Middle Eastern tyrants

Chapter 20 The Defense of Nukoshir (Part 3)
Lieutenant Ariel of the 101st Squadron in Zion received a ground bombing mission targeting a checkpoint called Nukoshir in the northern border region of Zion.

He remembered that Lieutenant Cohen of the same squadron had carried out the mission a few days earlier, but it was canceled midway.

The reason was that the squad at the time had taken photos of US tanks and soldiers at this outpost, but this intelligence has now been overturned again.

"I hope everything goes well," Lieutenant Ariel said over the communications channel.

Squadron 101 took off from the airport in the Tiran Strait in a Mirage III, no more than 80 kilometers from the destination. This mission might not even take half an hour.

"I heard that Major General Yesavishin of the 38th Division was so angry after being reprimanded by the Prime Minister that he turned green with rage and immediately dispatched his armored units to flatten the outpost."

"That's right, but in the end, it still takes our air force to take action!"

The communication channel was filled with a relaxed and joyful atmosphere.

Zion's air force had the best combat record in the entire military, with only 23 fighter jets shot down on the first day of "Operation Focus." Compared to the 400 aircraft lost by all Arab countries, this loss was almost negligible.

Their presence has been dubbed "the Grim Reaper of the Sky" by the armies of Arab countries, leaving a deep psychological scar on their armored forces.

Twenty-five kilometers from the target location, three Mirage IIIs flew at extremely low altitudes over the Red Sea, the wind pressure caused by their supersonic speeds creating waves on the water's surface.

Zion pilots have a habit of flying at extremely low altitudes, which helps them avoid enemy radar detection and facilitates precision bombing.

Based on the provided coordinates, Lieutenant Ariel quickly located the outpost.

"Have you spotted the artillery positions? Please reply upon receipt."

"No hoopoe. That's all."

"No robin, that's all."

Seeing that no target was found, Lieutenant Ariel immediately ordered: "Deploy heat decoys."

So the three fighter jets simultaneously dropped heat decoys that could interfere with infrared detection. Lieutenant Ariel wasn't actually sure if Shuangzhi had an air-to-air missile system that could track heat sources, but to his surprise, he actually received a response.

In a sunken valley, the flashes of artillery shells shot into the sky, revealing the location of the artillery position.

"Wingless birds have been spotted. At 135°, about 6 kilometers away, there is the back of a bunker. Go and meet them. Over."

"Dai Sheng received."

"Robin received."

Lieutenant Ariel turned the plane around, and the three fighter jets regrouped, ready to deliver a devastating blow to the target.

But just as he released the safety and prepared to bomb at low altitude, the familiar terrain inadvertently caught his attention.

Before Lieutenant Ariel could react, the four anti-aircraft positions on the ground and in the valley tore off their camouflage, and eight Bofors anti-aircraft guns formed an interwoven fire network, which, together with 12.7mm machine guns, enveloped the three Mirage IIIs.

By this time, it was too late for Lieutenant Ariel to climb. He instinctively pulled up but triggered dynamic pressure lock. Hearing the crackling sounds coming from the fuselage, he knew that he had completely fallen into the enemy's trap.

“Go eat shit! You Zion scum!” Abbas roared.

The Bofors anti-aircraft gun also responded to its operator with a continuous roar.

He had never had such an exhilarating shooting experience before. The enemy's fighter jets were completely within the firing angle of the entire air defense position, and they were flying at low altitude.

"Lieutenant Colonel Amir is a fucking genius!" Brass shell casings were scattered all over the ground around Abbas, emitting white smoke.

As the control stick in his hand sank, Lieutenant Ariel knew that the fuel tank had been hit and he was doomed.

At this moment, he was utterly despondent and ignored even his teammates' cries for help.

Is this really the Shuangzhi unit?

Just as the leaking fuel from the Mirage III ignited and burst into flames, the fuel tank exploded a few seconds later, turning the second-generation supersonic fighter jet into a spectacular firework in mid-air.

"Lieutenant Colonel, Zion's armored forces have begun their advance again!" came the intelligence report from the reconnaissance platoon.

“They want to break through our defenses in one fell swoop with the support of the air force,” Lu Lin, who had been keeping a close eye on the overall situation with his eagle-like perspective, had already learned about the battle situation on the air defense positions. He felt relieved and said, “But our prepared arrangements will teach them a lesson.”

