The Iron-Blooded Army of Beacon Fire

Chapter 499: An Old Acquaintance from the Tank Corps

After following Du Yuming to review the huge column of equipment and personnel of the Fifth Army's tank regiment, He Wei and Du Yuming stopped the car in front of the temporary command platform in the center of the parade. A dozen officers gathered near the command platform also came to the front of the car. When He Wei got out of the car with Du Yuming, he saw a middle-aged officer with the rank of major general standing in front of Du Yuming and reporting: "Report to the commander-in-chief, our army's armored corps has assembled, please review it!"

Obviously, this major general must be the chief officer of the tank corps directly under the Fifth Army. The armored corps of the Fifth Army is a regimental unit, but the organizational characteristics of its armored forces determine that the grade and level of this regiment are higher than ordinary infantry regiments, engineering regiments and other ordinary regimental units.

Therefore, it is not surprising that the regiment commander holds the rank of major general.

Du Yuming was indeed very satisfied with the magnificent military appearance of his own tank regiment. He patted the major general on the shoulder and nodded, saying, "Xian Qun, your troops are doing well. Come, let me introduce you to Colonel He Weihe, the commander of the Army Assault Corps who will be operating in conjunction with our army."

As he spoke, Du Yuming's eyes moved to He Wei. He Wei immediately stepped forward and saluted the major general, saying, "Hello, sir!"

He Wei's name is now very famous, and the order for the assault corps to conduct joint operations with the 5th Army has already reached the 5th Army. Therefore, it is impossible for this major general not to know who He Wei is.

When the major general heard He Wei's name, he was stunned at first, then he smiled and returned the salute, saying, "I have heard of your name and have long admired your great name. Colonel He is my role model at Whampoa Military Academy. It is indeed extraordinary to meet him for the first time today. I am Hu Xianqun, the commander of the tank regiment directly under the Fifth Army. I graduated from the sixth class of the Transportation Corps at Whampoa Military Academy, so I am considered your senior."

Then, Du Yuming also introduced Hu Xianqun to He Wei. Hu Xianqun was a native of Nanchang. He was admitted to Wuhan University in 1926, but then dropped out and was admitted to the sixth transportation department of the Whampoa Military Academy in 1928. After graduation, he was sent to study abroad in a British military academy at public expense. After returning to China, he served as an instructor at the Central Military Academy, and in 1935 he served as the captain of the student team of the Army Transportation School. In March 1936, he was promoted to a major of the Army Infantry.

In April 1937, he was appointed as the military attaché of the special envoys to celebrate the coronation of King George VI of the United Kingdom. After returning to China, he served as the battalion commander of the tank battalion of the National Army Armored Corps. In January 4, he served as the commander of the 1938th Regiment of the 1th Division of the Army; in October, he served as the commander of the newly formed 200th Army Armored Corps. The 1149th Army was changed to the 10th Army of the Army, and Hu Xianqun continued to serve as the commander of the armored corps of the army. It can be said that this person's academic qualifications and experience are quite excellent. Judging from his work experience, this person can be regarded as Du Yuming's direct subordinate.

After He Wei exchanged a few words with Du Yuming and Hu Xianqun, Du Yuming looked at the dozen officers who were lining up behind Hu Xianqun and said, "Thank you for your hard work. You are all the main cadres of the tank regiment directly under my Fifth Army. I can see that your soldiers are well trained. I hope you will continue to work hard and continue to improve the combat effectiveness of the troops."

He Wei also looked over. The military ranks of those dozen officers were obviously not as high as Hu Xianqun's, but they were all colonels or lieutenant colonels. Among the crowd, He Wei saw a familiar face. Standing in the middle of the team was a lieutenant colonel, Zhao Huzhen, the former tank company commander of the Army Armored Corps who had cooperated with him in the Battle of Nanjing.

However, Zhao Huzhen was a major at that time, but now the rank of lieutenant colonel is on his collar badge.

Zhao Huzhen also noticed He Wei's gaze and smiled at He Wei.

