Chapter 314

Chapter 314: "Dark Sabre" Anti-Submarine Operations

As Mitch Friedman, the head of the Lockheed family’s special operations, worked tirelessly to secure his position, he crafted words to flatter Marceau Lockheed, the leader of Lockheed Martin. He tried hard to express his loyalty to Lockheed and guaranteed to deliver a foolproof plan to prove his capabilities.

Meanwhile, their target, Captain Lin Mo of the Chinese Air Force and the world’s only Dragon Knight, was enjoying a relaxing holiday in the South China Sea. If the flight training with carrier-based aircraft and student training counted as a hobby, then this holiday and vacation spot were exceptionally satisfactory to Captain Lin Mo.

With sunshine, seawater, a "big ship," the flying "toy" named "Dark Sabre," free seafood, and even double allowances and various bonuses, he felt quite content. Of course, the Shilang aircraft carrier was always filled with eye-catching sailors, a distinct marine charm unmatched by any army recruit.

For Lin Mo, it was a delightful paradise, making him blissfully unaware of what lay beyond.

The American intelligence community seemed to have some unique methods, quickly tracking and confirming Lin Mo’s location. However, they were deterred by the potential disbandment of the Shilang aircraft carrier, a large combat vessel that China had deployed to the sea, along with the covert measures and pressure the Chinese government was applying.

Relevant monitoring personnel could only watch in dismay as that boastful pilot soared in the sky, enjoying the thrill of the chase, unable to take any action.

Even though the main job of the carrier-based aircraft instructors was to train students to quickly adapt to carrier-based aircraft’s flying characteristics and master maritime combat tactics, they too needed to perform daily flight training and test new experimental tactics.

“Dragon Knight, you only have 20 minutes left! If you can’t find the Jing Ke, your training today will be a complete failure,” came the voice of the instructor team leader over the radio as Lin Mo piloted a J-15 "Dark Sabre" for anti-submarine training.

“Alright, alright, this is actually a bit challenging for me! I don’t have x-ray vision! It’s all up to luck!” Lin Mo replied, somewhat frustrated, as today’s training was not just a class for instructors and students but a team assessment led by the chief instructor for all aviation crew members.

Over the ocean, an aircraft carrier had to face threats not only from land and sea but also from beneath the waves. For the operational space, underwater attacks posed the greatest danger to carriers.

Before possessing an aircraft carrier, the Chinese Navy focused on using submarines to counter the American carriers, gaining significant tactical experience in attacking carriers. They also used the submarines and warships of both China and the U.S. as imaginary foes for anti-submarine training, making this a mandatory course for every carrier pilot.

Seawater can absorb various waves, and even light and electromagnetic waves cannot penetrate it effortlessly. Lin Mo’s Light Mirror Technique was significantly constrained in such an environment.

Even at maximum efficiency, the Light Mirror Technique could only penetrate to about 500 meters below the water surface, depending on the water’s suspended particles. Even in good water quality, the returned images came out very blurry, and he could only see indistinct shadows. If there were other objects nearby, it became even harder to decipher, with the submarine’s camouflage effectively enhancing its concealment in such conditions. The effective distinguishing depth could only reach 200 meters.

In fact, below 1000 meters of ocean depth, it was largely dark, with only other sensory techniques able to discern the surroundings, such as metal detection from gold coins (a similar tech for humans is called a magnetometer), sonar echoes, high-sensitivity odor detection, infrared detection, and high-powered blue laser detection.

Flying the "Dark Sabre" just 50 meters above the ocean’s surface, Lin Mo stirred up triangular waves akin to those created by vessels, relying solely on his observation of the sea surface and his instincts.

Similar to the anti-submarine devices carried by helicopters, the "Dark Sabre" was equipped with three sets of specialized sonar buoy drop pods, suspended from the central axis and both wings, each filled with nearly 20 radio sonar buoys.

The sonar buoys were disposable anti-submarine devices equipped with self-sinking mechanisms. Once deployed into the water, they would automatically descend to the preset depth.

While they were roughly the size of a wine bottle, these "wine bottles" should not be underestimated. Based on their operating principles, they were divided into active and passive sonar types, with detection ranges reaching up to 800 meters—deeper than the current advanced military submarines.

