Republic of China: Ace Pilot

Chapter 145, Section 144: Dive Bombing and Circling Bombing – Let's Bomb to Our Heart's Content

According to Sun Debiao's description, three military camps were lined up in a row in an area 5 kilometers north of the Luanhe River.

In front of the military camp, Japanese soldiers captured many locals to work as laborers in building fortifications.

If it's nighttime bombing, we have to avoid those laborers to prevent accidental injury.

Immediately, Fang Wen sent the request over.

Sun Debiao sat leaning against something on the rocky hill.

There was a camouflage cloth in front, which concealed the equipment we brought. From a distance, it looked like a large rock.

He finished the pancake in big bites, then picked up his headphones and continued listening.

Everything is set up now, and we're just waiting for the general manager's orders.

When the radio waves came through, he recalled the memorized codes and translated them.

Choose one of the three military camps, avoiding the laborers.

[Reply after confirmation; bombing tonight.]

It's time to start.

Sun Debiao was overjoyed and took out his binoculars to observe.

In the distance, conscripted laborers are digging fortifications in front of the military camp on the left.

In other words, the middle and the bottom can both be targets.

He thought to himself, "Don't storytellers always say that the general sits firmly in the central command tent?"

Then let's choose the middle one; maybe we'll kill a Japanese general.

After making the decision, Sun Debiao immediately called back.

Then carefully adjust the signal transmitter and aim it at the central military camp.

Upon receiving the reply, Fang Wen immediately got up.

He returned to the company and called out names one by one.

"Mr. Liu, let's have a drink today."

"Shao Sishen, come to my place tonight."

"Pan Jiafeng, come over after get off work."

"Uncle Fang, I'm waiting for you at home."

"Howard, come to my house for dinner."

These five people arrived at Fang Wen's house promptly at 5 p.m., the time when they were supposed to get off work.

A large table of food and wine was laid out in the courtyard.

Everyone smiled without saying a word, and ate and drank in silence.

Until dark.

Fang Wen checked the time: 7:10.

He stood up: "Let's go."

The five followed them out of the courtyard, and Kuang Mingzhu watched them leave from the doorway.

The group entered the airport, boarded an F.220 aircraft in the hangar, and slowly taxied onto the runway.

Zhao Shanhu turned on the track lights and waved.

The plane accelerated, took off, and flew southwest.

Three hours later, upon arriving at Xiangxi Airport, Fang Wen turned on his radio and made a call.

"Taishan-1 has arrived and requests to land."

These are strict requirements for takeoff and landing operations, and even at this time, Fang Wen must take the lead in complying with them.

Ground response: "Request received, landing is permitted."

The aircraft then circled and adjusted its position before landing on the runway.

As soon as the plane landed, people at the airport got busy.

Huo Duanyang directed, "Be careful, don't panic. Just hand the things to the people on the plane, line up and come one by one."

Under his command, porters selected from the bomb factory and security brigade carefully carried the bomb pallets over and handed them to the four men on the plane, who then stacked them neatly.

Fang Wenze and Pan Jiafeng got off the plane to do something else.

Ten 50-kilogram external aerial bombs were hung on the bomb rack.

Although designed for use with the F.220, this napalm bomb is very powerful and must be handled with extreme caution.

Fang Wen, Pan Jiafeng, Fang Shun, and Huo Duanyang carefully lifted the fifty-kilogram bomb and hung it on the bomb-hanging device.

Then gently push it to make sure it's secure.

There are ten in total, which is only one-eighth of the external ammunition capacity.

But this is already the limit that the bomb factory can produce.

In fact, because the bomb was so powerful, it was used directly in bombings without even undergoing live-fire testing.

An hour later, all the bombs were loaded.

Huo Duanyang, who was in charge of the loading process, reported: "All 100 bomb loading plates, totaling 3600 0.5 kg napalm bombs, and 10 50 kg external napalm bombs have been loaded."

Fang Wen looked at the others: "Is everyone ready?"

"Ready!" the members of the Taishan Volunteer Army shouted in unison.

This is Taishan Airlines' war, and their hearts are surging with excitement.

"Set off."

Fang Wen led the way onto the plane, and the others filed in one after another.

Only Huo Duanyang stayed behind. As the person in charge of the airport, he also had to look after the bomb factory, so he couldn't leave.

Oh, and William, who had just taken over the security brigade, was with him.

The plane took off under the watchful eyes of Huo Duanyang and William, heading northeast.

It was 11 p.m.

The weather doesn't look good tonight; the night sky is pitch black and there are no stars in sight, making it unsuitable for flying.

But Fang Wen now possesses another, more powerful navigation method.

He entered a state of mechanical perception, transforming into a giant owl in the night sky.

