The Americans actually abandoned the ship and fled. This was something that Chen Shichang, Bian Jingdao, and the student pilots who were performing the third wave of bombing missions could not have imagined. Perhaps the Americans did this because they absorbed the experience and lessons of the Pearl Harbor naval battle. How many ships the U.S. Pacific Fleet lost in the Battle of Pearl Harbor is another matter. What really dealt a fatal blow to the U.S. Navy was the death of a large number of soldiers and sailors with combat experience and rich navigation experience. Even though the Americans later relied on their own powerful Industrial capabilities quickly produced enough new ships for the Pacific Fleet. However, due to the lack of veterans and veteran sailors, the combat effectiveness of the Pacific Fleet has never been restored to that before the war. The U.S. Pacific Fleet was successively defeated by Japan. After being humiliated twice, their commander, Admiral Jin, summed up his experience and came to the conclusion that their subsequent defeat was not due to the ships and technology, but to the quality of the soldiers and crew. Wisely, now, when the Americans discovered that the naval battle in French Guiana was irreversible, from Truman to Nimitz, they immediately made what seemed to be the most correct decision, that is, to abandon the ship and protect the people.
For Nimitz, even if he had the most correct reasons, even if he could convince himself intellectually, it was still a very painful thing to do. Perhaps, this can also be understood as why he gave up. The reason why he wanted to take the USS Cleveland light cruiser despite having so many heavy cruisers and light cruisers was that he hoped to prove by retaining this light cruiser that he had not really given up on the entire fleet. Of course, he also wanted to keep the light cruiser. There is a possibility that because the Cleveland-class light cruiser is faster, maybe he thought that taking this cruiser would not affect the retreat of the entire team.
Facts have proved that he was wrong. Of course, it can also be understood that the Chinese pilots are too confused.
The Chinese pilots ignored so many heavy and light cruisers that were parked quietly, and actually took aim at the USS Cleveland, the light cruiser Nimitz was riding, as soon as they came up.
After the war, some sensitive Chinese reporters interviewed several Chinese pilots on this issue. A few years later, when Nimitz saw the video materials of these interviews, the old American man was so angry that he almost contracted a venereal disease. Relapse is fatal.
The following is the answer of a Chinese pilot at the time, "Our original target was those large ships, but because we were not attacked by these large ships from the beginning, we thought that the resistance of these large ships had been destroyed. Of course, Find another valuable target to attack."
Nimitz did a thorough job and ordered everyone to transfer to small ships such as destroyers or simply escape directly in lifeboats. It cannot be said that there was anything wrong with his order. The problem is that the Chinese fighter jet group came to destroy the combat power of the Atlantic Fleet. , since they encountered no resistance, they naturally had to search for more valuable targets. As a result, they were overcrowded, and the USS Cleveland, the largest light cruiser among the escape ships, naturally became the most eye-catching target.
In terms of air defense capabilities, the USS Cleveland light cruiser is actually not weak, but it is said that it cannot defeat many opponents with two fists. When faced with dozens of Chinese fighter planes, no matter how strong its air defense firepower is, it will only be defeated in the end.
Therefore, in a very different ending than Spruance, who quickly left the battlefield on a destroyer, Nimitz was finally rescued by an American submarine on the bridge.
Nimitz was lucky, and because he was the top officer of the Atlantic Fleet, he was able to enjoy the highest level of rescue treatment. However, other American officers and soldiers on the same ship with him were not so lucky. Most of them became In the end, including Nimitz, there were only fifty-nine American officers and soldiers who escaped from the Cleveland light cruiser, including thirty-two named prisoners of war, and the number fifty-nine, It was only one-ninth of the number of people on board the USS Cleveland at the time.
Because of the "resolute decisions" of Truman and Nimitz, the Battle of French Guiana ended in an anticlimactic defeat for the U.S. Atlantic Fleet.
Also because of the "decisiveness" of Truman and Nimitz, when Chen Shichang led the main force of the Genghis Khan aircraft carrier fleet to the battlefield, he was greeted by a smiling Bian Jingdao.
On the phone, he reported to Chen Shichang: "Nimitz gave us a big gift."
Bian Jingdao arrived at the battlefield two and a half hours earlier than Chen Shichang and the others. After arriving at the battlefield, because he simply could not believe that the Americans would be so kind and give them so many light cruisers, heavy cruisers and even battleships that could be repaired for free, so he Instead of immediately sending a team to occupy these US ships, they immediately expanded the scope of reconnaissance to prevent the Americans from engaging in any conspiracy.
Two and a half hours later, the reconnaissance plane he sent out had already reached the Atlantic coast of the United States and was intercepted by American fighter jets. The submarine he sent out also surveyed the surrounding waters within a hundred kilometers. However, no abnormality was found. He finally determined that the American ships drifting with the tide in front of him were not traps set by the Americans, but were indeed "gifts" left to them.
Chen Shichang has been in a high position for a long time and has long developed the ability to hide his emotions and anger. Even so, when he was sure that the American ships he saw in front of him had been completely abandoned by their original owners, he still exclaimed and asked again and again: " Seriously, we have sent people to check and see if the cordon has been released."
"I'm also very surprised. What do the Americans mean? No matter how hard they save their lives, they can still run away after being bombed and sunk. We will definitely not send fighter planes to blow up the speedboats they use to escape. Chief, I thought about it. For a long time, I thought that there might be another possibility, that is, Nimitz and the command of the Atlantic Fleet might not want to be our enemy..."
Bian Jingdao's final understanding made sense, but Chen Shichang did not want to make any rash comments, "Let the Americans think what they want. It is enough for us to do our part. Since the Americans have run away, then we will send people to accept it, and then Return, by the way, see if there is any possibility of repairing those damaged ships. If possible, drag them back. After this battle, the Americans will not be able to pose a threat to us in the short term."
When the news came back to China, Ouyang Yun was puzzled after receiving the report. The behavior of the Americans was too weird. Considering that the commander-in-chief of the Atlantic Fleet at the time was Nimitz, the suspicion of command error can be completely ruled out. Is it an American conspiracy? But what backup plan can the Americans have for doing this? You must know that the American Atlantic Fleet is still in Australian waters at this time, and it is impossible for them to reach the Atlantic Ocean in a short time.
"It's weird." He muttered "It's weird", but Ouyang Yun couldn't help the smile on his face. Americans are wealthy and don't care about those light cruisers called small ships, but it's different for China.
, you must know that in the end, there were as many as 25 light cruisers abandoned by the Americans, 16 of which were almost intact, which could be enough to form two more aircraft carrier fleets.