Republic of China: Ace Pilot

Chapter 303: The 302nd Tank Company marches north to capture Japanese spies; air support during the Battle of Shanghai.

The Taishan Pine Tank's journey north began in Changde. The roads along the way were muddy, and although the 20-ton behemoth was not fast, it had a strong off-road capability.

However, there are many rivers in northern Hunan, and not many bridges can cross them.

Ultimately, they chose to travel by water from the Yuan River to the Yangtze River.

This kind of thing should be handled by the people from Taishan Airlines.

There aren't many cargo ships on the Yangtze River capable of carrying two tanks. Only British companies like Swire Group and China Merchants Group, as well as Japanese trading companies, have that capability.

At this time, Japanese trading companies faced resistance from various parties, so naturally they wouldn't use their ships.

Manager Liu and Sun Debiao contacted Swire Shipping Company and China Merchants Group.

Ultimately, it was decided to use Taikoo Hang's Wanxian vessel, which has a cargo capacity of 540 tons and can travel on the Yuanjiang River system.

The only problem was transporting the tanks aboard; there was no dedicated parking area for large vehicles on the ship, nor was there a method for loading them onto the vessel.

In the past, they would either carry goods on their backs or use pulleys to lift them onto ships. They had never done a whole shipment of 20 tons before.

Fortunately, the tank company had a solution: they took the steel plates used to cross trenches and streams off the trucks and built a temporary passageway for boarding the boats.

After the two tanks boarded the Wanxian, the captain said that the load at the back was relatively high, so he added a lot of sandbags to the front of the ship.

This solved the problem of transporting tanks by water.

(Wanxian)

The cargo ship traveled from Yuanjiang to Dongting Lake, then entered the Yangtze River and arrived in Wuhan.

After arriving in Wuhan, they switched to land transport, with tanks traveling north across the vast plains of Hubei.

Along the way, they passed through densely populated rice-producing areas, where villagers gathered to watch, and officials from various places also sent people to investigate.

The transfer order in the hands of the tank company became the best proof of their passage. Government officials along the way knew that this was a team heading north to fight against the Japanese, and they even took the initiative to see them off.

The tank company thus passed through Xiaogan, Suizhou, and Xinyang.

After crossing the Huai River in Xinyang, the tank company headed east to Fuyang County, where Taishan Airport was located, where they could rest and regroup.

The tank company then continued its journey northward.

By this time, they had reached the Central Plains, passing through Fuyang, Haozhou, Shangqiu, Jining, Tai'an, and finally arriving at Jinan City.

This journey will take about 10 days.

(The Sherman medium tank was a tank built by the United States during World War II using aircraft engines and was deployed to the battlefield in large numbers. Because it used aircraft engines, it was very large, about the height of a one-story building.)
(The prototype of the Taishan Pine medium tank)
At Jinan Airport, the entire Taishan Independent Regiment, except for the tank company, had completed its assembly.

We are currently working hard to train and integrate the systems.

Fang Wen also officially finalized the officer system and company structure of the Independent Regiment.

In accordance with the new organizational structure, he convened a special meeting of officers.

The Independent Regiment consists of three battalions: the First Aviation Battalion, the Second Aviation Battalion, and the Ground Combat Battalion.

Fang Wen was the commander of the Independent Regiment and concurrently the manager of the First Aviation Battalion, which was formerly the Taishan Elite Aviation Team.

The 2nd Air Battalion was mainly composed of gunboats.

Fang Wen decided to appoint Pan Jiafeng as the battalion commander.

This arrangement was something Fang Wen had specifically considered.

Pan Jiafeng used to manage the entire seaplane route, so he was no stranger to gunboats and had excellent skills.

However, since he was new to the area and unfamiliar with the situation of the Second Aviation Battalion, Zhou Pomen was appointed as the deputy battalion commander, and the two of them managed the area together.

Wu Yingzong was appointed as the battalion commander of the ground combat battalion.

The reinforced company consisted of 200 foreign mercenary soldiers, commanded by Liu Yubao.

The Second Company is reinforced with 200 domestic mercenaries, and its commander is Qian Yinxing.

Xiangxi Company, 100 men, Company Commander William.

The tank company consisted of 50 men, and its commander was Qi Zhihao, an engineer who had been promoted from an aircraft manufacturing plant and was determined to fight in the war.

There was also a medical and health team, and because there were female nurses, Zhao Wanping was appointed as the team leader.

With this arrangement, the officer system of the Taishan Independent Regiment was established, and future battles would be carried out by this system.

Currently, each battalion and company is conducting daily training to maintain their readiness and await the opportunity for combat.

The Taishan Independent Regiment's deployment at the airport could not escape the notice of Japanese spies. To prevent the Japanese from learning more through these spies, it was time to close the net.

Therefore, he discussed it with Wu Yingzong.

The two arrived at the airport command center.

Wu Yingzong explained the situation.

"We have identified 11 targets so far, including 8 of them who are subordinates, distributed outside the airport under various aliases. The other 3 are their superiors."