I didn't expect to meet an old acquaintance here. It seems that Zhao Huzhen is doing well and has been promoted to lieutenant colonel.

At this time, Du Yuming also noticed He Wei's strangeness. When he found that He Wei was staring at Zhao Huzhen, he immediately understood what was going on and shouted, "Captain Zhao, come here!"

Zhao Huzhen, who received Du Yuming's order, immediately trotted over, stood at attention and said, "Hello, Commander!"

Du Yuming nodded, pointed at He Wei and said, "Captain Zhao, Colonel He is also an old acquaintance of yours. This time Colonel He's troops came here to fight together with our army. It feels like you have met an old friend in a foreign land, haha."

Zhao Huzhen then looked at He Wei, saluted, and said with a smile: "Captain He, long time no see."

He Wei smiled and replied: "Haha, the scene of you and I fighting together in the Battle of Nanjing is still vivid in my mind. It has been a while since we last met in Wuhan, and I miss Brother Zhao very much."

After the two exchanged a few pleasantries, He Wei also learned about Zhao Huzhen's situation. In the Battle of Nanjing, Zhao Huzhen led a tank company of the Army Armored Corps to cooperate with He Wei and achieved remarkable results. He then retreated to Wuhan and then led his troops back to his base.

At that time, the Army Armored Corps had been expanded to the 200th Division. The then commander of the 200th Division, Du Yuming, was quite satisfied with Zhao Huzhen's performance in the Battle of Nanjing.

After all, not only did Zhao Huzhen and his tank company achieve remarkable results in the Battle of Nanjing, but also, except for those tanks and heavy equipment that were destroyed by the Japanese army and were completely beyond repair value, the rest were all taken out of Nanjing and preserved. Being able to retain the precious tank equipment was also a great achievement.

Therefore, Zhao Huzhen was naturally valued by Du Yuming. After the 200th Division was expanded into the new 11th Army and then reorganized into the 5th Army, Zhao Huzhen was promoted to lieutenant colonel battalion commander of the 5st Battalion of the 1th Army's direct tank regiment, becoming the backbone of the Fifth Army's armored forces.

Seeing that Zhao Huzhen was valued by Du Yuming, He Wei was very happy for him. Then He Wei thought that the 5th Army would be drawn out to cooperate with the assault corps and incorporated into the tank battalion of the advance detachment, which seemed to be the 1st Battalion under its tank regiment.

In other words, He Wei will be fighting side by side with Zhao Huzhen again. Thinking about the details, He Wei feels it is a good idea. It is naturally a good thing to cooperate with an acquaintance. He and Zhao Huzhen can be said to be friends for life and death, so he feels more at ease fighting together with him.

He Wei also learned that it was Du Yuming's special decision to transfer Zhao Huzhen's battalion into the advance detachment, which shows the commander Du's meticulous mind.

"This time, our Fifth Army and the Army Assault Corps jointly formed an advance team to enter Guangxi. The Armored Corps will dispatch a battalion. I have appointed Captain Zhao of the 1st Battalion of the Tank Regiment. Captain Zhao and Captain He are old acquaintances and have experience in coordinated operations. I think if they continue to cooperate this time, they will surely achieve greater success."

Du Yuming looked at He Wei and said.

"Thank you for the special arrangement, Commander. With the help of Captain Zhao, we will be more confident in our operation into Guangxi this time."

"Captain Hu, Captain Zhao, you can't just review the troops, you also have to show off your real weapons and real skills. I'm here today not only to bring Captain He to review your magnificent formation, I also want to see your equipment maintenance and tactical training. Let's go and check your tank equipment first." Hearing that Du Yuming wanted to check the tank equipment, Hu Xianqun did not dare to neglect it, and immediately ordered Zhao Huzhen: "Captain Zhao, go to your 1st Tank Battalion and let the commander see the maintenance of our tanks, and also introduce the performance of our tanks to the newly arrived friendly commander."

