Chapter 351 Lao Cui: The Eighth Route Army Is My Blood Pressure Medicine.
December 1, 1941, Zhongtiao Mountain airspace.
In the blue sky, eighteen Blenheim fighters escorted an air train transport plane, flying over Fenglingdu at a cruising speed at an altitude of about 3,000 meters.
The noise of the piston engine made the Jinsui Army soldiers stationed along the Yellow River raise their heads mechanically.
After confirming that it was the Eighth Route Army's air force, they continued to carry out reconnaissance work day after day, without any sense of panic.
There was no way, the current Jin faction had long lost its former pride, and vaguely revealed the embarrassment of the sun setting in the west.
For those Eighth Route Army fighters that recklessly crossed their own airspace, Yan Laoxi and a group of senior officers could only curse a few words in private to vent their dissatisfaction.
Because all of them knew one thing very well, if there was no united front, the entire Shanxi might not even have a place for the Jinsui Army to settle down.
If you want to survive, you'd better keep your tail between your legs.
When the entire flight formation entered the territory of Shanxi, the popular honorary leader stood up from his seat, and he came to the guests with a smile.
"Mr. Cui, two friends from Britain, we have successfully crossed the Yellow River, welcome to Shanxi."
"But we can't relax our vigilance for the time being. After all, the Army Aviation of the North China Front has been making small moves recently, which means that Japanese planes may launch a surprise attack at any time."
"Of course, our Eighth Route Army will ensure your safety. The fighter formation responsible for escort has just contacted Yuncheng Airport, and the most advanced fighters have been sent to relay."
Hearing this, Lao Cui nodded calmly, obviously full of confidence in his allies.
Shancheng Eighth Office dared to invite him to visit Shanxi in the name of the official, so it would definitely make a careful plan and program in advance. After all, not everyone hopes that he can have a safe journey.
Besides, the current strength of the Eighth Route Army Air Force is unique in the entire Asian region. Unless the Kwantung Army is out in full force, no force can hurt him.
"Mr. Dong, you're welcome. I have a good understanding of your strength."
Before Lao Cui finished speaking, there were bursts of exclamations from the middle and rear of the cabin, as if the source of the sound had discovered something incredible.
Helplessly, he could only express his apology with his eyes, and then turned around to see what happened.
"WTF!"
"Oh my God! Is this the British Peak?"
"First it was Blenheim, and now even the Handsome Warrior and Spitfire have appeared! I have every reason to doubt that there are not so many British fighters deployed in the entire Southeast Asia!"
The people who screamed in the cabin were two old London Union Jacks.
Since there was clear intelligence that the Eighth Route Army was equipped with a large number of British fighters of unknown origin, Supermarine and Hawke each sent a senior engineer to the Republic of China to investigate.
After all, the advanced equipment of their own company inexplicably appeared in other forces, and anyone would have to doubt their life.
If this is not investigated, how big is your heart.
After learning that the Eighth Office of Shancheng invited Lao Cui to Taiyuan for observation, the old knight who lived in the Republic of China immediately took the initiative to visit, just to get a chance to go with him.
Considering the other party's quasi-ally status, the popular honorary leader asked for advice from the border area and simply set off with two burdens.
Anyway, Director Huang of the Weapons Experimental Research Bureau said that even if they were asked to disassemble the fighter's engine for research, they could only go back with a confused face.
Looking at the British with shattered views, Lao Cui immediately turned into a front-row spectator.
Anyway, the fighters that are now on the scene are not his own MiG and Yak, so he has no obligation to worry about his allies.
After a while, the army officer with a particularly long name came to the window seat and adjusted his sitting posture at the first time, striving to enjoy the visual feast in front of him from the most perfect angle.
At this time, the Blenheim formation that was previously responsible for the escort had completed the handover with the Spitfire and the handsome warrior who came to take over.
This orderly and picturesque operation made Lao Cui, an outsider, sigh sincerely.
"Your army is really amazing. There are few combat formations with a record of kills per capita, even in my country."
"Since I boarded this transport plane, I know what it means to be amazed at what you have seen. To be able to train to this level, the comrades must have shed a lot of blood and sweat."
"Compared with some forces that do not seek to make progress and are useless, your Eighth Route Army is the real hero."
The "some people" mentioned by Lao Cui are of course referring to the Air Force of Guojian.
Compared with the strict military discipline of the Eighth Route Army, those young masters who took the back door have no idea what discipline is. They fully interpret what it means to not reward meritorious deeds and not punish faults.
The most outrageous thing is that as a regular military family, they actually openly allow the use of public aircraft for private purposes, and even often use combat aircraft for private work.
Thinking of this, Lao Cui felt that his blood pressure suddenly soared.
With the mentality of not being able to hold back, he complained to the popular honorary leader in great anger:
"At the beginning of this year, we delivered a batch of fighters and bombers to Guofu, which are important equipment urgently needed by the Republic of China."
