noffsinger Chapter 1089 The Japanese Battalion Commander is Captured
Chapter 1089 The Japanese Battalion Commander is Captured
Inside the command center, the radio kept beeping, and the telephone rang intermittently.
Tian Tao and several division commanders and staff officers stood in front of the sand table discussing the current offensive situation.
At this moment, a combat staff officer strode over and said to Tian Tao and the others, "Sirs, the boss is here!"
Upon hearing this, everyone looked up and then turned to face the entrance of the command center.
When Zhang Yunhe and his men arrived at the entrance of the command center, Tian Tao and the others stood at attention and saluted: "Good morning, boss!"
Zhang Yunhe, dressed in a combat uniform without rank insignia, raised his hand to return the salute to the crowd.
He walked up to the sand table and asked, "How's the battle going?"
Tian Tao said, "After taking Shangjiao Island and Dongzui Island in the morning, the troops rested for four hours. At 11:30 a.m., before the northeast wind picked up, we sent out a bomber group to bomb the three southern islands for half an hour."
"At 11:50, the ships carrying the landing troops set off towards Nan San Island. Fifteen minutes later, the northeast wind picked up, and the fleet arrived near Nan San Island. After launching smoke bombs, they immediately launched the landing attack."
"Because the Japanese had never experienced this type of amphibious assault before, they were caught off guard by our attack. Our landing force easily completed the landing and rushed to the first line of Japanese defense, capturing it without lifting a finger!"
"Our army is currently attacking the Japanese second line of defense. More than two-thirds of the Japanese underground tunnels have been captured by our army, and the remaining small number of Japanese soldiers are huddled in the other third of the underground tunnels, putting up a stubborn resistance!"
"Judging from the previous battles, our soldiers have achieved excellent results after more than a month of amphibious landing and tunnel warfare training. They have performed beyond their usual level in this amphibious landing and tunnel warfare, and each of them has fought very bravely and with high morale!"
"The reason why our operation has progressed so smoothly is twofold: firstly, our brothers are in high spirits and have a fearless attitude; secondly, our flamethrowers, individual rocket launchers, and armed helicopters have an absolute killing effect on the Japanese bunkers and machine gun positions in their positions and tunnels!"
"Under the firepower of our armed helicopters, the enemy's ground bunkers and firing points were basically no match for us, as fragile as paper; under the attack of our flamethrowers and man-portable rocket launchers, the Japanese underground bunkers were destroyed one by one. At a distance of more than 40 meters, our flamethrowers were able to spray flames from the firing ports into the enemy's underground bunkers and burn the Japanese to death!"
After listening to Tian Tao's introduction, Zhang Yunhe nodded and said, "Very good. The smooth progress of the operation is inseparable from your command and the bravery of the soldiers. Equipment only plays a part. No matter how powerful or advanced the weapon is, the key is how well the user can bring out its power!"
"Yes, boss! There's another matter. The frontline officers sent back a message saying that the villagers on Nan San Island have been almost entirely wiped out by the Japanese. They captured all the villagers beforehand, killing the old, weak, women, and children first, leaving only the able-bodied men, and forcing them to dig trenches and underground tunnels. The Japanese positions and underground tunnels were basically dug by the villagers!"
"A squad leader reported that after they dealt with the Japanese soldiers in a tunnel, they discovered villagers who had recently been killed. Some of them were killed by the Japanese with bayonets, and others were killed by rifles and machine guns!"
Hearing this, Zhang Yunhe clenched his fists and said, "These Japanese devils have gone mad! How many Japanese devils do you think are still on Nansan Island?"
"So far, we have dealt with about 300 Japanese soldiers, and there are less than 200 left!" Tian Tao said.
Looking at the enemy and friendly forces on the sand table, Zhang Yunhe said, "Judging from the situation, the attack on West Island is progressing faster than the other two islands. Then give the order to the commander at the front to take West Island first!"
"Yes!" Tian Tao agreed, then added, "Boss, there's another situation. Because the Japanese soldiers massacred the villagers, the soldiers are extremely angry. During the attack, some Japanese soldiers surrendered, but everyone was so angry that they couldn't stop. Some squad leaders even ordered their soldiers not to take any prisoners. What do you think of this situation..."
Zhang Yunhe considered for a moment and said, "It's good for us that the enemy has surrendered, as it will make it much easier to take Nansan Island; but we can't ignore the morale of the brothers on the front lines. Let's let the front-line commanders decide based on the specific situation!"
The people in the command room looked at each other, and Tian Tao stood at attention and said, "Yes, boss!"
The subsequent attack did not go too smoothly. The Japanese soldiers in the second line of defense were extremely tenacious. They held their positions at the various access points in the remaining tunnels and used machine guns to block the attack tunnels of Zhang Yunhe's soldiers, causing considerable casualties. This situation was only reversed after flamethrower troops joined the battle.
Flamethrowers are weapons with a wide area of damage. Once sprayed with napalm, flames will instantly engulf the area, making it impossible to dodge. Some Japanese soldiers hid behind bunkers, thinking they could escape, but when the bunkers were on fire, the high temperature and lack of oxygen in the air made it impossible for them to hide. They had no choice but to run out, but what awaited them was still the merciless flames.
Between 2:30 and 3:00 PM, Zhang Yunhe's soldiers finally captured the Japanese second line of defense, annihilating all the Japanese soldiers on that line.
Only the third line of defense remained, which was also the last line of defense for the Japanese. Behind it was the Japanese command post, and this line of defense was the most difficult to attack because it was a line of defense formed by natural cliffs.
The Japanese thought that even if the first and second lines of defense were breached, this line would be impregnable. However, this line was actually the easiest to breach for Zhang Yunhe, who had armed helicopters and transport helicopters.
At 3:30 p.m., Zhang Yunhe dispatched 10 Longbow attack helicopters and 10 transport helicopters.
First, 10 Longbow attack helicopters led the way, launching an air strike against the Japanese third line of defense in a three-dimensional formation.
After several rounds of machine gun fire and cannon bombardment, 10 transport helicopters carrying more than 100 soldiers flew to the third line of defense and rappelled down. After landing, the soldiers quickly set up a defensive line to cover their comrades who landed behind them.
Some of them landed in front of the Japanese troops, while others landed behind the Japanese lines, landing directly in the Japanese command post. The Japanese were stunned and unable to mount an effective counterattack, and were quickly killed one by one.
In less than half an hour, the battle was completely over. The Japanese command post was destroyed. The Japanese battalion commander, Masao Hoshino, and his chief of staff, Kiichi Nagase, tried to commit suicide, but were captured by the soldiers who rushed in.