Their command acknowledged and told them to standby while a strike package was put together.
Three minutes later, Henhouse came back over the radio, informing them that a pair of Vipers would fly in to suppress the enemy air defense while a couple of pairs of Marine F/A-18 Hornets brought the pain. Jordy and Chucky exchanged smiles knowing what was heading towards that Chinese column, and then they passed the word down to the others to be ready. So far, they had not spotted any enemy soldiers near them or looking for them, but that might change if the Chinese believed their positions were being monitored from the hills above them.
Fifteen minutes later, as they continued to observe the vehicles arrive at the destroyed DPRK airbase, a flurry of activity began. The men manning the air defense vehicles began to get them ready to engage an unseen enemy. The other armored vehicles and tanks in the group began to scatter to different portions of the airbase while the infantry soldiers began to run to various dugout shelters.
The few remaining North Korean forces at the base waved in the direction the air attack would most likely come from. The SA-22, which had both missiles and twin 30mm cannons, turned and swung its weapons in that direction. In seconds, the two cannons immediately began to open fire, throwing hundreds of projectiles in the direction of the American aircraft. These were quickly followed by several SAMs being launched at the incoming threats. A few seconds later, an American missile streaked across the sky and plowed into the vehicle, exploding it into a million little pieces.
The second SA-22 and the SA-19 Grison both opened up with their 30mm auto-cannons and their own anti-air missiles. A second American missile plowed into the Grison, shattering it in spectacular fashion. At this point, the remaining SA-22 had turned off his radar and moved his vehicle back several hundred feet at high speed. Another American missile plowed into the dirt where it had just been. In seconds, the SA-22 turned its search radar back on and fired off four anti-air missiles at the incoming F/A-18s and the Vipers still trying to kill them.
As Chucky and Jordy observed the fighting going on below them, they couldn’t help but marvel at the skill of the men on both sides trying to leverage their technology and weapon systems in an effort to defeat each other. When the SA-22 fired off four anti-air missiles, they watched as one of them zeroed in on an F-16. The missile exploded below and just behind the aircraft, though it was clear to see the fighter had sustained heavy damage. The F16 began trailing smoke and tried to maneuver back towards friendly lines.
One of the F/A-18s that had dove in on the airfield to attack the armored column flew in fast, releasing a series of 500 lbs. bombs, ripping multiple vehicles apart in their destructive wake. As the Hornet angled skyward to gain altitude, the lone remaining SA-22 was tracking it and fired a string of 30mm cannon fire in its direction. The American aircraft jinked hard from one side to another in an attempt to dodge the incoming enemy rounds.
The first F/A-18 was lucky and gained enough altitude to escape the enemy fire; however, his partner flew right into it. The second F/A-18 was blown apart in a million little pieces before it was able to release its ordinance. The pilot was able to eject, and as chance would have it, the aircraft came apart as it flew over ODA 1110’s observation point. When the pilot ejected, he was nearly on top of them. As his chute opened and descended, several members from Chucky’s team were there to greet him and keep him silent. They brought him into their lines, along with the other pilot they had rescued earlier.
Chucky walked up to the Marine aviator and held his hand out, “I’m Chief Warrant Officer 4, Charles Lee. I’m in charge of this Special Forces A-Team you dropped into. Until we are relieved or extracted, you are now going to operate under my control. Is that understood Major… Woods?”
Major Woods wasn’t sure what to make of the men in green faces that had just rescued him. He had practically been on top of them when he ejected from his aircraft. Ultimately, he was just glad they had found him and not the Chinese or the North Koreans.
Woods chuckled quietly and then smiled. “It sounds like you have a deal, Chief. I can’t thank you guys enough for recovering me. I thought for certain I’d be captured,” he said as he shook Chucky’s hand. Chucky led the two of them to the center of their perimeter so they could talk a little more freely for a few minutes.
Turning to look at the Marine aviator, Chucky explained, “Listen, we’ve been deep behind enemy lines since before the start of the war. So far, we haven’t been spotted, but it’s only a matter of time. If the Marines establish a beachhead, do you think you could speak to them and have them bail us out?” he asked. They had not gotten any sort of confirmation from Henhouse on their extraction, but with them recovering this second downed pilot, the likelihood of them needing an extraction was increasing by the hour. It would not take the Chinese or KPA long before they sent a search party in this direction.
Woods thought about this question for a minute, not sure how much information he should disclose. Seeing that his own life may depend on the answer, he decided to be direct and give them the truth. “The Marines have already secured a beachhead. They’ve pushed about ten miles inland, so believe it or not, they are only around ninety miles from this position. The fact that the PLA is moving a lot of units here is not good. It means they are going to try and push our Marines back into the ocean. As for an extraction, I’m not sure. As you just saw, the enemy air defense capability around here is pretty strong. I’m not sure our helicopters would survive. If the Air Force can get a few more Viper missions to suppress them then yeah, I think it’s possible.”
The two of them talked for a few minutes longer before they gave the Major a commandeered AK-47 and about a dozen magazines. They placed him in a fighter hole near one of the other SF soldiers on the perimeter, and told him to stay silent and watch while they reported their position to higher headquarters and asked for an extraction.
For the next ten minutes, they went back and forth with Henhouse on the details. It was determined that the Air Force would have to conduct additional wild weasel missions. Once the enemy had been thinned out, then they could try for an extraction.
Brigadier General Cho was not happy. His division had been getting harassed from the air for the past several days by the Americans and Japanese, greatly slowing down his progress. He should have arrived at this DPRK airbase two days ago, so they could get it operational for the People’s Liberation Army Air Force. However, just as his lead battalion arrived at the base, they came under additional air attacks by American F-16s and F/A-18s.
“Colonel Fang, I need you to keep these Yankee aircraft off our backs! How soon until the rest of your air defense brigade is able to setup a perimeter at the DPRK airbase and stop these attacks?!” Cho demanded angrily.
Colonel Fang had been doing his best to provide air defense for the 39th Army, but it had been nearly impossible to keep the Americans from getting through. Between their stealth aircraft and electronic jamming, his air defense systems were having a hard time suppressing the American air superiority.
“I know what the problem is General Cho, and we are working on solving it. I just lost two of the three SAM systems I sent to the airbase earlier today. The air force is supposed to start providing us with more fighter support. That should help the situation until I can get additional SA-21 systems set up,” he responded. The accusation that his brigade was not doing the best they could made him hot under the collar. He had been getting yelled at by nearly every division and brigade commander since their army group had crossed into North Korea at the start of the war.