Aviation-Centric Combined Fleet

Chapter 52 - Feint

The United States demonstrated a continued willingness to fight even after Britain's withdrawal from the war. Upon hearing the reasons for this, Yamamoto directly questioned Hori, who was in charge of military administration, and Shiozawa, who was in charge of military command. What are the intentions for ending the war after this, and how will they continue to fight the increasingly powerful US military?

"I've said it before, but there's no way around it. The only means available to us is to persistently fight and bleed the Americans, raising the war-weariness among the American people to the point where continuing the war becomes impossible."

Yamamoto sighed at Hori's resigned words. Even with Hori's brilliant mind, a decisive method to end the war cannot be found. And this implied the continuation of an endless battle with the Pacific Fleet, which is diligently strengthening its military power backed by overwhelming scientific, industrial, and economic strength.

Yamamoto was already aware of the US Navy's shipbuilding plans. By the year 1940, the Japanese already knew that the United States had ordered the aircraft carriers Hornet and eleven Essex-class carriers. It's not just known; it's openly published information, even in commercial magazines, so not knowing would be more unusual. However, the United States is planning to build additional Essex-class carriers. As of now, 32 carriers of the same class have already been ordered, with the lead ship, the Essex, completed at the end of last year, and the second and third ships expected to be completed next month or the month after. While the defense capabilities of the Essex-class carriers may not match those of the Yamato-class carriers, their aircraft operational capabilities are equal or even superior. Additionally, their anti-aircraft equipment, electronic warfare capabilities, and speed are said to surpass those of the Yamato-class.

"That's why we must prevent the Americans from accumulating such strength. If thirty-two Essex-class carriers and over 3.000 carrier-based aircraft attack us at once, there's nothing we can do to defend against it."

Even the 1st Mobile Fleet, the world's strongest carrier force at the moment has just over a thousand carrier-based aircraft, so three times that amount is daunting. As Hori said, holding back attacks until the US military's strength is fully deployed would be a terrible strategy.

"So, what do we do? The carrier has just returned from Europe, so it won't be ready for combat for a while due to crew rest, ship maintenance, and training for the newly assigned soldiers. However, if it's after spring, we should be able to carry out operations."

The return of sixteen carriers, among many other ships, to the mainland at once caused chaos in Japan's repair facilities. Especially for the Yamato-class carriers, their large size meant they could only be maintained in large dry docks. Although the Imperial Navy had completed shipyards exceeding 300 meters in Yokosuka and Sasebo in 1940, the number was still insufficient. Fortunately, during the time the carrier was in Europe, all large armored carriers planned under the Circle 4 Plan had been launched. This means that all the Yamato-class carriers can expect to follow their maintenance schedules without delays. For other ships besides the Yamato-class carriers, maintenance was carried out in rotation. By spring, all ships of the 1st Mobile Fleet should have completed maintenance, and their combat capabilities were expected to increase further through the planned upgrades.

"This is top-secret, so I ask for absolute confidentiality, but Germany, who was supposed to carry out a summer offensive against the Soviet Union last year, plans to slightly advance the timing and execute it this year. Because of this, the Imperial Navy has received a request to exert pressure on the Americans in the Pacific."

Since the Battle of the Indian Ocean last year, the Soviet Union has been cut off from one of the major supply arteries, the Persian Corridor, providing aid from the Allied nations. Furthermore, with Britain dropping out of the war, assistance through convoy transport via the North Sea was also lost. Additionally, the United States is allocating the majority of its war resources to strengthen its own defenses rather than supporting the Soviet Union. Assistance to the Soviet Union is limited and sporadic.

However, Germany did not launch a large-scale offensive against the Soviet Union last year. This could be attributed to the understanding that invading the Soviet Union in winter would be imprudent, and Germany itself had suffered considerable damage in the war against Britain. While the collaboration with Japan and Italy in the war against Britain was successful, it came at the cost of a significant amount of bloodshed. The German Luftwaffe, engaged in fierce aerial combat with the British Royal Air Force, particularly bore the brunt of the casualties. It is likely that the German military is currently focused on recovering from these losses.

"So, this spring, probably around April, we plan to have a carrier strike Hawaii again. At this time, neither the Essex-class nor the Independence-class carriers will have sufficient numbers, and even for the completed ships, they shouldn't have finished their proficiency training. Therefore, there's no worry about the enemy task force being attacked from the rear. In other words, one carrier can redirect all its carrier-based aircraft firepower to Oahu. At the same time, the German military is reportedly conducting a large-scale commerce destruction campaign on the East Coast."

As Hori mentioned, the Japanese Navy would engage from the air, and the German Navy would attack from the sea, effectively flanking the United States from east and west. In reality, these actions serve as diversions to shift American attention from land to sea, with the main objective being the destruction of the Soviet Union by Germany. Depending on the situation, it might also evoke fear among the residents of the West and East coasts, potentially further accelerating war-weariness as a secondary effect. As Yamamoto saw no particular reason to oppose this matter, he straightforwardly inquired about one crucial aspect: "Is the military strength sufficient?"