Republic of China: Ace Pilot

Chapter 349-347 Fierce Battle East of Taiyuan, Night Raid Plan
Ten aircraft and fifteen armored vehicles launched the attack.

The gunboat squadron took the lead in flying towards the Japanese attacking forces and launched aerial fire strikes.

The subsequent mobile forces moved from the high ground slope to the battlefield.

The officers and soldiers of the 27th Route Army on the position were thrilled and excited as they watched this scene.

This fully mechanized warfare method greatly shocked them; they realized that our Chinese army could also fight in this way.

The high-altitude fighter jets provided continuous fire suppression for the enemy, allowing 15 tanks to approach the Japanese vanguard.

The Japanese advance force responded by firing at the air while simultaneously organizing troops to intercept the tank convoy.

Unfortunately, the infantry discipline taught at these Japanese military academies was completely inadequate for dealing with this situation.

The Type 38 rifle and 7.7mm machine gun are completely ineffective against the armor of gunboats, aircraft, and ground vehicles.

They soon paid the price for this reckless command.

The tank convoy was like a sharp knife, cutting the Japanese army in two.

(Military map of Mingqian terrain)
The battle raged fiercely.

At this moment, it was like a fully armed heavy cavalry charging into the undefended infantry ranks.

The armored vehicle convoy, led by two Taishan Pine medium tanks, charged straight in.

The tank's short-barreled cannon roared, and the fired grenades created bursts of smoke and fire.

After being hit at close range by a 75mm howitzer shell, the blast wave sent Japanese soldiers flying, and corpses were scattered around the crater, with few survivors.

However, the main function of a tank's main gun is to deal with enemy tanks and for assault purposes, so its firing rate is not high. In this case, a machine gun is more effective.

The armored mobile command vehicle behind the tank proved remarkably effective this time.

The mobile command vehicle is equipped with armor plating that can protect against rifles and machine guns, and has firing ports and observation ports on both sides of the vehicle wall.

The 20 soldiers inside the vehicle could observe the outside situation through the observation slits and then fire.

Therefore, as the armored command vehicle moved through the area, rows of gun barrels appeared on both sides of the vehicle, and the soldiers inside used Thompson submachine guns and 7.92mm squad automatic weapons to continuously fire at the outside.

The convoy moved forward, the attack continued, and the Japanese army's original rhythm was instantly disrupted.

This scene was witnessed by the officers and soldiers on the defensive position.

Officers at various positions were requesting permission to go into battle.

They were also veterans who had fought for many years, and they could see how rare this situation was. If they could launch a timely attack, the victory would continue to expand.

The commander on the position hesitated in response.

Although the allied forces seem strong, the two sides have not cooperated and are unaware of each other's plans.

Sending troops rashly would probably not be a good thing.

At this moment, another group of troops arrived from the rear.

It was the vanguard of the Provisional 7th Division.

Wu Yingzong was among them.

He made a special trip to the defense command post, visited the frontline commander, and proactively identified himself.

Upon learning that they were reinforcements from the Taishan Independent Regiment, the commander spoke with Wu Yingzong with great enthusiasm.

"How are you planning to fight? You launched an attack right away without contacting us. I don't even know how to coordinate."

"Commander Liu, our regimental commander will talk to you about this. Please come with me to the convoy."

Wu Yingzong led the commander to the armored command vehicle at the bottom of the slope and made contact with Fang Wen in the air through the large wireless voice communication device inside the vehicle.

"Commander, Commander Liu from the 27th Route Army is at the front. Talk to him."

Immediately, Wu Yingzong handed the microphone to Commander Liu.

Intrigued, Commander Liu took the microphone: "Commander Fang? This is Commander Liu."

Fang Wen's voice came through: "Commander Liu, the operation just now was a bit rushed. Because we were not equipped with communication equipment, we were unable to contact your unit and could only launch an attack first. Now I will tell you about the current situation of the enemy."