"Are those three the people in charge of the operation?" Fang Wen asked.

"No, we monitored their residence and found nothing unusual. I suspect they have a higher-ranking leader who controls the radio and sends reports to Tianjin."

"In other words, as long as we find the location of the radio station, we can wipe out the spy organization lurking outside the airport."

“That’s right. I’ve communicated with the intelligence station in Shanghai. Telegrams are very important to these intelligence agents. They keep them close to the most important people to prevent them from being discovered.”

At this point in the conversation, Fang Wen understood that the most important thing was to find the radio station.

The equipment for listening to telegrams is still not perfect in most countries.

Fang Wen did know a little about it; it was told to him by a retired intelligence officer from MI6 during the training of the special operations team.

In the British intelligence service, there is a secret department called Room 40 of the Naval Intelligence Department.

It was already responsible for radio interception and codebreaking.

That department was established during World War I, but the technology at the time was not advanced enough to intercept and decipher coded messages.

But through his conversations with him, Fang Wen also realized that this was not impossible.

Therefore, when manufacturing aircraft in Yangon, he also discussed and studied this issue with vacuum tube expert Bai Zeshan.

The two of them devised a device that could monitor radio wave signals and determine the specific location by the strength of the radio wave signals.

He went to the warehouse, retrieved the equipment, and explained to Wu Yingzong how to operate it.

"This kind of equipment is not precise and requires multi-directional monitoring to determine accuracy. After our experiments, we found that the three-point positioning method was the best approach."

"What is the three-point positioning method?" Wu Yingzong asked curiously. The general manager was amazing; he had come up with such a powerful counter-espionage technique ahead of time.

Fang Wen explained.

The so-called three-point positioning method first requires determining a general range of suspicion.

For example, a large area outside the airport.

Then set up at least three monitoring points around this area, each equipped with a receiving antenna.

The signal strength is greatest when the receiving antenna and the transmitting antenna of the other party are in a straight line, and the alarm sound from the monitoring equipment is also the loudest.

The personnel responsible for monitoring drew a straight line from the listening point towards the estimated direction of the radio station.

The intersection of the three lines indicates the location of the radio station.

Hearing Fang Wen's explanation, Wu Yingzong, though not fully understanding, already felt confident of victory.

He immediately summoned the personnel in charge of Japanese espionage operations and together they learned from Fang Wen how to use the monitoring equipment.

Fortunately, this device is designed for practicality and is not complicated; however, determining location and drawing lines on a map require special instruction and learning.

After receiving instruction from Fang Wen, they immediately began their work.

According to Wu Yingzong's judgment, the target is suspected to be in the northern area outside the airport.

That's the most bustling area, with many residents, making it easy to hide.

More importantly, all three of their superiors had been here before.

They originally lacked the means and couldn't just barge in to search, but now that they had a new method, they immediately put it into action.

Three teams were positioned at three different locations outside the area, and then the radio monitoring equipment was turned on to conduct 24-hour continuous monitoring.

Time passed slowly, but the device still didn't respond.

Waiting like this seems too passive.

At this moment, news came from outside the city that the tank company had finally arrived in Jinan.

The nearly 3-meter-tall Taishan Pine Tank was a sight to behold, attracting crowds of Jinan residents to line the streets and even drawing troops from the Nationalist Army stationed in Jinan. Its only drawback was its short cannon barrel.

Although the muzzle is relatively thick, the short barrel gives the impression that it is not very powerful.

It was the appearance of the tank company that alerted the Japanese intelligence agents, who immediately reported the situation to their superiors, who then returned to the suspected area.

Then the long-awaited radio waves finally appeared.

The three monitoring personnel immediately determined the approximate location and distance based on the signal strength.

They each drew a vertical line based on their own judgment and handed it to Fang Wen.

The three vertical lines intersect at the southwest corner.

It seems that the Japanese agents' radio was hidden there.

Immediately afterwards, the Taishan Independent Regiment arranged a raid to arrest the suspects.

All parties are on standby, waiting to locate the radio station, capture the person in charge, and then take down all the suspects.

Wu Yingzong personally led a dozen or so operatives skilled in close combat to the southwest corner.

Fang Wen also went over there.

With him there, the exact location of the radio station can be known more clearly.

In this area, Fang Wen turned on the monitoring equipment.

The other party is still sending messages.

Fang Wen, in a state of mechanical perception, sensed the radio waves more clearly.

Directly ahead, there was a two-story building. The first floor was used to sell fried dough sticks and pancakes, so they must be hiding in the rooms on the second floor.

He told Wu Yingzong about the situation.

Immediately, Wu Yingzong and the action team members discussed how to make the arrest.
One of them put on a tattered cotton-padded coat.

Holding a bell, he walked down the street and shouted:

"Hey—hey hey hey, I'm collecting junk! Scrap metal, old books, old paper, old furniture, whatever you have, bring it all out to exchange for some money! Whether it's old things from home or junk piled up in the yard, I'll take it all! It's taking up space at home, better to exchange it for some cash, much more efficient! Hurry up, if you have anything to sell, bring it out quickly, I'm waiting!"