"Lieutenant Colonel! News has come from the air defense positions that they have shot down three Mirage IIIs in Zion!" the staff officer reported in a shocked tone.

Since the start of the war, there have been very few reports of Zion air force units being shot down, let alone at ordinary outposts, or even on the main battlefield. Everyone was greatly encouraged and celebrated with high fives.

Khalid looked at Lu Lin as if he had seen a ghost. Back in school, when everyone was at the bottom of the class, how come you were secretly studying at night?
"How did you do that?" he couldn't help but ask.

"There is never any guarantee of victory; there is only being better prepared than your opponent. Zion is a formidable enemy. This is only a temporary setback for them, but if they win just once, we're finished."

Lu Lin immediately ordered: "Have the artillery units prepare. When the enemy's tanks break down, target the mine-clearing engineers and maintenance crews!"

At this time, the armored forces on the ground in Zion had not yet received news of the air force's defeat, and the Chieftain tanks began their charge at full speed.

If they can get within 4,000 meters, the Chieftain's main gun can inflict significant damage on soft targets and fortifications; if they get within 2,000 meters, it can also deal devastating damage to armored vehicles.

In particular, the M48, which was most favored by the Arab kingdoms, was like a canned food in front of the sheikhs, often sending them flying with a single shot.

A muffled thud pulled Captain Dori Shahar from his reverie, and he immediately felt his speed decrease.

Did you step on a landmine?

Looking at the blown-off tire, Captain Dori cursed, "This commander of the Shuangzhi outpost has a lot of tricks up his sleeve."

"First they set up fake tanks, and now they're burying anti-tank mines!" he complained. "Can't we just have a real fight?"

"Call the maintenance crew!"

The desert temperature in June was unbearably high, and the tank was temporarily unable to move. Captain Dori got out of the vehicle and grabbed his hat to fan himself.

Not far away, another Chieftain tank was hit. A violent explosion sent up a sand column several meters high. The tank moved forward a short distance due to inertia and then came to a stop.

"Don't you dare leave! This area is a minefield!" Captain Dori shouted, grabbing the radio.

But some chiefs still wanted to try their luck, and they stepped on a landmine just a few dozen meters after passing Captain Dori's crew.

The tank commander got off the vehicle looking annoyed, only to hear Captain Dori yell at him, "I told you all, why the hell didn't you listen!"

The other person responded with an international hand gesture.

Captain Dori burst into laughter.

A short while later, the repair crew arrived in a reconnaissance vehicle. After a quick inspection of the tank's condition, they shook their heads and said, "It's no good. Besides the broken tracks, the torsion bar has also been damaged. In this condition, it can only be towed back for repairs. You shouldn't have rushed in so quickly!"

“Go talk to Colonel Avi about this,” Captain Dori said nonchalantly. “I’m just following orders anyway.”

"Captain, should we abandon the vehicle?" a crew member popped out and asked.

Although Zion's military regulations clearly state "personnel priority," abandoning a vehicle is still considered a disgrace unless absolutely necessary.

“If you’re going to leave, then leave.” Captain Dori took out a cigarette and lit it. “I don’t object to Ant’s approach of ‘equipment and position going down together.’ If you want to stay here, then stay here.”

After a moment's hesitation, the crew members got out of the vehicle and followed Captain Dori into the patrol car.

Captain Dori even greeted the unfortunate crew ahead of him, but the next second, a grenade landed, hitting the Chieftain's turret squarely.

boom--

The train conductor who greeted them was beaten to a pulp, his intestines spilling all over the ground.

"!!"

Captain Dori paused for a moment, then reversed and started driving back the way he came.

The mechanic hadn't even gotten into the vehicle yet. Seeing that Dori had simply driven off without paying attention, he angrily leaned against the man and started yelling at him. But Captain Dori didn't care about any of that and floored the accelerator.

Captain Dori suddenly remembered the rumors circulating in the army yesterday: the commander of the opposite outpost was a master artilleryman, and Colonel Avi had lost an ear to an explosion before even seeing him.
Could it be that the commander on the other side is actually from the United States?

Just then, a shell landed on the side of the patrol car.

The shadow of death loomed over Captain Dori, and then a violent explosion engulfed him.

(End of this chapter)