Upon hearing Fang Wen's explanation, Commander Liu understood the enemy's current situation and was overjoyed. He immediately went back and ordered that men be drawn from each position to form a 3000-man assault team.

The order was executed immediately, and soldiers on each position, led by their officers, rushed down to attack the chaotic Japanese troops.

The situation of the ground battle was laid bare before Fang Wen's eyes.

In addition to commanding gunboats and aircraft in combat, he also had to command from a holistic perspective.

The reason for this mechanized raid was that although the Japanese vanguard appeared fierce, its rapid advance had created a 5-kilometer gap between it and the troops behind it.

That's why the main force of the 20th Division, including heavy artillery and tanks, hadn't arrived yet, making it the perfect time for a surprise attack.

Just as he predicted, the 4-strong Japanese vanguard was rendered powerless to retaliate by 15 tanks and 10 aircraft, and their morale began to decline.

However, the attack by gunboats, aircraft, and tank convoys alone was not enough to wipe out this vanguard of the Japanese army.

The Provisional 7th Division had not yet reached the front lines and faced the same problem as the Japanese advance troops: the distance between them and the rear troops was too great.

At this point, the only force they could rely on was the 27th Route Army.

Fortunately, the frontline commander was not a rigid person and agreed to send troops to fight alongside him.

Fang Wen saw that on the 27th Route Army's position, squads of soldiers were launching an attack downwards.

Now that infantry are assisting, the battle layout will have to change.

Immediately afterwards, Fang Wen issued new command orders.

"Notify the mobile forces to send tanks 1 through 10 and the tank company westward for a surprise attack, and return after completing the attack. Tanks 11, 12, and 13 shall immediately withdraw to coordinate with the friendly forces' attack. The two sides shall meet in fifteen minutes."

The communications officer immediately issued the instructions.

Ground troops' tanks and mobile armored command vehicles are equipped with radios and can act immediately upon receiving orders.

Twelve tanks launched a surprise attack on the western front where the enemy forces were most numerous, aiming to inflict as much damage as possible.

The other three tanks turned back along the same route and met up with the officers and soldiers of the 27th Route Army's assault team who had just reached the bottom of the slope.

Three armored vehicles blocked the assault team, and the soldiers inside shouted:
"The commander has given orders for you to cooperate in combat. Do you know how to cooperate?"

The officers and soldiers of the 27th Route Army's assault team did not understand what this meant.

"What kind of coordination? We don't understand, can you explain it to us?"

"So, how exactly do we coordinate?"

Such questions came one after another, keeping the soldiers in the three armored command vehicles busy.

They were decent at fighting, but explaining their abilities was difficult.

These soldiers jumped off the armored command vehicle and, in a loud voice and with gestures, explained to their allies that their previous training had been taught by instructors.

"The tanks and armored vehicles will advance in formation for combat in a moment. You will follow in formation behind them, but don't get too close, so as not to collide with the tanks and armored vehicles when they turn."

"The tanks and armored vehicles ahead will be your mobile fortresses. They attack in that direction, so you advance in that direction."

"Be careful, once you spot the enemy, don't panic. The enemy will be thrown into disarray by the combined firepower of tanks, armored vehicles, and air power. All you have to do is keep shooting at them, shooting, and shooting nonstop."

"Remember, tanks and armored vehicles are your armor. Unless you encounter terrain that tanks and armored vehicles cannot cross and need to clear it, just stay behind them and follow the attack."

After some explanation, the officers and soldiers of the friendly forces understood how to cooperate in combat.

They regrouped on the spot, awaiting the attack.

Twenty minutes have passed.

The mobile force that had launched the surprise attack ahead returned, and ten gunboats flew back overhead as well.

The mobile units converged and, under Fang Wen's command, formed a double-row, single-file formation.

Two Taishan Pine medium tanks were in the front row, followed by 13 mobile armored command vehicles.

Next came the assault team sent by the 27th Route Army.

The main battle has officially begun.

The tank column lined up and advanced towards the Japanese army.

