Chapter 3103 The War Is Coming
The aerial reconnaissance mentioned more information that was very useful to Malashenko.
The first thing to bear the brunt was the appearance of a new piece of equipment in the vanguard of the Japanese army that was somewhat unexpected by Malashenko - the Type 3 medium tank.
Compared to the 97-type mid-tank tank and the one-type mid-tank tank that were beaten so hard before, the three-type mid-tank tank was still not too strong, but it at least raised its overall level to a level similar to the German's long-barreled No. 4.
The new 75mm main gun can finally achieve a penetration depth of hundreds. The Imperial Army finally has a tank gun with a penetration depth of "up to three digits". This is somewhat of an exciting breakthrough.
The total combat weight is still less than 20 tons. It cannot be said that there is no armor protection, but it is almost unstoppable.
This thing in the existing history is one of the final "decisive weapons" of the Japanese. When the defeat was determined, they were all used by the Japanese army to stay behind and deploy in the mainland, preparing to use them in the final decisive battle of "one hundred million pieces of jade" with the rice beasts.
As for why this thing appears in the Northeast now, Malashenko thinks it is not difficult to guess.
As the second-class elite main force with one of the best combat capabilities in the entire Japanese Army, the Second Division is of course qualified to deploy this so-called new main force tank.
In addition, the Second Division came to the Northeast relatively late. The current reliable time point is probably the last period of the end of 1944. It was transferred from Japan to the Kwantung Army to install the imitation Tiger and form the latest Armored Division.
Of course, it is not surprising that the Second Division at this time point can bring a "decisive weapon" such as the three-style mid-range battle.
Of course, this can also be confirmed by reverse reasoning. The invading Japanese army is almost certainly the second division that Malashenko is looking for.
After all, all the historical production lines of the three-type mid-range combat equipment were in Japan. The Kwantung Army did not have such a production line on hand, and of course it had not actually installed the equipment itself.
Therefore, there is a high probability that this thing was brought by a certain Japanese army from the mainland. Combined with the earlier confirmed news that the Second Division came to the Kwantung Army for redeployment, Malashenko is almost certain that the number one target has appeared.
As for how to answer Lavrinenko's current question, it is certainly not difficult for Malashenko to answer.
"As always, give full play to our advantages in mobile warfare and destroy the enemy in mobile warfare."
"We not only have to move ourselves, but also bring the Japanese troops with us. As long as the enemy moves, there will be a chance for us."
As Malashenko said, the leader's army, a combat unit specializing in high-mobility large-scale field operations, has a strong point in mobile warfare.
But this was not the case for the Japanese army.
Even though the Second Division is the first armored division planned by the Japanese army to imitate German tactics, regardless of its specific combat capabilities, Malashenko is convinced that for an old-style army like the Japanese army that specializes in positional warfare and infantry warfare.
Even if it is given new equipment, the combination of people and equipment has been completed to form an initial and reliable combat effectiveness.
But the change in thinking is not so easy, and it is also the most difficult to change. It needs to be subtle and gradual.
The world's top army, as powerful as the Red Army, is also having difficulty in synthetic restructuring.
Except for the Leader's Army, the other Guards units were groping step by step with the teaching materials compiled by the Leader's Army. Mistakes and problems continued one after another, and sometimes Malashenko even needed targeted guidance.
As for the Japanese army, Malashenko still didn't believe in these bow-legged bipedal combat beasts. Once he got new equipment, he transformed into a mature armored combat system and combat tactics concept.
War is not a game, and it does not mean that tanks can kill all directions as soon as they are rolled out of the tank factory. It is far more difficult to update the things in the head than to update the equipment.
Therefore, the Japanese army, which only has new equipment for the time being, but the entire combat system and campaign tactics concept must not have been fully transitioned, is dragged into mobile operations that it is not good at, and uses what the leader army is best at to forcefully attack the enemy's shortcomings. This is Malashenko’s overall big operational concept.
When it comes to how to implement it at the specific tactical level, Malashenko already has a rough plan.
"The current situation is that both the enemy and ourselves are on the march. We should assume that the Japanese army will be able to detect us and respond to us soon. It is impossible for our entire combined army to conceal its march size."
"I judge that the first reaction of the Japanese army after discovering us should be to immediately build field defenses, try to delay us in positional warfare, consume our offensive energy, and then wait for opportunities to defeat or even annihilate us. At the moment, this is their only theoretical Feasible combat plan.”
"Its use of armored forces is likely to be the same as the Japanese army we encountered before. It does not focus on armored forces, but on infantry defense. The armored forces are regarded as a mobile support auxiliary to defensive operations. arms."
"So what we need to do is to give the enemy as little time as possible to react and prepare, and catch them off guard at the key point when the Japanese army launches field defenses. To compete for the initiative on the battlefield, we cannot let these Japanese bandits fight as they want. To fight, we must lead them by the nose and force them to fight in the way we are good at.”
"They wanted to fight a trench battle, but I refused to give them this opportunity. At least they couldn't let the battle completely turn into a battle for offensive and defensive positions. This is the core element I want to say."
Before Malashenko finished speaking, Kurbalov, who had just won a great victory and was designated by Malashenko as the successor of the army, raised his hand to ask for the floor.
After receiving the nod of the army commander, Kurbalov immediately expressed another guess in his mind.
"If the enemy is more powerful in the field of armored warfare and is willing to fight us in armored confrontation instead of passive defense, will our plan remain unchanged?"
"No, of course not."
Upon hearing this, Malashenko just smiled, and the confidence he should have naturally filled his firm words.
"If those Japanese bow-legged men think they are superior to us in the field of armored warfare, then let them come. I would love to fight them in a tank battle."
"In fact, if they are willing to fight a battle dominated by armored confrontation, the situation will be much easier for us. As long as the main force of the Japanese armored forces is defeated, what will happen to the infantry who don't even have defensive positions? Comrade Kurbalov has demonstrated it to us at the beginning of the operation. I believe that comrades still remember it."
What Malashenko was referring to was naturally the pursuit and annihilation battle against the Morishima Kuroneji Brigade at the beginning of the war.
The Japanese army, which had no existing positions to rely on, was killed and had no power to fight back. If they encounter such a battle again, the remaining Japanese infantry after the main force of the armored forces was defeated will inevitably suffer the same fate.
It can only be said that what the final result will be is completely predictable.
But when it comes to the specific implementation of who will be the vanguard, I have been holding back all the way from crossing the river to now. Just looking at the Kurbalov Division's killing spree, Comrade Valosha obviously has something to say.
"Comrade Army Commander, I ask for the floor."
The foreshadowing is almost done, the climax of the battle is about to come, and this will probably be the climax of the entire anti-Japanese operation.
As always, Corgi will ensure that the excitement is released to everyone. In addition, I have prepared additional details, which is a surprise, so stay tuned.