I suddenly remembered something, and quickly sat up straight and asked loudly at the pilot: "Pilot, don't we have a friendship treaty with the Japanese country, why would they attack our plane at the risk of the world's condemnation?" Did you send a signal to the warplanes of the Japanese countries or cut into their communication channels and tell them that we were the Soviet delegation? ”

When the pilot heard my question, he had an embarrassed expression on his face, and after a long time, he said helplessly: "Comrade General, it's useless, you must know that we are on an American plane, the pilot and the navigator are all Americans, and there are even two US fighter planes escorting us." Even if we cut into the communication channel of the Wa Kingdom and reveal our identity, they will think that we are deceiving them. ”

Hearing this, Khrulev sighed and asked the pilot in a low tone: "Do you know how many Japanese planes there are?" ”

The pilot replied: "I see five, but it is not clear if there are any ambushes elsewhere." The pilots of the US fighter planes have signaled to us that they will hold back the Japanese planes and let us break through quickly. ”

Khrulev looked out the window and asked the pilot: "How long will we be flying from Vladivostok at the moment?" ”

The pilot raised his hand and looked at his watch, and solemnly replied: "According to the flight plan, we will land in Vladivostok in fifteen minutes." ”

After listening to the pilot's answer, Khrulev no longer hesitated, and decisively ordered: "Lower the heights, let the planes fly close to the sea, and try to get rid of the planes of the Japanese state." At the same time, all of them should be prepared for a forced landing. ”

When the pilot returned to the cockpit, I was surprised to find that Khrulev had instructed everyone to prepare for a forced landing. But all of them. Including Khrulev. He still sat in his place and did not make any preparations for the forced landing, as later generations did.

Khrulev didn't know the reason why I was restless because he saw that all the people were not preparing for a forced landing, and he felt a little overwhelmed, and thought that I was too nervous, so he hurriedly comforted me and said: "Oshanina, don't be nervous, it won't be long before our naval planes will arrive for reinforcements." ”

Although the situation is not good for us. But at this moment, Khrulev, who had experienced a hundred battles, had taken the lead in regaining his calm, and seeing that he was as steady as Mount Tai, my heart was no longer as flustered as it was just now. I coughed lightly, and then asked: "Comrade Minister, do you know the commander of the Pacific Fleet?" Will he be able to send planes to support us in time? ”

"Of course." When he heard my question, he turned sideways and said, "The commander of the Pacific Fleet is Ivan. Stepanovich. Lieutenant General Yumashev was the son of a railway worker. In 1912 he was drafted into the Russian Navy and served as a sailor, mechanic and sergeant in the Baltic Fleet. After the October Revolution, he served in the Volga and Caspian fleets, and was later transferred to the Baltic Fleet as a battleship artillery squadron leader. In 1926 he was transferred to the Black Sea Army. He successively served as First Commander of the Cruiser, Captain of a Destroyer, Captain of a Cruiser, Chief of Staff of the Fleet and Commander of the Fleet. In 1939, he succeeded Kuznetsov as commander of the Pacific Fleet. ”

My nervousness disappeared after Khrulev finished telling Yumashev's resume. I was even in the mood to look out the window. Look at the light from the occasional flying bullets and shells. A Japanese plane dragging billowing black smoke swept past the wing of our airliner and plunged headlong into the sea, stirring up huge waves. When the waves dispersed, I could vaguely see the torn fuselage, floating on the surface of the sea and continuing to burn.

"Killed one!" I turned my head and excitedly said to Khrulev: "The American pilots are amazing!" ”

Khrulev also looked out the window, and after seeing the scattered fragments of the fighter plane on the sea, not only did he not have the slightest expression of joy on his face, on the contrary, he said worriedly: "If our plane is shot down, it will also fall to the same fate, and then the people on the plane do not know how many people will survive?"

Looking out of the porthole, several American and Japanese planes are still fighting fiercely, although the Japanese planes occupy a small number of advantages, but under the pursuit of brave American pilots, they simply cannot spare their hands to deal with passenger planes, although judging from the current situation, we are still in a relatively safe state for the time being, but no one knows how long this situation can be maintained. I can only pray secretly in my heart that the fighters sent by the Pacific Fleet will arrive in time.

Although our planes were constantly lowering their altitudes, they were still unable to get out of the area of air combat, and from time to time Japanese planes swooped down on us, ready to destroy our planes with cannons or machine guns when they got closer. However, before they could enter the best firing range, they were chased away by the US military planes that followed them.

And every time a Japanese or U.S. military plane passed near our plane, the strong air currents would make the fuselage jolt violently. As the number of enemy planes passing over the airliners became more and more numerous, I could not help but become nervous again, saying that if this development continued, we would not be able to escape the fate of plane crashes and casualties sooner or later.

As the air battle progressed, another Japanese plane dragged the billowing black smoke into the icy sea, but the US military also had a fighter plane that was shot, and then fell into the sea and exploded, but fortunately, the pilot jumped out of the cockpit in time, and I saw a small black shadow open the parachute and slowly descended.

In the next battlefield, a US military plane dealt with three Japanese planes, although he showed bravery, but due to the difference in numbers, he could not prevent the Japanese planes from approaching our plane as he did just now. My heart almost stopped beating when I saw a Japanese plane swooping down from the battle group, the dazzling light drawn by the bullets from the onboard machine guns flying towards our plane.

The fuselage slammed, and then I heard someone in the cabin shouting, "We've been shot." With the shouting, the airliner shook violently from side to side, making it feel as if it was about to fall headlong.

I looked desperately at the approaching Japanese plane, feeling like it was about to collide with us. At this moment, a ball of fire suddenly appeared from the fuselage of the Japanese plane, and a cloud of black smoke immediately enveloped the enemy plane that had brought us death.

When the blazing enemy plane dragged a thick black smoke towards the sea, a burst of cheers suddenly erupted in the cabin: "Ula! Ulla! Airplanes, look at the planes, it's our fighters that have arrived! ”

Hearing the shouts of the attachés, I hurriedly looked outside again, only to see several silver fighters in the sky in the distance, flying over our planes in a formation of two planes, to reinforce the US fighters who were still fighting with the Japanese planes.

With the arrival of our fighters, the situation on the battlefield was reversed, and the Japanese planes saw that the situation was not good, and immediately turned around and fled to the south. Except for the US fighter plane and two Chinese fighter planes that stayed on both sides of our plane to escort the escort, the rest of the fighters followed and chased south. (To be continued.) )