The vanguard of the Japanese army, which had just been penetrated, is now regrouping.

But this time, they clearly lacked confidence.

As the convoy approached, they began to retreat.

Fang Wen noticed the enemy's retreat immediately and ordered the convoy to speed up, while the soldiers following behind also began to run quickly.

How could the Japanese soldiers possibly outrun tanks and armored vehicles on foot?

The Japanese troops, who were just preparing to retreat, were closed in by the accelerating tank convoy and had no choice but to defend themselves. Large numbers of Japanese soldiers spread out and lay prone on the ground; because the targets were so scattered, the tank convoy found it difficult to eliminate them.

Some Japanese soldiers even tried to get close and use grenades to damage the tank tracks and armored vehicle wheels.

At this point, the infantry behind the tank convoy came into play.

Using their tanks as cover, they continued to fire at the Japanese soldiers in front of them.

The bullets passed through the gap between the tanks and armored vehicles and hit the Japanese infantry.

One by one, Japanese infantrymen were hit, but they were unable to get past the tanks and armored vehicles to attack the infantry behind them.

At the same time, they also face threats from armored vehicles and air fire suppression.

This vanguard of the Japanese army finally succumbed to the pressure and collapsed.

The Japanese troops in the rear abandoned the Japanese troops in front and retreated voluntarily.

The Japanese troops who were left behind became expendable pawns in the interception.

Under such circumstances, the battlefield on flat ground descended into chaos, and there was no longer any effective resistance.

Seeing this, Fang Wen considered whether to continue the attack.

He looked ahead, deep in thought.

The Japanese vanguard was routed.

But after this period of fighting, the troops behind are getting close to the battlefield.

The enemy has tanks, artillery, and even anti-aircraft guns, and there are many of them. It is definitely not something that our current 3000 troops can handle head-on.

Moreover, armored command vehicles also have weaknesses, with poor wheel protection.

During this attack, three armored command vehicles had their tires blown out after bullets pierced their protective shields.

Fortunately, the battle ended smoothly. The armored command vehicle had a spare tire, and the soldiers were skilled in changing tires, so they changed the tire while cleaning up the battlefield.

After considering this, Fang Wen abandoned his risky idea of ​​advancing rashly and ordered the ground mobile forces to wipe out the remaining enemy forces on the spot and abandon the pursuit.

An hour later, the battlefield was cleared, and the tank convoy and the officers and soldiers of the 27th Route Army returned to their positions.

Shortly after their return, the main force of the Japanese 20th Division arrived at the battlefield on the flat ground below, and the two sides passed each other.

These soldiers of the 27th Route Army, who participated in the battle, each carried a large amount of spoils of war and excitedly showed them to their comrades.

Commander Liu witnessed this scene and couldn't help but sigh, the battle seemed to have become simpler with the addition of the Taishan Independent Regiment.

He was looking forward to the upcoming battles and hoped to continue expanding the victory.

All of this became even more urgent with the arrival of the Provisional Seventh Division.

The Taishan Independent Regiment supported the defense of the eastern front and won its first battle.

But the main force of the Japanese army also arrived, and the ensuing battle would become more complicated.

After returning to the Taiyuan Jinyang Lake waterborne airport with his gunboat squadron to resupply, Fang Wen flew back to the battlefield.

Along with them came two fighter jets that flew in from Xi'an.

Upon arriving at the battlefield area, Fang Wen immediately activated his mechanical senses to assess the situation of the Japanese troops.

Below, the main force of the Japanese 20th Division is assembling.

In terms of numbers, our military strength was even greater than that of the Japanese army.

However, in terms of overall military equipment, the Japanese army was stronger.

Moreover, more than 10 Japanese planes were on their way from 50 kilometers behind the lines.

Meanwhile, there were more than a dozen aircraft 100 kilometers away, and even radar signals from Japanese warplanes could be heard at 150, 200, and 300 kilometers away.

