Red Tide, стр. 88
Many Chinese officers assumed that their ships would win such a contest. Ko wasn’t one of them. But he could hardly complain since the Sea Dragon was likely to be the chief beneficiary of Chao’s initiative. And for the better part of six suspenseful hours, it appeared that all available American ships were headed for the impending battle, like iron filings drawn to a magnet.
But shortly after the Dragon entered the South China Sea two blips appeared on radar. And thanks to video being streamed to the cruiser from a GJ-2 UAV, Ko learned that the blips were American destroyers, presumably in company with an attack sub.
Within seconds it became clear that the Americans could “see” the Chinese cruiser. The Arleigh Burke class destroyers were armed with a wide variety of weapons. But it was the enemy’s ship-to-ship missiles that Ko feared most, four of which were in the air, and headed his way.
As luck would have it, Ko was in Operations 1 when the enemy ships were spotted and the Harpoons were fired. Even so, there was a momentary time lag as the fire control computer requested permission to fire anti-air missiles, and the duty officer turned to Ko seeking permission. He said, “Yes!” but it was too late. The sea-skimming missiles were traveling at more than five hundred mph, and were halfway to the Sea Dragon by then.
Mortars burped decoys into the air and three of the American weapons exploded harmlessly. But the fourth struck the hull forward of Conning Tower 1. The warhead was packing 488 pounds of HE and blew a hole through the hull, killing three crewmembers.
Because most of the cruiser’s hull was awash, water poured in through the hole, causing automatic systems to seal the flooded compartment.
The Sea Dragon was fighting for her life. Anti-air missiles sleeted into the air, as more Harpoons were launched, and Chinese YJ-91 anti-ship missiles skimmed the waves.
Both American vessels mounted SRBOC launchers which did an effective job of luring the Chinese weapons away. In addition, both destroyers were equipped with Mk 53 Nulka hovering decoys, each of which produced a ship-like radar signature.
Meanwhile, below the surface of the sea, the American boats were towing AN/SLQ-25A Nixie torpedo decoys. The crew on the Chinese attack sub wasn’t fooled however.
They knew the first sonic signatures they heard would be from decoys, and were happy to expend two torpedoes on the Nixies.
But in doing so, the subs revealed themselves to the men and women aboard the USS Waco, the attack sub sent to protect the American destroyers. A spread of Mark 48 torpedoes began to search for the Chinese attack boat and found it.
There was a brief moment of celebration aboard the Waco as two underwater explosions were heard, followed by the distinctive sounds of a ship breaking up.
But just as the Chinese boat revealed itself to the Waco, the American boat became electronically “visible” to the Sea Dragon, which was armed with two anti-sub rocket launchers. Each rocket released a torpedo. And both of them went looking for a submarine. One of them scored a hit.
Meanwhile, as the surface combatants continued to close with each other, the battle became even more intense. Ko was desperate to break contact and run. His ship had sustained two serious wounds and he feared that the Americans would win the war of attrition.
So, despite the fact that Ko had been hoping to keep the popup railgun in reserve, he had no choice but to use it.
Thanks to the ship’s radar, the overhead drone, and a downlink from a Chinese satellite, all of the ship’s interlocking fire control systems were updated at five second intervals. That made the process of firing the railgun easy: Raise the weapon from below deck, run an automated systems check, and issue orders.
The destroyers were about ten miles apart and coming toward the Sea Dragon at approximately 34 knots per hour. The ship to port, as seen from the Sea Dragon, had been labeled as “Target 1.” And the one to the right was “Target 2.”
Ko gave the orders. “Prepare to fire on Target 1. Fire! Prepare to fire on Target 2. Fire!” Sixty seconds elapsed before the second shell departed.
The smart shells raced down range at five thousand mph. They weren’t packing explosive charges. Nor did they need to. Kinetic energy alone was enough to penetrate Target 1’s main deck, the deck below, and the engine room—where the projectile shattered. Shrapnel flew in every direction. Jagged pieces of steel punctured the hull, water poured in, and alarms sounded. The order to abandon ship was given three minutes later.
Target 2 fared no better. The speeding railgun shell fell on its superstructure, destroyed the bridge, plunged through the main deck—and punched a hole in the hull.
Like its sister ship, the tin can sank within fifteen minutes. Life boats and rafts were left bobbing where it had been.
Ko had no interest in taking prisoners. His submarine escort had been destroyed, and he had three flooded compartments to contend with. All he wanted to do was reach the safety of the sub pens in the Yulin navy base. And do so as quickly as possible. The Sea Dragon limped north.
***
On the island of Samir, in the South China Sea
Commander Max Ryson was lying on his back, staring at the sky. It was blue with white striations. There were no contrails to be seen. Not a single one. And Ryson thought he knew why. Hundreds of miles north of Samir, and west of Taiwan, enormous fleets were about to clash. And that, Ryson felt sure, was where the semisubmersible cruiser was. If so, the Chinese would have a huge advantage.
The thought made him even more depressed. The trip to the village of Coloane had