Chapter 309 Good Brothers Shooting Leopards Together

As we all know, if a certain commander during World War II would "bang" his hatch shut the moment the attack started until the battle was over.

Then this person must be a waste without courage, or a third-rate commander with little experience.

After all, when a person is inside a tank, his field of vision will be greatly restricted, making it difficult to quickly judge the battlefield situation and respond in a timely manner. In order to better control the overall situation, experienced commanders often choose to command operations with the hatch cover open.

However, it is not the norm for Yokoyama Isamu to be shot by gunfire. Today's tank main guns cannot be as accurate as sniper rifles.

It can only be said that the old devil had done many evil things during his lifetime and deserved to die in the most miserable way to meet their Amaterasu.

"Nani!?"

"What just flew by?"

Witnessing their captain being shot into the soul by an unknown weapon, the Japs in each crew suddenly fell into brief chaos. Anyone who saw the headless corpse like a high-rail fountain could not remain calm.

After a while, the continuous explosions drew their attention back to the battlefield, and the Type 97 medium tanks once again embarked on the charge.

After all, the 71st Tank Regiment had participated in the Battle of Nomenhan, and the Japanese who survived had more or less seen the world. Even if the top commander died in battle, the unit would not completely lose its combat effectiveness.

"The commander is down!"

"Colonel is broken! I will be responsible for commanding the next battle!"

"All of them! Continue to charge towards the enemy positions ahead! The infantry must keep up with the armored forces! You must be responsible for protecting our flanks!"

The Japanese Lieutenant Colonel who took over the command did not retract into the body of the vehicle. A middle-level officer like him not only had to command his own tank, but also needed to know the location and status of his men in real time.

Now it is a coordinated operation. As the commander-in-chief of the tank regiment, he needs to maintain communication with the infantry. It is better to stick his head out.

After all, the Japs do not have the background of a Marine Regiment, so they cannot send portable communicators down to the detachment level. The only way to communicate between units at all levels is by shouting.

However, after the charge began, the balance of victory did not tilt towards the Mongolian troops.

As the Type 97 medium tank continued to advance, various wails and roars reached the ears of the Japanese Lieutenant Colonel through the Type 94 vehicle-mounted radio.

"The left and right tracks were damaged at the same time! We completely lost our ability to move!"

"Where is the enemy! What is attacking us! The No. 5 car was destroyed, it blocked the way forward, and the progress of the second squadron was blocked!"

"The side! The enemy is on the side!"

By now, even the dullest Japs knew that the anti-armor weapons of the Eighth Theater and the 1st Marine Regiment were on the sides. After all, every tank in the regiment was penetrated from the side.

But they still can't do anything, at least there is no good way to close the distance.

In the eyes of laymen and other arms, destroying an anti-tank gun is no big deal. Only killing enemy tanks is a real achievement.

On the contrary, experienced armored personnel will regard the former as a double threat.

That thing is difficult to identify and hit, and it can also be set up with the help of good camouflage and favorable terrain. Often several teammates are killed by the opponent, and then the tank crew realizes that they have broken into the iron wall built by the anti-tank gun group.

"First Squadron to the left! Third Squadron to the right!"

"Eguchi-kun! Fukuyama-kun! The enemy's anti-tank position is handed over to you! Charge forward and tear those villains with black guns into pieces!"

"Leave the frontal position to the 2nd and 4th Squadrons! We will lead the infantry to capture the 7th and a half and the Eighth Route Army commander! Victory must belong to the 71st Regiment! It's a black card! On board!"

After receiving the order, the first and third squadrons immediately carried out the order. The eight Type 97 medium tanks were divided into two groups and rushed towards both sides. The Fourth Squadron took the initiative and used its thickest frontal armor to buy time for the Second Squadron.

There is nothing wrong with the above arrangement. If the 1st Marine Regiment uses the Hotchkiss 25mm anti-tank gun, it may really be smashed by the Mongolian troops.

After all, the toothpick cannon of the SA34 may not be able to penetrate the frontal armor of a Japanese tank at long range.

As a product that replaced the Type 89 medium tank, the Type 97 medium tank was definitely an advanced medium tank in the days when it was first born, and it can still dominate the Asian battlefield now.

Compared with its various bean sprouts, it has escaped the fate of being breached by heavy machine guns, and can even catch some early 37-guns with its face.

It's a pity that the Japs' opponents today didn't play according to the routine.

The Cicada-style 37 cannon is no ordinary small water pipe. As a land warfare weapon that only debuted in 1943, it is equipped with hooded armor-piercing projectiles.

