined those blurry plane photos.
Su Yaoyang… Shanxi militia… What exactly is going on? Could someone back home really be secretly providing this level of advanced weapons to the Chinese side behind the government’s back? Or is there more to it?
Ambassador Johnson felt a headache coming on. He knew this matter was far from as simple as it seemed. It not only affected the situation on the Sino-Japanese battlefield but could also pour oil on the already tense US-Japan relations.
He immediately picked up the phone and connected to the encrypted line to Washington. He had to report this to headquarters as soon as possible and request instructions.
