Chapter 274 Battle for Yang Temple 1

In the division-level establishment of the National Defense Force, the howitzer regiment and the tank regiment are both large establishments and are the main firepower output units of the Marine Division. Because the artillery's self-protection ability is weak, they are equipped with light infantry battalions; but the tank unit does not have this

This configuration is because the chariot unit is originally used to charge into battle, and its maneuverability is much stronger than that of the howitzer regiment.

This may be the objective reason for the predicament of the tank troops in the Hongxi battlefield, but this predicament also showed that the commander of the National Defense Forces did not have a deep understanding of Wu Aihua's tactical principles.

The role of tanks does lie in rapid assault on the battlefield, but there is a more important principle, which is "infantry-tank coordination." Even in the German or Soviet armored armies in World War II, duels with thousands of tanks were inseparable.

Open infantry and tank coordination. Without the coordination of infantry, the role of the tank will be greatly reduced.

The armored brigades directly under each army group of the National Defense Forces, as well as the armored divisions being formed, are equipped with infantry combatants carried by armored personnel carriers. However, even so, the role of combat vehicles is irreplaceable during the charge, but once it stops or the charge is blocked,

It's up to the infantry to solve the problem.

Fortunately, the predicament of the 061 Division Tank Regiment is not yet a desperate situation. The main loss is that the machine gun shooters on the tank suffered heavy losses in the exchange of fire with the Japanese army. At worst, they can still return to the starting point.

When the light infantry battalion entered the battlefield, the pressure on the tank battalion was temporarily relieved. When a battalion of the Marine Corps joined the battle again, the Japanese army's rapid offensive was finally contained to a distance of 100 meters from the forward tank.

.

At this time, the tank regiment began to regain its breath. The regiment leader Zhao Huiwu was so angry that he yelled and ordered: "Roll the names. Use the tank cannon to roll the names of the Japanese. Don't be impatient. Call them one by one!"

But in fact, the loss Zhao Huiwu suffered before dusk can only be earned back in tomorrow's battle, because the scene was approaching and the threat of tanks and guns to the Japanese troops in groups of three to five was greatly reduced.

The battle in Hongxi was full of twists and turns, brutal and bloody. The other two battles surrounding the Japanese 3rd Division were also not easy at all. This was the ace division of the Japanese army after all!

Yangmiao, the battle for Yangmiao.

The Japanese army was stationed at the headquarters of the 3rd Division, the 10th Infantry Regiment, the 3rd Tank Regiment, the 3rd Cavalry Regiment, the 3rd Field Artillery Regiment, the 3rd Engineer Regiment and the 3rd Heavy Troops Regiment.

The number of people is as high as 15,000.

The National Defense Forces responsible for attacking Yangmiao include the 2nd Marine Regiment of the 061 Division, the 1st Marine Regiment of the 063 Division, the Armored Brigade directly under the Sixth Army, the 063 Division Howitzer Regiment, the 063 Division Rocket Artillery Battalion, and the Anti-aircraft Artillery Battalion. The total number of combat personnel is

The Japanese army is slightly taller and has a better heavy firepower configuration than the Japanese army.

However, the attack on Yangmiao did not go smoothly.

After the Japanese 3rd Division arrived in Jiaxing, north of Jiashan, Susumu Fujita specially commanded the Japanese 3rd Engineer Regiment to improve and supplement the previous 107th Division's fortifications. If the fortifications in Hongxi are mostly point-based,

Then points were connected with lines to form a defensive position, but the Japanese position in Yangmiao was connected with lines. The trenches were built particularly solidly, and it was very easy to switch between points.

In addition, Susumu Fujita had two other big moves: first, to dig a large number of anti-tank trenches in front of the position to prevent the assault of the Wehrmacht tank troops; second, to make full use of the terrain of Yangmiao, which is about two kilometers southeast of Yangmiao.

A solitary mountain is more than a thousand meters long, more than a hundred meters wide, and more than twenty meters high. There is a slowly flowing river in the northwest. The river is not very wide, only seven or eight meters at its narrowest point, and it is not very deep.

, the deepest point is only about 1.5 meters, but such a small river has become a barrier for the Japanese army to block attacks from the north.

Susumu Fujita ordered the engineer regiment to make full use of the terrain, establish several artillery positions that were easy to defend and difficult to attack, and hid all 12 120mm howitzers and 36 75mm field guns of the 3rd Field Artillery Regiment on the isolated mountain. The height was more than 20

The advantage of three meters allowed the Japanese artillery's firing range to suddenly make up for the weakness of the relatively short range caused by technical reasons. In addition, it gained the advantage of terrain and wide field of vision, which constituted a great impact on the tank troops and artillery troops of the National Defense Forces.

Big threat.

In the small river to the northwest, Fujita established a large number of machine gun fortifications, infantry artillery and grenade launch positions, and sent an infantry brigade to defend; at the same time, Fujita used the 3rd Cavalry Regiment as a mobile force to also be used on this river.

Defense troops on the line.

Perhaps Yangmiao really has the conditions to become a classic battle between China and Japan. The small river in the northwest and the Gushan in the southeast are naturally close to each other at both ends. The distance between the two sides is only more than 500 meters. Under modern war conditions,

These 500 meters can be completely blocked by machine guns alone.

Huang Tingzhen, the commander of the "Hongyao Battle", the commander of the 061 Division, was personally responsible for the command of the battle for Yangmiao. Huang Tingzhen knew that Yangmiao was not easy to fight. If more detailed considerations had been made before the war, for example, the heavy artillery brigade and the armored brigade directly under the general's command could be swapped.

, maybe the effect will be better, but since the war has already begun, it is not good to mobilize again.