It appears that the Japanese Army Air Force dispatched a large number of fighter planes to assist the 20th Division in its battle.

A fighter jet formation travels every 50 kilometers, with intervals of just over 10 minutes.

In other words, the Japanese army took into account the air raiding capabilities of the Taishan Independent Regiment and set the interval time to 10 minutes, so that the Taishan Independent Regiment's planes could not launch air raids on the 20th Division's heavy artillery positions.

This was absolutely a setup specifically designed to target Fang Wen and his air force.

Unfortunately, this arrangement was known in advance because of Fang Wen's mechanical perception ability.

But it was precisely this that led Fang Wen to halt the air raids on the Japanese army.

Instead, it hovered over the defensive positions to prevent enemy air raids.

At the same time, the bases on both sides of Xi'an and Zhoujiakou were notified to come and provide support.

The situation changes because of change.

The Taishan Independent Regiment, which had initially launched a strong offensive, suddenly adopted a defensive posture.

This puzzled the commander of the 27th Route Army's defensive position.

But then, the Japanese warplanes attacked, and he realized the intentions of the Taishan Independent Regiment.

Japanese warplanes arrived in waves, one every 10 minutes.

These fighter jets dropped bombs on the positions and then swooped down to straf and harass the troops defending the positions, putting great pressure on them.

Fortunately, the Independent Regiment was equipped with six anti-aircraft guns, and after successfully shooting down four Japanese dive-strike aircraft, the enemy aircraft's dive-strike behavior became much less aggressive.

Meanwhile, fighter jets from Xi'an and Zhoujiakou also arrived over the position to intercept Japanese warplanes.

The intense air battle lasted all day.

The Japanese lost 11 aircraft: four were shot down by anti-aircraft guns, five by fighter planes, and two were unfortunately hit by direct fire from gunships.

As a result, our fighter jets also suffered losses.

One of the six squadron's fighter jets crashed.

Two of the Independent Regiment's eight fighter planes were also damaged, but because important components such as the engines were specially protected, even though the aircraft were hit, it did not cause major malfunctions.

In this battle, the ground positions under the greatest pressure also had to withstand the Japanese army's attacks and the shelling from the heavy artillery positions.

Under this pressure, several positions nearly fell.

Fortunately, the gunboat squadron provided them with strong firepower support, annihilating the advancing Japanese troops halfway.

The battle did not subside until 3 p.m.

The Japanese army ceased its offensive, and the heavy artillery stopped firing.

Only the aircraft patrolling the skies every 10 minutes remained, but they were only providing protection for the Japanese positions.

Only then could Fang Wen finally catch his breath.

He immediately led the gunboat squadron back to Taiyuan for resupply and maintenance.

Meanwhile, during the brief break, he pondered how to break this situation.

Where is the opportunity?
Fang Wen's brain thinks quickly.

The Japanese air defenses were indeed very effective, with a 10-minute interval preventing them from launching daytime air raids, but their strategy was not foolproof.

I still have one more trick up my sleeve.

That was a night raid.

Fang Wen's mind flashed through the Japanese army's deployment, and he keenly discovered the loopholes in their arrangement.

Perhaps because they had just arrived, they were not very familiar with the terrain.

A gap appears on the east side.

This area, devoid of troops, allows mobile forces to advance rapidly and strike at the enemy's field artillery positions deep within enemy territory.

However, during the day, the Japanese army had a wide field of vision, making it difficult for such operations to avoid the sight of the Japanese troops on either side.

But things are different at night.

If at night, the mobile forces, under their own command, proceed to the artillery positions and, together with the air bombardment, destroy the heavy artillery there.

This will reduce the pressure of tomorrow's battle.

No, Fang Wen suddenly thought of a better solution.

If we could infiltrate behind enemy lines through that gap, wouldn't it be possible to carry out a decapitation strike against the enemy command post?

Destroying the enemy command post and heavy artillery positions simultaneously overnight is definitely a good operational plan.

(End of this chapter)