Once a target was detected, these "wine bottles" would immediately send signals to receiving devices on nearby planes and ships. Although seawater might hinder electromagnetic waves, a few dozen meters of seawater was easily penetrated by them.

Some arrays composed of directional sonar buoys capable of rotating in seawater could even pinpoint targets manually.

Although towed sonar on anti-submarine helicopters offered higher detection ranges and sensitivities than buoy-type sonars, jet fighters were much more efficient at deploying sonar buoys. At speeds exceeding two hundred meters per second, they could easily lay a net.

The combination of both methods, with one casting a wide net and the other pinpointing locations, complemented each other perfectly. Once a submarine was detected, there would be no easy escape.

“Start deploying the first group!” Lin Mo cautiously released four sonar buoys in sequence. The fighter jet was swift, with a deployment interval of over a thousand meters, ideal for buoy release.

Once in the water, the sonar buoys began descending to about 50 meters deep. Upon sensing seawater, their seawater batteries activated, lasting only two hours. While this might seem short, it was ample time for an anti-submarine operation.

Of course, the shortest operational period for a sonar buoy was only 15 minutes, while some could function continuously for several months.

If their operational time exceeded two hours, chemical reactions in the buoy’s housing, sealed with brass and aluminum-magnesium alloys, would corrode the magnesium, allowing seawater to flood the buoy’s interior and cause it to sink, fully biodegradable in a year—truly eco-friendly.

Sonar buoys excelled in low manufacturing costs, high output, and being cost-effective, making them suitable for large-scale deployment by fighter jets. Once trapped in a sonar buoy detection area, even the most skilled could find it impossible to escape.

The "Dark Sabre" traced a long rectangular frame on the sea, using up 30 sonar buoys in a moment, without achieving any results.

Each sonar buoy had a production cost of nearly 1800 Yuan, and Lin Mo had casually created a "frame," effectively tossing over 50,000 Yuan into the ocean.

Whether it was combat or training, this was genuine money literally being thrown away.

Once a disposable item was tossed into the ocean, retrieving it for continued use was impossible.

If ordinary working-class citizens in China saw this, they would clutch their chests and cry tears of blood.

Isn’t the Navy about burning money?

Its funding is almost second only to the aerospace industry.

Which advanced equipment and technology wasn’t developed through substantial financial investment?

In battles at sea, both sides are engaged in true confrontations backed by substantial resources—whoever has the most solid investments and the highest quality of materials can force the other into the depths of the sea.

“What a pity, the first deployment failed. Dragon Knight, you didn’t find the Jing Ke. You still have a few chances left. One? Or two?”

The captain’s voice crackled over the radio, filled with great regret.

This was just one fighter jet in training; if it were a real combat scenario, at least four to five fighters would be deploying simultaneously, alongside at least four anti-submarine helicopters dropping towed sonar in the fleet’s vicinity.

"This is quite tricky!" Lin Mo replied, feeling disheartened. He had activated at least five Light Mirror Techniques in the cockpit, yet distinguishing the submarine camouflaged in colors similar to the ocean floor was no easy task.

If he had brought a magnetometer, his anti-submarine method might have improved. However, in actual combat, the enemy wouldn’t simply allow you to be prepared; they would employ various unimaginable strategies to avoid detection.

Indeed, it was just bad luck for Lin Mo. Finding the 039-class Yuan submarine "Jing Ke," hidden hundreds of meters beneath the surface in the vast ocean, certainly wasn’t an easy task, and it was agreed that the "Jing Ke" could only operate within a 20-nautical-mile radius of the carrier. Even so, with the morning’s testing results from all instructors and students, only three of them accidentally stumbled upon the captain’s vessel.

Once the correct position was found, dropping the sonar buoy would secure a victory—it was that simple.

For submarines, aviation personnel were true enemies; once a location was confirmed, torpedoes and depth charges could be dropped, eliminating any chance of counterattack, leaving only sinking into the sea.

Perhaps the submarine captain was hiding in some corner, secretly delighted? This was also a valuable exercise for them.

In the vast ocean, an attack submarine was like an assassin lurking in the dark, silently approaching its target, waiting for the perfect moment to strike, before vanishing without a trace.