From the northeast, the continuous radio wave feedback was immediately received.

Although the distance was far and the signal was not very strong, it was continuous and pointed us in the right direction.

Without hesitation, Fang Wen piloted the plane towards that direction.

More than four hours later, at 3 a.m., they were still 100 kilometers away from the target area.

"The planes will arrive at the bombing zone in twenty minutes. All aircraft to their positions," Fang Wen ordered in a deep voice.

Pan Jiafeng immediately got up and quickly went to the rear cabin.

He placed the ammunition loading plate on the slide rail trolley and squatted down with Howard and Fang Shun to prepare.

In the direction the three were aiming, Fang Shouxin, Shao Sishen, and Manager Liu had already installed the first ammunition loading plate and placed their hands next to the lever.

Everyone was waiting for Fang Wen's instructions.

At this moment, Fang Wen was fully focused on entering a state of mechanical perception to determine the best time to drop the bomb.

He was essentially the brain of the entire bombing operation; there couldn't be the slightest mistake, otherwise the bombs would fall with disastrous consequences.

The plane reached an altitude of 5000 meters above the military camp and circled.

Fang Wen integrated himself with the aircraft through mechanical perception, using this to perform calculations.

At an altitude of 5000 meters, the wind direction is northwest and the wind speed is 8 meters per second.

A wind speed of 8 meters per second can rip tree branches on the ground and cause bombs to deflect when they land.

This is similar to the situation of bombing warships in Shanghai.

The problem is that this bombing had a larger number of bombs, which could easily cover the failure rate.

No, Fang Wen dismissed the idea. If they were going to blow it up, they had to make sure it was accurate.

If the absolute safe altitude of 5000 meters is not accurate enough for bombing, then it will be reduced to 2000 meters.

Although the noise at 2000 meters would attract the attention of ground troops, the bombing process is very short, and the enemy should not be able to react in time.

After making the decision, Fang Wen began to descend.

At 2800 meters, the order was given: "3 seconds to go before bombing begins."

Inside the cabin, Pan Jiafeng loudly counted down: "32!"

At the same time, the plane swooped down. Just as Pan Jiafeng counted down to 1, it was directly above the military camp.

The three bombardiers pulled the levers in time, and hundreds of bombs were unleashed.

In just 5 seconds, the plane flew over the military camp and completed its first bombing.

6th Division Hiraga Brigade Camp.

The camp was completely quiet at this moment.

In addition to patrolling sentries, there are hidden sentries in the shadows, as well as well-positioned cross-defense firepower.

The commander who orchestrated all of this was very confident that even if an army from south of the Luan River came to launch a surprise attack, he could easily arrange for his soldiers to deal with it.

But he never considered that the enemy would launch an attack from the sky.

As the booming sound approached, a huge black shadow swept past.

The commander scrambled to his feet and instantly realized the gravity of the situation.

"Air strike!"

"Air strike!"

He didn't even have time to put on his clothes before running to the center of the camp and shouting.

As he shouted, the camp sentries pointed their searchlights at their officers.

At that moment, the officer became the most conspicuous person in the camp, and his shouts were heard by more soldiers.

But the next second, countless black dots fell from the sky.

These black dots crashed to the ground, instantly shattering the roof and sending countless sparks flying in all directions.

As fate would have it, the commander, illuminated by the searchlight, became the most attractive target for fire.

On a distant hill, Sun Debiao observed through binoculars.

He saw it as the plane flew over the camp.

The telescope was then lowered to observe the movements within the camp.

A Japanese officer wearing only his underwear ran to the center of the camp, gesturing wildly.

He was then illuminated by a searchlight.

Sun Debiao took aim and fired a shot: "Biu, you little Japanese, you're dead."

The next second, he actually saw the officer turn into a human torch and run wildly through the camp.

Two minutes later, Fang Wen completed the flight turn and continued bombing.

He shouted, "Speed ​​up the deployment!"

According to the plan, it was impossible to drop 3600 0.5 kg napalm bombs on 100 bomb-carrying plates at a rate of one bomb-carrying plate per trip.

That would require 30 rounds of repeated bombing, and the effect would certainly be amazing afterward, but the aircraft couldn't withstand such intense rounds, climbs, dives, and climbs again.

Therefore, the next step is to accelerate the bombing.

It takes 5 seconds for the plane to fly over the camp.

Within these five seconds, at least two bomb disposal plates must be deployed.

For this reason, everyone has undergone special training.

Immediately, as the aircraft swooped down to the camp again, the bomb droppers quickly completed the process of pulling the pin to drop bombs, taking out the empty bomb rack, installing the bomb rack, and continuing to drop bombs.

Each step is completed in less than 2 seconds to ensure that the bombs land in the barracks without landing outside.