Soon, He Wei followed Du Yuming, Hu Xianqun, Zhao Huzhen and other officers to the array of the 1st Battalion of the Fifth Army's Tank Regiment in the parade column. They stood in front of a Soviet-made T26 tank painted in grass green, listening to Zhao Huzhen's explanation.

Although He Wei was a time traveler, he still had a strange feeling in his heart after coming into close contact with the square steel chariot in front of him. Compared with the Japanese and Kuomintang tanks he had seen before, the appearance of this T26 tank was obviously much larger.

A huge square turret is installed on the slightly inclined vehicle body above the track shoe. A gun barrel with a caliber of about 40 mm is inserted horizontally on the turret. Two large searchlights are also installed above the turret. In front of the tank soldier standing solemnly on the turret, there is a vehicle-mounted machine gun, which looks very majestic.

Apart from anything else, the cannon on the turret was enough to refresh He Wei's eyes and ears. The Japanese tanks he had fought were either the Type 26 tanks with only machine guns, or the Type medium tanks equipped with only short-barreled cannons. The only Nationalist tanks he had seen were the German-made Type light tanks commanded by Zhao Huzhen during the Battle of Nanjing. They were also light tanks with a short appearance and only equipped with machine guns. In comparison, the T in front of him was really powerful.

Just as He Wei was sighing in his heart, the voice of Zhao Huzhen introducing the performance of the tank also reached his ears.

"The T26 tank equipped by our battalion is 4.88 meters long, 3.41 meters wide, 2.41 meters high, weighs 10.5 tons, and has a crew of 3 people; the engine is a 1-horsepower GAZT-91 gasoline engine, with a maximum speed of 26 kilometers per hour, a maximum range of 30 kilometers on the road, and 225 kilometers off-road; the climbing performance is 150 degrees, the wading depth is 32 meters, the obstacle height is 0.76 meters, and the trench width is 0.71 meters; the main weapon is a 1.73mm tank gun, and there are two 45mm DT machine guns, with 7.62 rounds of ammunition, and its performance is quite superior."

From Zhao Huzhen's detailed and slightly proud introduction, He Wei realized that this batch of Soviet tanks were indeed good. They were actually the latest improved models of the T26 series tanks produced by the Soviet Union. From a technological point of view, the armor of this batch of vehicles was changed from riveting to welding, and new road wheels were installed. The technology of the towing wheels and inducer wheels was also greatly improved.

What is even more superior is the reconnaissance equipment of this batch of tanks. The T5B tanks equipped by the 26th Army are equipped with two searchlights above the gun shield of the main gun, and each tank is equipped with radio communication equipment. It can be said to be a very advanced design.

After Zhao Huzhen finished his introduction, Du Yuming went forward and checked the turret, engine and various parts of the tank in turn. He even climbed onto the tank and checked the machine gun installed on the turret. After the inspection, Du Yuming nodded with satisfaction and said to Zhao Huzhen: "Captain Zhao, you lead the troops well."

Seeing that his troops' equipment was well maintained, Du Yuming became more interested and said to He Wei, "Brother He, what do you think?"

"It's really good. This tank is better than all the tanks equipped by our army before, and it's also better than most of the Japanese tanks. It's really a powerful weapon. When we were in Nanjing, Captain Zhao was commanding a German-made Type 1 light tank, which was only equipped with machine guns. Now he's commanding a tank with such excellent performance, which can be regarded as a great upgrade."

Du Yuming burst into laughter when he heard this, and Zhao Huzhen, Hu Xianqun and the officers around him also laughed.

Hu Xianqun also said at this time: "Captain He is right. Compared with the tanks that our army bought before, the performance of this new Russian tank can be said to be overwhelming. In terms of firepower alone, most of the tanks we bought before were only equipped with machine guns or short-caliber artillery, none of which can compare with this batch of Soviet-made tanks. This batch of Soviet-made tanks can really be said to have strong firepower, flexible shooting and control, and are beneficial to combat."

The officers around also nodded repeatedly, obviously expressing their pride in the performance of these Soviet T26B tanks.

