The Backfires launched at 220 miles out, two regiments of bombers carrying two C.802 missiles apiece, releasing as the Tomcats ten Phoenix missiles arrived, and going active whilst the Backfires were at their most vulnerable. The twenty-one survivors turned for home, their wings swept back and afterburners alight.
The F/A-18Ds of the second line detected the Backfires a minute before release; they launched their AIM-54 Phoenix missiles and went to afterburner. At Mach 3.7 the long range Phoenix’s sprinted ahead while the F/A-18s tried to get to within twenty miles to launch their AMRAAMs at the Backfires but were confronted with sixty inbound anti-ship C.802 missiles, flying only at Mach.8 but at a mere eight feet above the waves. The F/A-18D Hornets had no option but to disregard the fleeing Backfires and hunt the sea skimmers. The Phoenix missiles were left to chase the PLAAF bombers, their inertial guidance taking over from the Hornets.
In the CIC the TAO was confused, a Hornet had a visual on a missile and confirmed its extreme low altitude, he did not know of any sea skimming missile with 200+ mile range but he had to move his reserve Tomcat squadron north to deal with leaker’s from this attack. The ships air defence missiles had a maximum range of 90 kilometres; it was common sense to engage any incoming with aircraft at beyond that range.
Despite the GRI’s pessimism, the Tu-160s approach was so far undetected by the E-2 Hawkeye. They passed below a pair of F/A 18D Hornets, completely undetected. All their C.802 missiles were nuclear tipped, they were 110 miles out and would release at the missiles maximum range, 65 miles.
To the north the Americans were wasting effort and materiel on the Backfires C.802s that were never intended to reach the ships, they would fall into the sea a little over a quarter of the way from their release points.
All 9 Sea Harriers were aloft when the AEW Sea King detected the incoming waves of Russian and PRC aircraft. They released their AIM-58s under the AEW Sea Kings control. Thirty-eight Phoenix missiles would have made a hole in the enemy’s numbers, but they no longer had the Tomcats to support them and their eighteen AIM-54s would represent a chip in comparison. HMS Cuchullainn and USS Dry Springs began launching on the incoming aircraft, the Royal Navy PAAMS, principle anti-air missile system’s Aster 30 missile and United States Navy’s SM-2 MR missiles had comparable ranges, reaching out to 90 km. When the threat closed the RN Destroyer would employ Sea Dart and then finally Sea Wolf missiles. The USN Destroyer had ship-launched Sea Sparrow for intermediate range air defence and SM-1 MR missiles for closer to home.
At sixty feet altitude all six Tu-160 bombers released their nuclear tipped C.802 missiles and banked hard as the twelve missiles dropped to 8 ft above the waves and accelerated north.
The Hawkeye detected the twelve inbounds from the south and the AEGIS cruisers and destroyers began launching SM-2 missiles. The two southern most frigates launched SM1 missiles and their Phalanx close-in weapon systems began to look for targets using FLIR, forward looking infrared sensors to pick out the heat given off by the inbounds along with radar.
Nine of the twelve C.802s fell to the SM-2 and 1 air defence missiles.
USS Norwich Falls Phalanx system shredded one of the pair of missiles heading its way, at half a mile out. Its neighbour, USS Timmings was expending 20mm depleted uranium tipped cannon shells at 3000 rounds per minute, the shells tore into the waves, just shy of its target. In the frigates CIC, the personnel watched with growing feelings of horror as the sea skimmer got ever closer. A crewman began to utter a prayer under his breath and reached for his rosary. The Phalanx magazine aboard the newer Norwich Falls held 1550 rounds when full, the Timmings held 989. At 800 yards from the Timmings her Phalanx finally destroyed the missile, her magazine had just 2 rounds remaining. A cheer broke the tension in the Timmings CIC and the TAO had turned to make some relieved comment to a crewman at his elbow. The monitor screens for the exterior cameras went blank. The photonic flash of a nuclear detonation burnt out the Timmings exterior cameras and the eyes of four crewmen looking astern at that moment.
USS Norwich Falls had emptied her 20mm magazine when her target was 500 yards away. Her aluminium hull was breached by the missile that penetrated to just short of the vessels centreline before its 2-kiloton warhead detonated.
Lt Fu Shen was muttering beneath his breath as he waited impatiently for Major Lee to fire or clear. They were engaged in a dogfight with nine Royal Navy Sea Harriers, they outnumbered the enemy by three to one and that was causing the PLAN pilots difficulties. There were too many of the big Sukhois chasing too few targets. The Sea Harriers low speed and greater manoeuvrability had already caused one mid-air collision between PRC aircraft. The young pilot knew that the only way to end this quickly was for them to put distance between the British fighters and then use missiles and the Su-27s superior speed to chop the Sea Harriers from the air, but who was he, just a lowly lieutenant. The British had intercepted them on the way to their air strike on the mixture of USN and RN ships.
Their top CAP of Mig-32s had dropped the ball, being out of position and now were taking their sweet time getting down.
Major Lee was cursing as he struggled to stay above a stall, his HUDs gun-sight flicked to red and he loosed a stream of 23mm cannon at his target, only it was no longer there, the Sea Harrier had broken high right and Major Lee swore aloud, banking to follow. He forgot his air speed until the stall warning sounded in his ears. He was so close! Just a little more… he switched from guns to AA-8 Aphids and listened for the tone, ignoring the stall warning, finger poised… another second and he would have tone. His stomach rose to meet his throat as the aircraft dropped beneath him as he departed controlled flight. Lt Fu Chen looked in frustration at his leaders’ antics and dismissed the temptation to take the shot himself, his duty as a wingman was to cover his leader and he dutifully followed him down.
Lt Nikki Pelham also had her hands full at that moment. The Su-27s that had preceded the way for the Backfires had not disengaged when the bombers had, choosing instead to mix it with the USN aviators. The fight here was more evenly matched, parachutes drifted down to the ocean thirteen thousand feet below. The dogfight had started at thirty-six thousand but had gradually lost altitude as dogfights often do. She had lost her wingman, there had been nothing on the radio, he was just gone and not answering her calls for assistance.
She was up against two of the enemy and although she had scored on one with her guns, nothing vital had apparently been hit but she was two up in total, one to an AMRAAM and one to a sidewinder at the start of the fight. She had no idea whether her two AIM-54s had scored and at the moment she had far more important things on her mind. With all the sophisticated equipment at her fingertips, the most important items right now were her RIOs eyes, he was twisting around, calling out the enemy’s whereabouts over the intercom as she tried to shake them off and get into a firing position behind them. She became aware that there were no other aircraft in view and it seemed that only moments ago the air had been filled with machines.
HMS Cuchullainn and the frigate USS Dry Springs were a quarter of a mile apart and racing to rejoin the group at twenty-nine knots apiece. Cuchullainn could manage thirty-six knots but stayed abreast of her partner.
The tows had been cut adrift once the PRC and Russians had committed themselves to the attack. Su-32FN fighter bombers had launched their first salvo of AS-18 anti-ship missiles at 100km out, but both ships had kept the reflectors between themselves and the attackers, relying on their medium and short range missile armament to pick off those missiles not obviously targeted on the decoys. The towed radar reflectors were gone now, torn asunder by anti-ship missiles in the first wave leaving the ships naked but for the helicopters that acted as detached decoys. Aster 30 and SM-2 missiles from the two ships were assisted by those from the Prince of Wales intercepting the second wave but the two ships magazines had fired their last long and medium range missiles. Cuchullainn’s Sea Wolf, short-range missiles were now the only missile cover available to the two ships as the Su-32s closed in. They had released only half of the anti-ship ordnance that they carried.