Compared with ordinary iron weights, this thing has the low resistance of the hood and the excellent turning ability of the hood.

In a sense, it is a good brother who can shoot leopards with the BT family. There must be no great pressure to play a 97-style medium tank.

What's more, the weapons produced by Awakening Yonghu System must be high-quality and enhanced top-end versions.

The Cicada tank of the 1st Marine Regiment also comes with a Little John adapter when it leaves the factory. In the future, there may even be a chance to knock the Type 4 Zhongzhan on the forehead.

However, in this battle, the combat maneuver company did not use this device.

Although the Little John adapter can greatly enhance the penetration, it is likely to over-penetrate against the Type 97 medium tank, and it cannot use high-explosive shells to kill infantry.

Seeing that the Japanese dared to split up their troops on the battlefield, Sun Desheng, who was hiding in the dirt bag, suddenly felt that he was being underestimated. He used the communicator to order all the crew:

"Let the enemy reduce its numbers first! Then attack with all your strength! Don't pay too much attention to concealment now!"

"The infantry is ready for battle! The enemy only has eight tanks. After killing them, we will immediately set off to support the frontal battlefield!"

"Today is the first battle of our combat mobile company! We need a big victory! We can't live up to the expectations of the regiment leader and Director Huang for our company!"

"receive!"

After finishing speaking, the sixteen Cicada vehicles opened fire, one after another with hooded armor-piercing bullets flying towards the Type 97 medium tank.

The most arrogant ones were naturally the eight modified medium-air defense vehicles. The crew once again resorted to the ultimate trick of leveling the anti-aircraft guns. Every shell fired would cause a bloody storm among the infantry.

The scene of severed limbs and pieces of meat flying around would make even veterans who have experienced battles feel fearful.

At this moment, the importance of taking the upper hand is clearly reflected on the battlefield.

Relying on the advantage of breaking the concealment, the 1st Marine Regiment successfully killed five Type 97 medium tanks in the first wave of offensive alone. By the time the Japs calmed down, the second wave of armor-piercing bombs was ready to go.

Seeing their teammates being called out one by one, the two majors of the 1st and 2nd Squadron fell into despair. They knew that this battle was beyond hope.

But the old devils were not lambs to be slaughtered. The two quickly adjusted their mentality and ordered the remaining crew:

"Fire! Fire!"

"There's an enemy at three o'clock! Onboard!"

The communication channel was filled with the roars of the ghosts, and the unknown enemies brought tremendous pressure to them. The ghosts could only relieve their fear by barking dogs.

Until now, they don't know what weapons the Marine Regiment uses, but they can easily tear through the frontal armor of the Type 97 medium tank that they are proud of.

That's a full 25mm of hardened steel!

The counterattacks of the 1st and 3rd Squadrons had no effect. After all, tank guns firing while moving could only act as a deterrent.

Even a tank like Xie Mantou equipped with a stabilizer can only achieve a certain hit rate when moving slowly on a relatively flat road.

The two squadrons of the Japanese were now moving forward at full speed, and the gun barrels were almost shaking to the sky with the ups and downs of the car body. Being able to hit the bunker of the Marine Regiment was a result of their merits in the previous life.

Ten minutes later, all the Type 97 medium tanks of the two squadrons collapsed on the charging road.

From the beginning of the battle to the destruction of the group, they never saw the true face of the enemy.

Every prisoner who died in an iron coffin had deep unwillingness and resentment on his face.

Kyoichiro Yamauchi was the only surviving captain on the side battlefield. He pushed open the hatch cover with all his strength and lay on his tank with a look of despair.

Looking at the 97-style medium tanks around him that were being shot, set on fire, and penetrated from the front, the little devil desperately pulled out his 14-style southern tank and prepared to commit suicide.

At this moment, the earthbags in the distance suddenly began to move, and the undamaged Cicada tanks drove out in a swagger.

Faced with the culprit who destroyed his squadron, Yamauchi Kyouichiro angrily emptied the bullets from the tortoise box, and at the same time shouted at the combat maneuver company:

"Baga! Damn it!"

"You Eighth Route Army troops are so shameless! Why don't you dare to rush out and fight head-on when there are tanks? I want..."

"Bang!"

Although he couldn't understand what the Japanese were talking about, Sun Desheng would not show mercy to any enemy. Under his command, a high-explosive bomb flew towards the Type 97 medium tank without any suspense.