Soon, He Wei went with Du Yuming and others to inspect other tanks of the 1st Tank Battalion. However, after seeing the T26, when He Wei looked at another tank equipped by the 1st Tank Battalion - the Italian-made Fiat CV35 ultra-light tank, he felt quite bored.

This Italian-made ultra-light tank is at the same level as the Japanese bean tank. Its appearance is very small. According to Zhao Huzhen's introduction, the CV5 ultra-light tanks equipped by the 35th Army have a combat weight of 3.44 tons, are 3.2 meters long, 1.4 meters wide, and 1.32 meters high, with a crew of 2 people. The armor thickness is 6~13.5 mm, equipped with 2 8mm machine guns, and an ammunition capacity of 3200 rounds. It has a 43-horsepower Fiat 4-cylinder gasoline engine, a maximum range of 125 kilometers, and a maximum speed of 42 kilometers per hour.

It can be said that this tiny tank has no redeeming features except for its faster speed. He Wei even thinks that this thing is not as good as the Japanese Type 94 tank. After all, the Japanese tank at least has a turret with a machine gun, while the two 8mm machine guns equipped on this Fiat tank are simply mounted directly on the body of the vehicle. Adjusting the firing range probably depends on the tank adjusting its own direction. In short, He Wei thinks that the usefulness of this small tank is very limited.

However, according to the explanation of Zhao Huzhen and Hu Xianqun, this kind of small tank is mainly responsible for reconnaissance missions in the tank regiment of the 5th Army. In specific tactical applications, the tank company of the 5th Army adopts a mixed formation of T26B tanks and Fiat tanks, so that the two types of tanks can complement each other on the battlefield. In wartime, ultra-light tanks such as Fiat are used as "light cavalry" for reconnaissance, search, rapid advance, and attacking infantry, while medium-sized tanks such as T26B are used as heavy hammers to deal with Japanese tanks and impact strong positions.

After learning about its specific tactical applications, He Wei's prejudice against this type of tank was greatly reduced.

After accompanying Du Yuming on the tour and inspecting the various vehicles and equipment of the 1st Battalion of the Fifth Army Tank Regiment, Du Yuming ordered Zhao Huzhen's 1st Battalion to conduct a company-level tactical exercise. So He Wei also followed Du Yuming and witnessed the exercise training of the most elite armored forces of the Chinese military.

The scene was naturally very grand and lively. A tank company of the 1st Tank Battalion of the 26th Army Tank Regiment practiced various tactical subjects of the tank unit with live soldiers and live ammunition on the training ground, including live-fire target shooting of the 45mm tank gun of the T26B tank, target shooting of the vehicle-mounted machine guns of the TB tank and the Fiat tank, tank-to-tank communications, and various tactical drills of tank platoons and companies' offensive impacts.

The scene on the training ground was spectacular. More than a dozen tanks of different sizes were arranged in various formations, sometimes charging forward, sometimes stopping to shoot, the tank cannons and vehicle-mounted machine guns roared, the engines howled, the machine gun bullets with red and blue tails flew everywhere, and the exploding tank shells created sparks of fire continuously. He Wei watched and nodded secretly.

Judging from the actual performance of the 5th Army's tank troops on the training ground, their training was very thorough. The tank troops' various tactics and shooting of various firearms showed a very good level. However, He Wei only gave them a slight praise.

After all, the excellent performance of the tank troops is good, but both the Fifth Army and the advance detachment that is about to be formed and sent to Guangxi are mainly composed of infantry. If you want to fully exert the combat effectiveness of the tank troops, it is not enough for the tank troops to be excellent in their own profession.

Only by integrating infantry, tanks and artillery units and coordinating them well can the combat effectiveness of the tank units be maximized. Without saying too much, if the coordination between infantry and tanks is not good, the combat effectiveness of the tank units will be reduced by at least half.

In this regard, He Wei actually has some ideas. Once the advance detachment is formed, he will start to put them into practice.

(End of this chapter)