Shouting as he walked, he arrived at the building he was targeting.

Others also quietly occupied the surrounding buildings and alleyways, lying in ambush in blind spots where the other side could not see them.

The shouts resumed, and the operative provided cover for the operation.

Following the wall, the group quietly went upstairs, and then suddenly broke down the door.

Inside the room, a man wearing headphones was sending a message using a hand-cranked telegraph machine, completely unaware that he would be discovered.

He was still in shock when he was subdued on the ground.

But there was another person in the inner room.

The man suddenly lunged out and jumped out of the window.

But the action team was already waiting where he landed, and he was caught red-handed.

With the capture of the two men, arrests in other locations immediately followed.

All known Japanese agents operating outside the airport were apprehended in one fell swoop.

These people were taken into the airport.

The Independent Regiment showed them absolutely no mercy and subjected them to torture.

After enduring physical torture, the group of Japanese agents did not show much resilience.

These people confessed very quickly.

They were sent by the Japanese North China Garrison Command.

The two commanders were an officer from the Army and an officer from the Second Air Group.

These two were very cunning. They never revealed their identities and arranged for three intermediaries to contact their informants. Even when they met with the intermediaries, it was always in another location.

Even so, they were still caught, leaving the two of them completely baffled as to why this had happened.

Of course, they would never know this secret until their deaths.

The capture of the Japanese agent has improved security at Jinan Airport.

The arrival of ground troops means that the Japanese army will be better able to resist in the Central Plains region in the future.

Of course, the Taishan Independent Regiment needed to liaise with various armies in the Central Plains region to facilitate cooperation in combat operations.

However, the stalemate in Shanghai has suddenly deteriorated.

A call came in from Zhoujiakou Airport.

The Tianjin detachment, which was originally scheduled to continue providing support in North China, suddenly received orders to support Shanghai.

The cause was that the Japanese Navy suddenly launched a bombing raid on Pudong, Nanshi, the airport, and other places.

After Captain Gao and his team joined the battle, the Taishan Air Force also received orders to provide assistance to Shanghai.

[The situation in Shanghai is critical. The Japanese naval air force has repeatedly harassed and bombed the area, intimidating civilians. The Wangtaishan Air Group and the 4th Group jointly launched an attack to intercept the Japanese bombing formation.]

[Please arrive at Jianqiao Airport immediately and set up camp to cooperate with the operation.]

Look at the command.

Fang Wen realized that the Battle of Shanghai was about to begin.

Compared to the war in North China, the Battle of Shanghai was more important to the Nationalist government.

After all, with Shanghai falling, Nanjing was also in grave danger.

Fang Wen did not want to see the Nanjing tragedy repeat itself. Unable to attend to both his superiors and subordinates, he could only leave Qi Baoqian, Deng Zhongyu, Rao Minghe, and Fan Bosheng to guard Jinan Airport. He instructed them to act within their capabilities if any assistance was requested, and not to be rash or greedy for credit.

He himself, along with Du Jiahuai, Shao Deqing, and Zhai Xiaojun, flew south to assist in the battle.

Four planes then took off and flew from Jinan to Hangzhou.

During the journey, Fang Wen observed the situation in Shanghai. The outer seas had been occupied by the Japanese naval fleet, but on the Huangpu River, a large number of ships had been deliberately sunk to block Japanese warships from entering.

As for large-scale ground warfare, it hasn't even started yet.

Subsequently, the four aircraft arrived at Hangzhou Jianqiao Airport, which was the location of the Nationalist Government's Central Aviation School.

After the plane landed, Fang Wen and his party disembarked and were handed over to the officers at Jianqiao Airport.

The person who arrived took the initiative to shake hands with Fang Wen, speaking to him in a friendly manner.

"General Manager Fang, it's been so many years, do you still remember me?"

He was the air force officer who organized the bombing of the Izumo. Several years had passed, and he had entered middle age.

Fang Wen smiled and said, "Of course I remember. Five years have passed, and we are cooperating again to deal with the Japanese."

"Yes, time flies. Come on, I'll take you to meet the others. We might start operations tomorrow, so we need everyone to get to know each other as soon as possible."

Fang Wen and three Taishan Airlines pilots then followed him to the office building.

There, I met with all the pilots of the Fourth Squadron.

Captain Gao was very pleased that Fang Wen could participate in this joint operation, and he praised Fang Wen's technical skills highly.

Then, everyone discussed how to conduct an air blockade in Shanghai.

This is no easy task.

The Japanese Navy's air force is superior to that of the Army, so it is expected to be a difficult battle.

The meeting was in progress when suddenly, an alarm sounded.

The door was pushed open violently.

An officer shouted, "The coastal observation post has sent a warning that a squadron of Japanese planes is heading towards the airport."

"Perfect timing, let's go."

As Captain Gao spoke, he looked at Fang Wen, his eyes blazing with fighting spirit.

Fang Wen smiled and stepped out with him.

They were about to begin the first battle of the Battle of Shanghai.

(End of this chapter)