Джон Шеттлер - Condition Zebra - The Next War - 2025

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!”