Republic of China: Ace Pilot

Chapter 548 Maoshan Anti-Japanese Base Area, Air Force Graduation, Rocket Cluster Demonstration

39 October.

The second batch of anti-Japanese air force training classes successfully graduated.

The students who have received their diplomas are preparing for their graduation ceremony with their teachers.

This graduation ceremony not only included Fang Wen, but also military representatives from the Eighth Route Army and the New Fourth Army.

In order to ensure their safe arrival, Fang Wen used Taishan Airlines' secret domestic routes.

The Eighth Route Army could take gunboats from the air regiment to the Yellow River waterborne airfield, then take planes carrying transistor radios via Xi'an, Qinling Mountains and Hanzhong into Sichuan, and then take the southwest route to Yangon.

The situation is a bit troublesome with the New Fourth Army.

Taishan Airlines' waterway routes over there had long been suspended due to the war, and Fang Wen planned to fly there himself so that they could arrive in time.

He then sent a telegram to his contact, Bai Yunfei, explaining the situation.

This matter was reported by Bai Yunfei and eventually reached the New Fourth Army via telegram, where a reply was given.

Taishan Airlines General Manager's Office.

Fang Wen looked at the telegram he had just received.

If possible, please set sail for the Maoshan base area to transport a batch of military supplies there and to bring our military representatives back.

Maoshan Base Area!
Fang Wen knew that place; it was located southeast of Nanjing, below Jurong.

That area was the first region south of the Yangtze River occupied by the Japanese army, so there should have been many Japanese troops stationed there.

Yet, in this very place, last year, a detachment of the New Fourth Army stormed through and managed to establish a base area behind enemy lines in the Maoshan area.

This base area was like a nail, deeply embedded in the throat of the Japanese invaders, yet it has persisted to this day and has even grown stronger.

But it was precisely because they were deep behind enemy lines that they faced numerous dangers and a severe shortage of military resources.

Fang Wen is willing to provide them with support.

Immediately, he notified the base in northern Myanmar to transfer supplies.

A total of 10 rounds of 7.92mm ammunition, 100 sets of Taishan individual rocket launchers, and 100 sets of grenade launchers and ammunition.

There were also 1000 fragmentation grenades copied from British designs produced by the Taishan Bomb Factory.

1 portions of military compressed dry rations.

These supplies, totaling 5.7 tons, are too heavy for ordinary aircraft to transport; only the Taishan-1 (F.220) could carry them.

Immediately afterwards, Fang Wen instructed the supplies in northern Myanmar to be transported to Taishan Warehouse No. 1, and then flew back to northern Myanmar himself.

At the northern Myanmar base, workers placed supplies on trolleys and pushed them into the aircraft through the rear door of the Taishan-1, then stacked them inside the aircraft according to their different categories.

The huge cabin space was filled with six piles of supplies.

These are all items that need to be sent to the Maoshan base area this time.

After checking everything and confirming that everything was correct, Fang Wen boarded the plane with Gong Xiuneng and Shao Sishen.

The purpose of taking Shao Sishen along was to allow him to make contact with the New Fourth Army in advance, laying a solid foundation for future work.

This was also Shao Sishen's first time piloting a strategic bomber after his recovery.

He sat in the passenger seat, carefully watching Fang Wen's actions.

Fang Wen demonstrated for him, then started the aircraft, drove it out of the hangar, and accelerated into the air on the runway.

After observing the entire takeoff operation, Shao Sicheng remarked, "Such a crudely made aircraft can achieve such a large capacity, and this was only a few years ago. In my opinion, the French aircraft manufacturing industry is not bad at all."

Fang Wen nodded: "That's right. Its empty weight is 10 tons and its payload is 8 tons, which is amazing even now. But its speed and power are outdated. I plan to make major modifications to it."

"How should we change it?" Shao Sishen asked.

"The engine will be an improved version of our domestically produced Shiro, and the fuselage will also be modified to be streamlined. There are many other parts as well; basically, we'll be making major changes to this framework. If the modifications are successful, we'll have the experience to produce our own large aircraft," Fang Wen replied.

"Then why not build your own large aircraft?" Gong Xiuneng interjected.

Shao Sichen explained on Fang Wen's behalf: "Building it alone would consume too many resources, and if something goes wrong, the losses would be too great. It's better to use Taishan No. 1 as a practice vehicle, since it's about to be retired."

The conversation ended there, and silence fell over the cabin.

Fang Wen also focused on piloting the plane.

Even for him, night navigation often requires him to use his special abilities to ensure he stays on course and avoids deviating from the intended route.

The flight from the base in northern Myanmar to Maoshan covers a distance of 2400 kilometers, passing through Lijiang, Yibin, Jingzhou, Wuhan, Chaohu, and Ma'anshan before finally arriving at its destination.