"During the transportation to the border, no fighter plane was damaged due to the long journey. But as soon as Guofu's air force took over, guess what happened?"
Without waiting for the popular honorary leader to reply, Lao Cui first drank a sip of water to calm down, and then raised his voice and almost roared:
"Those people took over for a few days and wrote off two I-16s, ten SP-2s and twenty I-153s. There are also nineteen planes that need to be overhauled before they can be used."
"Anyone with a little bit of brains knows to cherish equipment! But the Fruit Preserves Air Force suffered losses before the battle. What do you think of this?"
"And their training is extremely perfunctory. After so many years of war, there is not even a bombing training ground, nor air-to-ground target practice facilities. Is this considered the air force of a big country?"
After these words came out, the popular honorary leader held his forehead and was speechless for a while.
He knew that there were big problems inside the Fruit Preserves, and he also knew that the other side's air force had poor combat effectiveness. But the inside story just revealed by the ally still shocked him greatly.
"Mr. Cui, let the past be the past."
"Anyway, the day of your return to China is getting closer and closer, and you can be out of sight and out of mind after a while. You should regard Guofu's experience as a wonderful journey."
"After all, looking around the world, no country's air force is so magical."
Although the allies comforted him in time, Lao Cui's high blood pressure still showed no signs of relief.
Due to his special identity, his every word and action represents his motherland, so he still has a lot to say.
For Guofu's air force, his evaluation is that it is both inexperienced and rotten.
A group of serious pilots, whose knowledge reserves in mechanics can only be described as poor, they are not even as good as himself, who is purely from the army.
A few simple questions, except for pilots from some local forces, basically no one can answer them.
It's okay to be inexperienced, but not to learn! It's really hopeless!
Look at the Eighth Route Army, it is said that this air force has only been established for a year. In just one year, it can produce many ace pilots.
This is called comparing goods to goods and throwing them away, comparing people to people and dying!
In order not to faint from anger, Lao Cui quickly stuck to the window and took a few more glances at the fighter planes not far away. At this moment, the Eighth Route Army Air Force has become his antihypertensive drug.
······
Half an hour later, the entire formation landed at Wusu Airport in the southeast of Taiyuan.
As soon as the door of the sky train was opened, the three international friends who came to visit found a large number of ground crews. Those people were skilled and they were elites who had experienced many battles.
Suddenly, the engineer from Supermarine exclaimed again. He pointed to the apron and hangar in the distance and said in disbelief:
"Oh my God!"
"I seem to be back in Portsmouth. Why does the Republic of China have so many Spitfire fighters!"
"No, no, the size and appearance of those planes are not the same! I really want to get close to them! If possible, I want to go to the maintenance workshop to have a look!"
Although the two wanted to rush over immediately, they were not the kind of nerds without social skills, and naturally knew that they needed to stay calm on other people's territory.
After forcibly suppressing their inner desire, the engineers followed Lao Cui out of the cabin door.
As soon as the group got off the transport plane, the reception group that had been waiting for a long time came out from the crowd to greet them.
As we all know, Lao Cui is a fifth-term graduate of the Frunze Military Academy. Considering this relationship, the deputy chief of staff who graduated from the same school must be the best choice to receive the allies.
"Lao Cui, we haven't seen each other for several years."
"Old Dong, you have worked hard on this trip. The headquarters has arranged a physical examination for you, and a doctor will come to see you later."
"Come on, let's take a car back to the headquarters first. For lunch today, the kitchen team has prepared hot pot, so you can see whether the Sichuan chefs of the Eighth Route Army are authentic."
As soon as these words came out, Lao Cui felt a warm current in his heart.
Since the incident in the south, the number of times he contacted the border area has gradually decreased, and he even rarely went to the Eighth Office in the mountain city.
Unexpectedly, when I came to ask for help this time, the comrades actually received me regardless of the past, and the scale of the reception was not ordinary.
How could he not be moved by this situation?
"Okay! Let's eat first! I'll follow your arrangements!"
Looking at the happy atmosphere, the two old Londoners looked at each other and felt that now was a good time to speak.
After a moment, the engineer from Supermarine stepped forward and said to the deputy chief of staff with respect:
"Hello, sir. My name is Kashu Holland, an aircraft design expert. We came to Taiyuan this time to exchange relevant experience in fighter manufacturing with your army."
"If it is convenient, I hope to get close to various types of fighters in service in the Eighth Route Army."
The British request was completely expected by the deputy chief of staff.
Because before leaving, the border area sent a telegram to inform about this matter.
Although it has the endorsement of the Yellow River, the headquarters obviously does not intend to let the "allies" find out too much intelligence. After all, the data of fighters is a secret in any force.
After a little thought, the deputy chief of staff said with a smile:
"You two guests don't have to be so polite. Your request is very reasonable. I will send someone to accompany you on the tour now."
The handsome warrior is unlocked by the research slot from August to November. The details will be written in the next chapter. I have a 2,500-word manuscript, and I will try to publish it early during the day.