The gunners of the combat mobile company were veterans who had been forced to feed them with artillery shells. Naturally, it was impossible to miss when hitting such an immobile iron coffin.

After looking at the smoke-filled frontal battlefield and the Japanese infantry who were preparing to use the remains of tanks to resist, Sun Desheng pulled out the saber that had been with him for many years and ordered:

"Cavalry Company! Attack!"

"Get rid of those infantrymen! Leave no one behind! Kill them!"

······

Time goes back five minutes to the battlefield.

"Lieutenant Colonel! We have rushed into the enemy's defense line!"

"Car No. 3 destroyed a machine gun position! The enemy infantry is retreating! The troops were not blocked in any way!"

One after another, Lieutenant Colonel Hisanobu Ohara felt that victory was already beckoning to him. As long as his tanks could pass through the enemy's defense line and tear a hole, the infantry behind him would follow and the gap would continue to expand.

From now on, it will be like any other battle. The people of the Republic of China will be divided into two parts by them, and then they will be surrounded and annihilated.

It's a pity that the temptation of military glory and promotion has gone to his head.

The Japanese lieutenant colonel did not think about one thing at all, and that was why the group of soldiers who dared to trade with tanks in the past did not appear on the battlefield today.

As for the battle damage on the side, Ohara Hisanobu naturally saw it.

There will always be casualties on the battlefield, so first deal with the enemy in front of you, not to mention those casualties are nothing compared to the upcoming victory.

The position of commander of the regiment is currently vacant. If he can capture the commanders of the 7th and 15th Route Army and the 8th Route Army alive, he can definitely take over officially.

"Keep moving forward! Don't give the Republic of China people a chance to breathe! Cut through their positions in one go!"

"Hi!"

Just a minute later, the Japanese came to the battlefield carefully prepared by Li Yunlong.

The twelve Type 97 medium tanks that were originally indomitable seemed to be stuck in a quagmire. Every step they took would face the threat of 40 fire.

Although the current production capacity of the Eighth Route Army's military industry could not provide soldiers with a rocket launcher, the Marine Corps 1st Regiment prepared a hundred rocket launchers for today's battle.

Even if these individual anti-tank weapons were scattered in various corners of the position, they would definitely kill the 71st Tank Regiment several times.

Soon, the second and fourth squadrons frequently reported good news.

"Lieutenant Colonel! We have fallen into a trap!"

"The enemy has a large number of anti-tank weapons! Our Type 97 medium tanks are like paper! The road ahead has been blocked! Next..."

There was no next, and only explosions and noises were left in the communication channel.

"Mr. Moriguchi! Lieutenant Moriguchi?"

"Lieutenant Moriguchi has died! I am Kiyoshi Mizuta!"

"Lieutenant Colonel! A large number of enemy troops appeared in the trenches behind us! Our tanks were destroyed one after another!"

At this moment, Hisanobu Ohara discovered the problem. Since they did not encounter any obstacles when advancing, the two tank squadrons were now out of touch with each other.

As for the infantry in the rear, they could not catch up with the tanks even if they ran wildly, causing the armored forces to completely lose their cover.

In addition, the enemy has individual weapons that can destroy the Type 97 medium tank. If they don't come up with a countermeasure, the two tank squadrons will definitely die here.

"Retreat!"

"Everyone retreat! Connect with the infantry and we will attack again!"

The next second, a desperate voice came from the communication channel.

"Lieutenant Colonel! We can't retreat anymore! The enemy killed the tanks at the end of the team, and the retreat is completely blocked!"

Originally, the ten tanks were a sword piercing the heart, but now they have become fish meat surrounded by the defense line and slaughtered at will.

When Ohara Hisanobu was still observing the battlefield, three national army soldiers suddenly appeared one hundred meters ahead, carrying a strange weapon on their shoulders that they had never seen before.

As three flashes of fire flashed, three armor-piercing shells flew towards his Type 97 medium tank.

"Boom boom boom!"

The Japanese lieutenant colonel understood one thing before he died, that is, why the top leaders of the entire North China Front Army cared so much about a regiment-level unit of the Eighth Route Army.

This Marine Corps not only concentrated a large number of advanced weapons, but also had intelligence and air support.

Go forward, you can output face to face. Retreat, you can take a plane and run away. I am just an ordinary little lieutenant colonel, why should I fight with others.

When all the Type 97 medium tanks were killed, Li Da, the commander of the battlefield command post, picked up the communicator and ordered the artillery:

"Fire for me! Bomb his son of a bitch!"

"Swish! Swish! Swish!"

Swish, swish, swish!