frightfiction Chapter 571 Joint Attack
Chapter 571 Joint Attack
Under the fire support and guidance of the special operations regiment, the paratroopers burst out with amazing combat effectiveness.
They worked in groups, covered each other, and attacked swiftly.
The Thompson submachine gun unleashed a terrifying burst of firepower at close range, suppressing the remaining Japanese soldiers in the trenches so that they could not raise their heads.
The Garand riflemen fired precise bursts of fire, knocking down any Japanese soldier who dared to show his head.
The steady bursts of fire from the NTB44C combat rifle effectively suppressed the scattered Japanese firepower points in the distance that were trying to organize a counterattack.
Chen Dingbang, with the Second Company and the Machine Gun Company (equipped with M1919 machine guns and 60mm mortars dropped by parachute), quickly seized the wreckage of a destroyed hangar as a temporary support point.
"Machine guns! Set one up there and block the west side of the runway."
"Mortar, quickly find the range. Target, 11 o'clock, the low buildings behind the command post, there may be Japanese gathered there. When ready, fire a test shot!"
Chen Dingbang's orders were clear and quick.
"boom!"
Soon, a 60mm mortar shell whistled down, exploding a cloud of dust near the low house.
"Correction! Azimuth 346, distance 780! Three rounds of rapid fire!" The gunner quickly turned the roller on the gun to make adjustments.
"Boom, boom, boom!" Nine shells were fired almost in a line. The area of low-rise buildings was suddenly engulfed in flames and the screams of the devils could be heard faintly.
The battle quickly became one-sided.
The remaining Japanese soldiers were compressed to the west side of the airport, hiding in several sturdy buildings and hangars and putting up a desperate resistance.
Just then, the WACO heavy gliders arrived.
After breaking away from the C-47's tow rope, the powerless birds glided down.
"Our 'tin can' is here!" a soldier shouted excitedly after seeing it.
The heavy fuselage of the first glider crashed to the ground with huge inertia, and soon stopped steadily in the open space after gliding for a while.
Immediately afterwards, the pilot in the nose of the glider activated the mechanism and opened the nose door.
An M22 "Cicada" airborne tank painted in jungle camouflage rushed out at full speed!
"Cicada 2, pay attention to cover the infantry. Your target is the sandbag fortifications outside the tower."
Chen Dingbang immediately contacted the tank via walkie-talkie.
The M22's engine roared, and it rushed towards the tower like an awakened little monster.
When the Japanese machine gun behind a sandbag bunker under the tower was firing crazily to suppress the charging paratroopers, the 37mm gun barrel of the M22 suddenly spewed out a ball of flames.
"boom!"
The shells penetrated the sandbag bunker accurately, and the violent explosion blew the sandbags, machine guns and the Japanese soldiers behind them into the sky.
"Well done!" Zhao Yuan shouted excitedly, "Brothers, follow the tanks!"
The remaining Japanese garrison squadron was already short of manpower, and its morale had already dropped to the lowest point due to Tanabe's sudden death and the interruption of communications.
At this moment, they were hit by a double attack from the ground and the air. Now the opposing paratroopers even took out their precious tanks!
The Japanese defense line, lacking anti-tank weapons, collapsed instantly.
The first WACO heavy glider was quickly pushed away by the paratroopers working together to make way for the landing site.
Then, more gliders landed, bringing more tanks.
Under the cover of M22 tanks, the paratroopers quickly broke into the vicinity of the tower and surrounding buildings.
The sounds of intense gunfire gradually faded away.
When the first ray of true, golden-red dawn pierced the clouds in the east and shone unhindered on the dilapidated airport runway, a bright flag of the United States of Southeast Asia was raised by two paratroopers on the top floor of the tower.
The flag fluttered in the morning breeze that smelled of gunpowder.
The entire airport erupted in deafening cheers.
Chen Dingbang stood on the wreckage of the hangar, looking at the flag fluttering in the morning light, and a relieved smile finally appeared on his tired face.
He picked up the radio and reported:
"Falcon, Falcon, this is Talon Three. Palm Garden Airport is under control! I repeat, Palm Garden Airport is completely under control! Initial runway clearance, over!"
Just under forty minutes.
This "air blade" cut off an important arm of the enemy defending Palembang with lightning speed.
Chen Dingbang clenched his fists and looked toward the oil fields. Next, he would welcome the subsequent airdrop force and launch a deadly assault on the oil fields and ports.
-----
At 5 o'clock in the morning, outside the harbor of Palembang City, the sky where the sea and the sky meet was turning pale.
Suddenly, four huge mushroom clouds with a breath of destruction rose on the beach!
boom! boom! boom! boom!
Four Nanyang Navy "Zhenhai-class" shallow-water heavy gunboats with a length of more than 100 meters (the "Roberts" class ordered from White Eagle, equipped with 356mm naval guns in White Eagle's inventory) have just completed the first round of salvo!
The flames spewed out by eight battleship-grade 14-inch (356 mm) guns were particularly dazzling on the sea before dawn.
The shells tore through the air, with a shrill scream, and slammed heavily into the Japanese cannon positions and pre-set fortifications on the coast.
The Japanese only deployed a small number of old 120mm cannons along the coast of Palembang, whose range and power could not compete with the 356mm cannons.
Boom! Boom!
A huge explosion ripped through the coastline, and the Japanese gun positions were instantly engulfed in soaring mud, rubble, and flames.
As a serious artillery warfare warship, the Zhenhai-class main turret has a front armor thickness of 330 mm, a side armor belt thickness of 102-381 mm, a deck armor thickness of 51-102 mm, a standard displacement of 8100 tons, a full load displacement of nearly 10,000 tons, and a crew of 460 people.
With such thick armor, the Japanese counterattack artillery fire was almost painless.
On the contrary, the Zhenhai-class shallow-water heavy gunboats, equipped with air-to-air and sea-to-sea fire control radars, can retaliate with precise firepower.
After a round of salvos, the Japanese coastal artillery positions were immediately shrouded in thick smoke.
The power of a 356mm high-explosive conventional round was no joke. The coastal defense gun barrel that was directly hit twisted, the gun mount shattered, and the gunner was torn apart by the violent explosion before he could even scream.
The remaining Japanese artillerymen were terrified and tried to move, but the second and third rounds of heavy artillery fire followed.
Like a heavy hammer hitting a drum, it hammered the coastal defense line precisely and ruthlessly, crushing any resistance that dared to show up into powder.
Then, taking advantage of the sunlight from the rising sun, a second wave of B-25 bombers took off from the direction of Xingzhou and began a new round of bombing on the coastal fortifications.
Soon, the resistance firepower on the coastline was completely suppressed and destroyed.
Just as the smoke from the explosion had not yet dissipated, on the distant sea level, a huge landing fleet, like a floating steel forest, revealed its hideous outline in the dim light of dawn.
Rushing in the front were six Nanyang-produced monsters with peculiar appearances and decks covered with honeycomb-shaped launch tubes - the "Thunder-class" amphibious landing fire support ships.