Before the 063 Division arrived at the Hongyao front, Yangmiao only had the 2nd Regiment of the 061 Division and the Army Direct Armored Brigade. The strength was obviously weak. The 061 Regiment launched several probing attacks and encountered fierce counterattacks from the Japanese artillery fire. However, soon

Obviously, the Japanese army also reserved its artillery fire, at least the 120mm howitzer was not used. Of course, the commander was not Huang Tingzhen, but Lai Weixian, deputy commander of the 061 Division.

After Huang Tingzhen arrived at the Yangmiao battlefield, he discovered Lai Weixian's helplessness. The Yangmiao was like a turtle, blocked by mountains on two sides and rivers on both sides. Although there was an entrance and exit, the opening was just within the range of the Japanese heavy artillery.

Is it possible to launch a force attack from the small river in the northwest? The range of the 120 howitzer is as high as more than 15 kilometers. The small river and even the entire Yangmiao are within the range of the Japanese field artillery regiment's artillery fire.

In the end, all the staff of the "Hongyao Battle" headquarters had to make the worst and most realistic decision: to launch an artillery bombardment with the Japanese army! Only by destroying the Japanese artillery positions can other units of the National Defense Forces be used.

"Boom, boom, boom -" At 5:10 pm, a total of 24 105mm howitzers from the 1st and 2nd Battalions of the 063 Division Howitzer Regiment launched a fierce bombardment on the artillery position on Guizigu Mountain!

"This density of shelling is enough for the Japanese army to drink a pot." The staff at the observation post said excitedly when they saw the fire and thick smoke rising from the lonely mountain.

"Order: The original 10-minute bombardment was changed to 5 minutes, and the ammunition near the position was immediately transported away!" Commander Huang Tingzhen was not optimistic at all.

After receiving the order, the ammunition soldier immediately drove the car loaded with artillery shells to the reserve position.

"When the five minutes are up, move your position immediately!" Huang Tingzhen gave the order again, because the ominous premonition in his heart was getting stronger and stronger.

5 minutes is only enough time for the howitzer to fire ten rapid rounds. "Quick, hook up the trailer and move immediately!" Ji Zhenxiang, commander of the 063 Division Howitzer Regiment, finished firing 10 rounds from the artillery, and the roar was still echoing in his ears.

, just when the gun barrel was reset, he shouted loudly into the earthen microphone.

In fact, the tow truck driver was already reversing in the direction of the artillery.

"Quick, quick, Baga, the Chinese artillery must move its position, prepare to fire!" Almost at the same time, on Gushan Mountain, Colonel Aoi of the 3rd Regiment of the Japanese Field Artillery shouted at the Japanese artillerymen with a telescope in his hand.

"Boom, boom, boom..." The Japanese army's 36 100mm field guns began to violently counterattack against the artillery positions of the National Defense Forces!

Seeing that the several trailers in front had pulled the howitzers out of the battlefield, Ji Zhenxiang's hanging heart slowly relaxed. He also knew that the coordinates of the shelling just now were determined during the Japanese artillery bombardment in the morning. In case the Japanese artillery

The position has been moved, so... the result can be imagined, the Japanese army will definitely retaliate immediately.

"Boom -" At this moment, the Japanese army's first test-fired artillery shell fell, and it landed directly on the position of the previous howitzer.

"Quick, quick -" Ji Zhenxiang became nervous again when he saw this. The Japanese army's test-fired artillery shells were so accurate, so the first round of shelling would not last more than half a minute.

The artillerymen also knew that they were racing against death, so they moved faster; soldiers who had no mission for the time being, as well as soldiers on duty near the artillery position, ran quickly, as far away from the artillery position as possible.

"Commander, quickly, retreat -" Hu Tianshen, commander of the light infantry battalion, came flying with two soldiers. Ji Zhenxiang was standing on a bulge of the artillery position and roared, "This is not for the Japanese artillery shells."

As a target?

"Boom, boom, boom..." The Japanese artillery came faster than expected. The remaining 10 howitzers of the 063 Division Howitzer Regiment were immediately drowned in the smoke of the shell explosion.

"Lie down -" Ji Zhenxiang shouted the moment the Japanese shells fell.

"Commander——" Hu Tianshen, commander of the Qingbu Battalion, shouted in despair when he saw Ji Zhenxiang being shrouded in the smoke of an exploding shell.

Hu Tianshen was beyond reach. He and the two soldiers were at least 50 meters away from Jizhenxiang.

The Japanese army's artillery bombardment was also very restrained. Like the National Defense Forces, it only lasted 5 minutes of shelling and then quickly moved its position. As a senior artillery person, Aoi naturally knew that the National Defense Forces did not do their best in the shelling. Maybe he was having a good time.

At that moment, artillery fire from the National Defense Forces came over.

The smoke has cleared from the howitzer emplacement, and the scene is horrific!

Hundreds of soldiers who had no time to evacuate, not to mention a single living person, even a complete body was difficult to find. 10 cannons and their trailers were blown to pieces. The barrels, gun mounts,

Tires, carriages, steel plates, etc. flew everywhere. Ji Zhenxiang, the leader of the Howitzer Regiment, luck was not on his side. At this time, Ji Zhenxiang fell to the ground with a large pool of blood soaked under his body.

, judging from a person’s total blood volume, even if Ji Zhenxiang is still breathing, it is impossible to live again.

At 5:20 pm on February 24, 1938, a message was sent to the East China Field Army Headquarters: "The 063rd Division Howitzer Regiment was attacked by Japanese artillery while bombarding the Japanese army. 576 of our officers and soldiers were killed and more than 20 were seriously injured.
Chapter completed!