The entire route, starting from Wuhan, was already in enemy-occupied territory. Only by flying at night could they avoid being discovered by the Japanese army.

The Taishan-1, traveling at a speed of just over 300 kilometers per hour, flew steadily at an altitude of 5000 meters, and thanks to Fang Wen's special navigation ability, it never deviated from its course.

Upon arriving in Wuhan, Fang Wen specifically reminded Shao Sishen and Gong Xiuneng to quickly lie prone at the bomb bay and look down through the observation window.

The nights in Wuhan are much dimmer than usual. Apart from Hankou District, many other areas that used to be brightly lit at night are now pitch black.

The two remained silent, and the atmosphere was somewhat somber.

The plane continued its flight and arrived at Chaohu an hour later.

Further ahead from here lies the area heavily guarded by the Japanese army.

Fang Wen's expression was solemn; the battle he had fought in this area last year was still vivid in his mind.

But there was one New Fourth Army unit that fought its way back last year.

At the time, Fang Wen believed that this force might retreat after capturing the county town.

Unexpectedly, in less than a year, the other side established an anti-Japanese base area behind enemy lines here.

During the last half-hour flight, the plane flew over the Yangtze River. Nearly a year later, Fang Wen returned to the area near Nanjing.

He suppressed his excitement and used his mechanical senses to observe what was below.

Below is a large mountainous area, but the mountains here are not high, and apart from a few peaks, they are not steep.

Compared to the Taihang Mountains, the terrain here is easier to navigate.

However, similarly, mountainous terrain could hinder the Japanese army's mechanized marches, giving the New Fourth Army an advantage in combat.

Therefore, the New Fourth Army was able to persist here and establish anti-Japanese base areas behind enemy lines.

Pushing his thoughts aside, Fang Wen continued searching for a signal to connect.

According to the telegram, the contact would be in a flat area, where they would use torches to create a pattern that would be visible from the air.

He found it very quickly.

A pattern composed of two rows of rectangular torches.

As the mechanical perception perspective magnified, Fang Wen also saw New Fourth Army soldiers standing beside the torches.

It is a small village at the foot of Leiping Mountain in the Maoshan area, and the terrain is much flatter than other places.

Furthermore, the ground has been leveled to allow the plane to land.

Fang Wen said, "Gong Xiu can fire signal flares."

"It's the regimental commander."

Gong Xiuneng, who was already prepared, opened the grenade launcher and fired the signal gun in his hand.

A moment later, the sky brightened and remained so.

Upon receiving the signal, the New Fourth Army soldiers retreated from both sides of the runway to create a safe landing distance.

Meanwhile, the soldiers were also gazing curiously at the sky.

A dark shadow streaked across the bright moon, followed by a roar. The plane was descending, circling as it searched for a landing spot.

Shortly afterward, the massive Taishan-1 landed with a whooshing and roaring sound.

Because they were too heavy, the two landing wheels pressed down on the stone slab track, breaking the slabs and even causing some stones to bounce up.

Fortunately, the wheel did not get stuck in the small crater, but instead sped over it.

After continuous taxiing and deceleration, the plane finally came to a stop.

Then, the cabin door opened, and Fang Wen and the other two stepped out of the plane.

Several military officers stood outside the plane, shook hands with Fang Wen and his group, and introduced themselves.

They were in charge of the Maoshan base area of ​​the New Fourth Army.

Among them was an officer surnamed Liu, who was the military representative of the New Fourth Army appointed by the military headquarters to go to Yangon.

After a brief introduction of their identities, Fang Wen explained the situation.

"There are 5.7 tons of supplies on the plane. Here is the list of supplies. Please unload now. We need to return overnight."

After receiving the list of supplies from Fang Wen, the officers immediately arranged for the soldiers to unload the goods.

Fang Wen, Gong Xiuneng, and Shao Sishen explained the categories of various supplies to the officers in charge of counting and registering them.

The moving continued.

Boxes of supplies were unloaded from the rear door of the aircraft and stacked on the ground next to the runway.

The soldiers' faces were beaming with joy. Since last year, they had persisted in the war of resistance in such a complex environment, dealing with the Japanese invaders, puppet troops, and traitors, while also dispelling the doubts of the locals. Supplies had always been scarce, even now that they were establishing a base area.

Such a large amount of supplies is simply too much for them.

After two hours of moving, all the supplies were moved out. Fang Wen shook hands with the officers of the base area to say goodbye, and the officers returned the salute.

They then returned to the cabin to prepare for takeoff and return.

The soldiers held up torches to illuminate the plane.

The engines of Taishan-1 roared, and the fuselage began to turn.

The bulky fuselage couldn't be turned around in one go, requiring Fang Wen to maneuver the aircraft multiple times.

