mesbooks Chapter 193: Attacking Longling (5): White Eagle Military Observer
Chapter 193: Attacking Longling (5): White Eagle Military Observer
The weather cleared up completely from November 26th to December 13th, for more than two weeks.
The 177th and 178th bomber divisions of the Anmin Army's Independent Air Force and the 919th Close Air Support Regiment took advantage of the clear weather to launch a massive bombing of the Japanese positions in western Yunnan, flying nearly 2000 sorties in total and dropping nearly a thousand tons of various types of bombs and incendiary bombs.
Among them, the B-25 fleet mainly carried napalm bombs to carry out covering bombing on the surface positions of Tengchong and Longling, killing the exposed soft targets of the Japanese.
The A-1H and SBC2C-4 dive bombers took on the important task of destroying the Japanese fortifications. They carried modified bunker-buster bombs and carried out precise dive bombing on the fortresses and mountain bunkers where the Japanese were hiding.
Under such reckless bombing, a layer of rock was cut off in the Tengchong and Longling areas, large areas of vegetation on the mountains were turned to ashes, and the entire mountain became bare.
From afar, the black scorched earth stretches and undulates, as if it had been ravaged by a natural disaster.
This reckless bombing not only stunned the Japanese soldiers fighting on the ground and the officers and soldiers of the expeditionary force, but also shocked the White Eagle military observers stationed in the expeditionary force.
"Oh my God, this... is simply Judgment Day."
A White Eagle Army major put down his telescope, and the sweat on his forehead blended with the winter chill, sparkling in the sunlight.
He pointed at the sea of flames rising from the Tenglong Bridge in the distance, his voice rising slightly with excitement. "Oh my god, this air force is already as big as Claire's Flying Tigers, right?"
The army captain beside him shrugged, a complex smile on his face. "Excuse me, sir, but General Claire's 14th Air Force is primarily composed of fighters and transport aircraft."
He pointed to the bomber formation roaring across the sky, his tone filled with a hint of inexplicable worry:
"In Southeast Asia, if we're just talking about bomber units, the An Min Army has far more bombers than we do. According to statistics from the past few days, they have at least 300 bombers of various types. With the exception of an unfamiliar dive bomber model (the A1-H), all of them are our White Eagles."
Major White Eagle was silent for a moment, taking a deep breath. He tugged at the collar of his coat and muttered, "Is this getting a little out of control?"
A faint sense of unease welled up in his heart. Although he believed that the equipment of the People's Security Army came from aid from the United States (in the major's eyes), the current scale even exceeded his original expectations.
Zhang Chi seems like a reliable ally, but what if he has other ideas one day?
The United States is far away on the other side of the ocean. How can it ensure its control over him?
"Hey, boss, don't think too much." The captain noticed the seriousness in the major's brow and handed him a Camel cigarette with a smile.
The major took the cigarette and placed it between his lips expertly. The captain quickly pulled out a silver Zippo from his pocket and lit it for him, the flame dancing in the cold wind.
With a "click", the flame went out, leaving behind a wisp of green smoke.
The major took a deep breath and exhaled a cold smoke ring.
Noticing the rank of major on his shoulder, he leaned against the stone wall of the bunker and said with a wry smile to himself:
"Let the masters in the White House and the Pentagon worry about national affairs. With my meager monthly salary, I'd rather just worry about my daily life."
Thinking of this, he took out his notebook, opened a page, and scribbled a few lines to express his views on the expeditionary force's combat effectiveness:
"The infantry's courage is commendable, but the overall logistics are terrible. Even the supply of heavy artillery shells cannot be guaranteed. The offensive relies heavily on air support."
Just a few kilometers away in the area of Tenglong Bridge, the fighting was still going on.
After three rounds of artillery suppression by the National Army's mountain artillery regiment, the ammunition ran out and the sound of artillery gradually died down.
Then, the infantrymen of the 36th Division of the 54th Army of the Expeditionary Force shouted and launched the third charge on the Tenglong Bridge position under the leadership of the officers' suicide squad.
The Japanese soldiers swarmed out of the anti-artillery holes, their eyes full of bloodshot and madness, and quickly occupied the ruined fortifications.
The sounds of rifle and machine gun fire suddenly rang out, and dense bullets tore through the air, trying to force back these determined attackers once again.
However, Major Baiying, who was observing from behind the bunker, could see clearly that the firepower of the Japanese defenders was much weaker than in the previous two charges. A large number of the Japanese heavy weapons and sturdy bunkers had been destroyed by air strikes, and even the smallest caliber grenade launchers had become rare.
As he smoked, he muttered, "The Japs can't hold on any longer."
He picked up the telescope and carefully observed the momentum of the National Army infantry's advance, his eyes showing a hint of approval: "I bet five dollars that this charge will succeed, and the position of Tenglong Bridge will change hands before tonight."
The captain smiled and took out five one-dollar bills and stuffed them into his chief officer's coat pocket: "I'll bet that we can drive the Japanese out of Tenglong Bridge by the next charge."
As the cold wind blew, the major rubbed his red, frozen hands and murmured, "I hope we can enter Longling County before Christmas. Then, maybe we can drink hot coffee and eat steaming roast chicken..."
The figures of the two observers puffing out smoke in the bunker and the shouts coming from the distant battlefield interweave into a cruel and absurd picture of war.
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On the other hand, Zhang Chi was really worried about the offensive in western Yunnan.
So he left the 5th and 6th newly formed infantry divisions on the Myitkyina front as reserves to support all parties at any time, and personally led the guard brigade and the armored training division to the Longling front.
The winding mountain road between Longling and Bhamo is narrow and tortuous, which greatly limits the efficiency of material transportation. (When the Burma Road was first built, it was a simple road built in an emergency.)
Bai Minghui's Eastern Army also encountered the same situation as the expeditionary force - insufficient ammunition supply.
Even so, Bai Minghui's Eastern Army still withstood the pressure and advanced steadily at the pace of "attack for 3 days, rest for 3 days to reserve ammunition", but objectively the shortage of ammunition seriously restricted the intensity of the attack.
The main purpose of Zhang Chi's coming this time was to rely on his own system space to act as a human porter.
He brought three battle portions of ammunition for the Eastern Army. As soon as he arrived at the temporary assembly point, he sent the Guards Brigade to take over the ammunition storage area. Then he only left the synthetic soldiers on guard and materialized all the ammunition, fuel, food and other supplies from the system.
In just a few hours, mountains of supplies were neatly arranged, completely alleviating the logistical crisis on the front line.
Afterwards, Zhang Chi leisurely walked into the front-line command post.