After the second round of bombing, everyone looked down at the military camp on the ground through the observation windows.

A line of fire was drawn in the middle of the military camp.

That was ignited by the explosion of an aerial bomb.

Fang Wen saw it more clearly than everyone else; he saw many soldiers running out of the camp to put out the fire.

It seems the bombing has not yet achieved its intended effect.

At the same time, Fang Wen also saw that people from both military camps were rushing over to help put out the fire.

He had a new idea: the impact area of ​​a straight dive bombing was too small; how about switching to a circling bombing?

Circling bombing, with the impact area circling the military camp, not only increases the impact area but also allows the bombing to continue, which seems more suitable for the current situation.

This is a bombing method that has never appeared before in the history of aerial warfare.

Only future high-tech bombers can achieve this.

At that time, bombers were mostly limited to two types: dive bombing and spot bombing. They would bomb and then leave.

Where else can you find someone like Fang Wen, who can pull off so many fancy tricks?

After making the decision, Fang Wen immediately began to implement it.

He shouted to those behind him, "I'm going to change the bombing method. We'll circle around the camp. When I say 'start dropping bombs,' you'll keep dropping bombs until all the bombs are gone."

The six people behind were initially surprised, but then delighted. This kind of bombing was exactly what they expected of a plane with so many bombs.

A bombing once every time it goes around is nothing compared to the thrill of continuous bombing.

Everyone agreed to the plan without hesitation.

"Report the bomb count," Fang Wen inquired.

Pan Jiafeng quickly calculated the report: "Master, nine bomb loaders have been dropped, there are still 91 bomb loaders left, and ten 50-kilogram aviation gasoline bombs have not been used."

"Now, everyone, thank you for your hard work. We'll drop all the bombs on the Japanese heads at once."

Fang Wen's words energized the six men, who were now waiting for the order to drop the bomb.

Immediately, the aircraft turned, and under Fang Wen's mechanically-sensing control, the F.220 circled the military camp.

"Begin dropping the bombs," he commanded.

Immediately afterwards, planes circling high in the sky continuously dropped napalm bombs weighing 0.5 kilograms each, like raindrops.

One ring after another, a large number of napalm bombs exploded, turning the general's camp into a large ring of fire.

Until all ammunition plates are used up.

Pan Jiafeng said eagerly, "Master, there are still 10 50-kilogram aviation gasoline bombs left. I know you plan to drop them in the middle. Could you let me drop one myself?"

Fang Wen nodded: "Come here, all of you. Let's finish the final bombing together."

The six bombardiers stood at the cockpit door, reached out together, and pressed the external bombardment switch with Fang Wen.

Ten 50-kilogram aviation gasoline bombs fell from the sky, exploding and creating towering mushroom clouds that turned a patch of sky red.

Facing the towering flames, the F.220 then turned back south.

As the dark shadow in the sky brushed past the moon, Sun Debiao, who was observing from a distant mountain, finally relaxed completely.

The mission was finally complete, and he was about to leave and move to another location to continue guiding the bombers.

After this bombing, Sun Debiao was filled with pride in his actions.

He personally witnessed the destruction of a Japanese military camp, which contained at least 2000 Japanese soldiers.

After this bombing, let's see how arrogant the Japanese can still be.

He packed his things, carried them on his back, and then carefully made his way down the mountain as night fell.

But then a voice came from behind him.

"My lord, thank you for sending down heavenly punishment to avenge this old man. I kowtow to you."

He turned back quickly.

Only then did I realize that there was a whole family living above me.

Isn't it just the man I saved, his mother, and his wife and children?

It turns out this guy didn't die after all, making me worry for them for nothing.

He asked, "When did you arrive?"

“We’ve been here for a while. My mother said you were performing a ritual to deal with the Japanese, so we didn’t dare disturb you and just watched from up there. Great Immortal, you’re amazing! How about taking me as your disciple?” the man replied.

"I'm not a god," Sun Debiao wanted to explain, but then he realized that he couldn't reveal the secrets of the airplane.

He then changed his tune: "But I was sent by the gods. The gods not only want to punish the Japanese soldiers here, but also take action against the Japanese soldiers in other places. The problem is that I'm not familiar with this area, so I need someone to guide me."

The man's mother quickly pushed her son forward, saying, "My son is capable. He runs around in the mountains every day and knows the roads around here very well. Let him follow you so he can avenge his father."

Sun Debiao nodded in agreement. Having a local guide was much better than wandering around aimlessly on his own.

He then bid farewell to the man and his family and continued his search for enemy traces along the Great Wall defense line.

And at the same time.

The troops south of the Luan River also discovered the unusual activity at the Japanese military camp.

(End of this chapter)