The Vals were almost at the point where they would have to head home, but at least now they were headed the right way, the costly hunt to the north behind them. Finally, they saw the large wakes of enemy ships scoring the cobalt sea beneath them, and began to make their attack run. They were going to be too late. Most would be nearing Bingo fuel soon, but they pressed in to attack, with none of them dropping bombs on Formidable as the skies began to light up with Ack Ack fire. Most bombs fell wide of the mark, but one was very close, no more than 150 feet off the starboard side of the ship. The blast sent shrapnel raking over the flight deck, damaging several Fulmars spotted there, and effectively putting them out of the game.
Crews ran to move the planes below decks while others were already rising on the elevators, this time armed with 1000 pound bombs. The last of the Vals swooped through the flak, then the formation swarmed off like angry bees, heading south. They had put one stinger into their enemy, and those results were none too good considering that these were veteran pilots. Two stubborn pilots still had bombs when they got the order to return to base, but they could not go without attacking and bear the shame of having to jettison those bombs. Ignoring their fuel situation, they turned, braving the flak, and bored in on that carrier.
They each got off two 125kg bombs, but all fell well over 500 feet from the carrier. Wells and Somerville had dodged the first enemy attack, and now Formidable had frantically launched another group of Fulmars to try and follow those Vals home and find their unseen enemy.
Down south, the other squadrons of Barracudas had still not sighted the Japanese carriers, but they did find what looked to many like a battleship below. It was actually the Heavy Cruiser Tone, out in front of Hara’s group by some 30 miles. The British had come that close to finding the carriers, but now, in desperation, low on fuel, they decided to take the bird in hand. The first two Fulmars put their bombs nearly half a mile from the target in their haste, and the gunners aboard Tone actually laughed at their enemy. Most of the other British squadrons got hung up about 40 miles north of Taiho, where Hara had posted his long range CAP. The slashing attack of the Zeros was enough to so disrupt the enemy formations, that the strain on their fuel was now forcing them to turn for home.
So it was that these initial probing attacks saw both sides frustrated, shadow boxing with an enemy that neither one could clearly see. But Hara now had a very good idea where his enemy was, and he was determined to strike again with the remaining daylight. At 15:40 he gave orders for all carriers to launch a second wave. He would get those planes up and off the decks just as a group of eight Zeros were returning. As his squadrons headed out, he saw more Zeros launching from Hiyo as ordered to replace his defensive CAP. They were soon in a wild fight with anything the British had near Tone, as the Fulmar was a fighter bomber, and those pilots too far off to get an attack in, could jettison their bombs and take on the role of that fighter. Both side would take losses, but the net effect was that Hara would effectively parry and block the last punched the three British carriers had thrown at him.
An hour later, by 16:40, the first groups of that strike wave had already arrived at the last reported location of the carriers, and then turned west to look for those long wakes. The British could see them coming on radar, and they would surely vector in all the other groups in their train.
“We had better look to our defense,” said Somerville.
“Indomitable reports they have six Seafires ready on deck for immediate launch. Illustrious has two more on ready standby. I’ll have them scrambled at once. As for us, I’m afraid we’ve just got the Barracudas left below deck.”
“Leave them there for now. But we must be ready to arm them at a moment’s notice. Not just now, however. Particularly with enemy planes coming at us. Gentlemen, it may soon be every man for himself, but we’re likely to take the heat first, trailing the other two carriers as we are now. Let’s get off this heading and see if we can dodge another arrow.”
“Aye sir,” said Wells. “Helm, come to 320 and ahead full.”
Chapter 53
Those eight Seafires were not going to be enough. The long range CAP already up for the British had pounced on one of the squadrons of Vals, and took down five in a heated duel, but now they could see lower flying formations of Kates, and more Vals coming in higher up. They radioed home, telling their comrades the enemy was throwing the kitchen sink at them.
This time Somerville’s dodge would not work.
It was Lieutenant Ichihara off the Taiho that saw the carriers first, leading in two Shotai of B5N2 torpedo bombers. At a little after 17:00 the enemy planes swooped low over the water and began their attack runs, racing in at very high speed, which was a hallmark of the Kate. Soon the long wicked wakes of the torpedoes were clawing through the water, and one struck Formidable amidships, blasting through the torpedo bulwark and achieving partial penetration of the main hull.
The resulting explosion buckled the second deck where those Barracudas sat in open parking, but thankfully, only two were then armed with torpedoes, and neither of those were damaged. Several flak guns on that side of the ship took bad splinter damage, the crews cruelly clawed by shrapnel caused by the explosion. A fire broke out and a call came up to the bridge to report minor flooding amidships.
“They’ve gone and stuck one to us,” said Somerville coolly.
“It seems they have, sir,” said Wells.
The buckled deck had also thrown both elevators slightly off their bearings, and the engineers were now trying to see if they could keep them operational. Above, chaos reigned over the scene, with planes seemingly everywhere. Vals were swarming over Illustrious off their port quarter, and the few Seafires they got up were battling the enemy against steep odds. Between their efforts and the AA fire, at least eleven Vals were taken down in that wild attack.
Bombs were falling around Indomitable, escorted by the destroyer Napier. Vals that had already dropped their bombs then bravely went after the Fireflies. Planes were cartwheeling into the sea on every side, and losses were beginning to mount. Then two Vals got through the intense flak and both were able to put 125kg bombs right on the armored flight deck of Illustrious. Neither were able to penetrate all the way through to the hangar deck, but now came a group of eight Kates off the Junyo, bearing down on both the other two British carriers. One would hit the Illustrious aft with a torpedo that would put most of her remaining planes out of the game for a time when the explosion sent fire and smoke through the hangar deck. The minor flooding would be controlled, and the fires suppressed, but she was out of the fight at a critical moment.
By 18:00 it was all over, the smoke trailing up into the sky from all three British carriers. Formidable had it the worst, her fires spreading to ignite an aviation fuel bunker, with a violent explosion rocking the ship. Wells was thrown from his feet, Somerville holding on to the binnacle as the ship swayed, then righted itself. The Admiral came to his Captain, extending a hand.
“Mister Wells,” he said. “I am beginning to see the wisdom of your earlier arguments. We’ve no business being here now, and perhaps I was rash to put us in harm’s way, but that was my charge. Now we must look to our ship.”