SSN

    Before the F/A-18s returned, Independence launched some of the fighters she normally kept in reserve. Six more F-14s and four F/A-18s began racing from the decks of the carrier in an effort to join in the fight.

    The F-14s escorting the strike group attacked the Chinese fighters first Each of the F- 14s was armed with four long-range Phoenix missiles, two medium-range AMRAAMs, and two short-range Sidewinders. The F/A-18s flying in to assist had been fitted with four AMRAAMs and two Sidewinders apiece. As soon as the first SU-27s entered within 120 miles of the F-14s, the first wave of AIM-54C Phoenix missiles were launched at the oncoming Chinese aircraft.

    The success of Independence and her aircraft was, ironi-; cally, making things more difficult for Cheyenne. Relying i solely on her sonar, she was having a difficult time attempting to grasp what was going on above her. Explosion after explosion from the direction of the Chinese task force told Mack that the American aircraft had begun their attack, but he would have to wait until the noises died down to figure out how many ships were left and which submarines he would target.

    Mack had just begun what he thought would be a long wait when sonar reported active sonar from a submarine contact. The continuing loud explosions made it nearly impossible to determine the range. The underwater sonar environment was difficult to interpret using only passive sonar-but Mack refused to use his active suite; he knew it would give away his position.

    "Conn, sonar, we just got the classification of that submarine that was active," the sonar supervisor said. "It's an Akula!"

    That got Mack's attention. ' Within minutes, the fire-control coordinator reported, "Range to the Akula, Master 105, is 33,000 yards; she must have snuck up on us during the air attack."

    He was probably right, but that didn't make Mack feel any better. Letting the Akula get that close was a mistake, and Mack knew he had to make up for it. To do that, he had to maneuver Cheyenne closer to the Akula.

    Overhead, the barrage of explosions continued, indicating that the immense carrier attack had still not ended.

    Slowly Cheyenne increased speed to six knots and; began proceeding in the direction of the Akula, the quietest non-friendly submarine in the world. The only good thing, from Mack's perspective, was that the Chinese Akula was still pinging away. Their Russian-made passive sonar was worthless in the current underwater environment, and the only way they could detect contacts was to use their active sonar.

    "Range to Master 105 is now 28,000 yards," reported the fire-control coordinator.

    "Firing point procedures, tubes one and two, Master 105," responded Mack.

    Both tube outer doors were already opened and ready, and because the Akula was using her active sonar they now had an accurate firing solution on the Chinese submarine.

    "Match sonar bearings and shoot, tubes one and two, Master 105," ordered Mack.

    The two Mk 48s were fired in the direction of the Akula and Mack kept the guidance wires attached for as long as possible. He didn't want these torpedoes to miss.

    As the Mk 48s left their tubes and closed the distance to the enemy submarine, the sonar room and combat systems officer provided continuous updates on their status. The final updates came after ten minutes.

    "Conn, sonar, two explosions in the water, bearing 079. The Mk 48s just detonated."

    Mack acknowledged the report, but he wasn't as elated as he'd have liked. He'd made a mistake, and against a better opponent that mistake could have been deadly.

    He wondered how things were going on the surface, and whether any of the other American captains had made similar mistakes.

    They hadn't. Not a single shot had gotten through Independence's defenses.

    Of the attacking Chinese fleet, not a single surface ship remained undamaged. The few surviving Chinese sailors had been forced to abandon their sinking warships and drifted in lifeboats. Around them, strewn in an unorganized pattern in between many of the small ships, lay the remnants of the Chinese fighters and their air defense effort, which had attempted to stop the American anti-shipping attack. The Chinese action had failed-miserably.

    The Americans attacked the Chinese ships and aircraft so effectively that not one American fighter had been lost. Thirty-four high-performance Chinese aircraft were destroyed in the battle, along with eighteen surface ships. Now the hope of the Chinese navy lay with their six remaining submarines: three Romeos, two Mings, and one Kilo.

    The explosions had stopped and, with the exception of the occasional Chinese ship sinking beneath the waves, the water was again quiet beneath the South China Sea. As the background noise faded, Cheyenne was once again able to use her passive sonar and to begin to build a picture of what they faced.