Fortunately, nothing went wrong, and the plane eventually completed its turn.

Next, the plane accelerated and taxied along the stone runway. Although there were occasional bumps, under Fang Wen's control, the plane reached the critical speed for takeoff without any major incidents and took off.

Only then did everyone breathe a sigh of relief.

Shao Sishen talked with the military representative surnamed Liu, laying the groundwork for his new job soon.

After an overnight flight, supplies were delivered to the Maoshan base area, and military representatives of the New Fourth Army were also brought back.

Meanwhile, the representatives sent by the Eighth Route Army arrived in Yangon during the day.

After a day of rest, the graduation ceremony was held at the aviation school the next morning.

Principal Shao Sishen took the stage to preside: "Students, today is graduation day. We have invited representatives from the New Fourth Army and the Eighth Route Army to attend the graduation ceremony to witness your achievements. Now, please welcome our school's Chairman Fang to give a speech."

Fang Wen stepped onto the stage, smiled at the students below, and said, "My speech will not be too long. Afterwards, I will go with the principal to distribute graduation certificates to everyone."

He paused, put away his speech notes, and continued, "Your hard work during this period is evident to all. With national and personal grievances in your hearts, you have transformed your sorrow and anger into strength, mastered the operation of gunboats, and some students have even learned to use the Taishan ground early warning radar. These are excellent achievements. I hope that in the days after graduation, you will fight many enemies; this will be the best reward for me and the school teachers."

The trainees were particularly relaxed today, and a burst of laughter erupted from them.

Fang Wen continued, "Furthermore, I hope that everyone can make further progress, not just limiting themselves to gunboat piloting, but also coming back to the school to continue their studies in high-speed fighter piloting. We must work together to build an air force that belongs to the people and strive for a better tomorrow."

After the speech, the trainees applauded.

Afterwards, Fang Wen and Shao Sichen jointly presented graduation certificates to the students.

After the certificates were issued, they participated in a graduation ceremony organized by the trainees themselves, concluding this year's air force training amidst the soldiers' laughter and cheers.

After the aviation school graduation ceremony, the students remained at the school on standby.

Fang Wen then left the school with two military representatives.

They were going to the base in northern Myanmar to see for themselves the secret weapon that Fang Wen had mentioned in the telegram.

Two hours later, the plane arrived over the base in northern Myanmar.

Instead of landing the plane, Fang Wen picked up the microphone and switched frequencies to make a call.

"This is Fang Wen. We are now preparing for the rocket launch."

After issuing the order, Fang Wen said to the two military representatives in the cockpit behind him, "Gong Xiuneng and Shao Sishen, take the military representatives to the observation window to appreciate the rocket launch effect."

The two men, accompanied by a military representative, arrived at the bomb chute used for dropping bombs and observed the situation below through the bomb observation scope.

As they entered the observation phase, Fang Wen also explained how to observe.

"In your field of vision now, to the east is a vehicle-mounted cluster rocket launcher, and its target is a target mountain to the west. There is a circular pattern made of white cloth on the target mountain. Can you see it?"

Two military representatives responded that they had identified the target in sight.

Immediately, Fang Wen picked up the microphone and gave orders to those below.

"emission"

In the view of the two military representatives, a series of fires suddenly erupted in the east.

One rocket after another was launched, heading in the same direction.

Moments later, the rockets converged on the target hill area.

A series of fires erupted, engulfing the entire Target Mountain.

This scene is absolutely amazing!

The two military representatives stared at the camera for a long time before standing up and speaking.

"What kind of weapon is that? It covers such a wide area!"

"I also want to know."

Fang Wen smiled and replied, "Don't rush, let's talk slowly after we land."

He then maneuvered the plane to land at the seaplane base in northern Myanmar.

As soon as they got off the plane, the two military representatives looked at Fang Wen expectantly.

For soldiers, the fear of insufficient firepower is a lifelong companion.

The sheer power of a weapon like the Katyusha rocket can greatly alleviate the fear of insufficient firepower.

Fang Wen smiled and explained, "It's a 132mm rocket from the Soviet Aerodynamics Research Institute. I made some modifications to make it more characteristic of Mount Tai."

"What are the special features of Mount Tai?" asked the Eighth Route Army representative.

"They added some ingredients to make it produce a greater explosive effect upon impact. This kind of rocket is more effective than a simple explosion."

Fang Wen casually described the current situation of the Taishan 132mm rocket.

There are two models in total.

One type is the prototype missile, which explodes upon impact, creating numerous fragments that attack the target area.

Another type is the incendiary rocket.

The explosion will create a large area that continues to burn.

This allows the rocket to have a larger impact area and a longer duration.

(End of this chapter)