allonlinenovel Chapter 128: Massive Artillery Group, the Fortress Hammer of the Karl Mortar
Chapter 128: Massive Artillery Group, the Fortress Hammer of the Karl Mortar
The Zhengtai Line is also the route where the Restoration Army has made the most smooth progress.
Facts have also proved that if the rout cannot be stopped, it will spread to all the troops and cause a larger-scale rout.
Of course, this also has a lot to do with the fact that most of the Northern Frontier troops along this route are ragtag troops.
These troops were also unwilling to fight the Fuxing Army.
Among these more than 100,000 people, there were more than 20,000 soldiers who revolted.
The number of prisoners exceeded 6.
Only more than 10,000 people took the train back to Shimen City. They still felt unsafe and decisively abandoned Shimen City and ran towards Zhili.
The 3rd Motorized Infantry Division of the Fuxing Army also successfully captured Shimen, an important northern town.
This is also the intersection of the Zhengtai Line and the Jingbei Railway, and is also the southern gate of Zhili Province.
From Shimen, going north is Shangjing, and going south you can directly reach Shangdu, the capital of Zhongyuan Province.
The importance of Shangdu is self-evident.
Therefore, Shimen also has very important strategic significance for the Fuxing Army.
Now they just need to guard the stone gate and wait for the next order.
The reason they had to wait was because their progress was a little too fast.
The third and fourth columns had just set out not long ago, but the fifth column had already occupied the stone gate.
After receiving the order, the two major columns of the Second Corps of Qidong Province also began to act quickly.
The Third Column, consisting of the 5th Motorized Infantry Division, the 16th Mechanized Infantry Division, the 17th Armored Division, the 2nd Heavy Tank Brigade, the 1st Railway Artillery Regiment, and the 1st Independent Heavy Artillery Regiment, marched north from Quancheng along the Jinpu Railway and launched an attack on Tianjin, an important city in Zhili Province.
This route is also strictly guarded by the Northern Frontier Army.
Yuan Shicheng deployed the largest number of troops here, with more than 200,000 troops.
Among them, two of the five major armies in the northern border are deployed here.
Moreover, both armies were newly built Japanese-equipped units trained by Fuso instructors themselves.
The Fourth Column, composed of the Sixth Motorized Infantry Division and the Seventh Mechanized Infantry Division, will move south along the Jinpu Line and head straight for Shangdu, the capital of Zhongyuan Province.
As long as we take Shangdu, we will continue to move south and take over Jingbei Province.
This is the mission of the Fourth Column, which is basically equivalent to an armed march.
There are basically no obstacles along the way, but it is not so easy to win.
Because they don't have many troops along the way.
Once the garrison division sent from Beire Province is in place, the 8th and 9th Motorized Infantry Divisions can be withdrawn and added to the 4th Column.
A force consisting of one mechanized infantry division and three motorized infantry divisions is enough to guard against the Southern Alliance.
If the SAARC is not honest.
Then Jiang Hua doesn't mind letting them see what it means to have a violent army.
The focus of this side is still on the third column.
The first obstacle they encountered was the defense line on the north bank of the Long River in northern Xinjiang.
The Northern Frontier Army built very complete riverside defense fortifications on the north bank.
And a large number of anti-tank fortifications were deployed.
These anti-tank fortifications were also built recently under the guidance of the Fuso Army.
However, in the view of Luo Qing, commander of the Third Column, breaking through the Long River defense line is not a difficult task.
Luo Qing previously served as the commander of the 5th Motorized Infantry Division.
During the Battle of Qidong, he led the 5th Motorized Infantry Division to annihilate the Anwu Army of Northern Xinjiang and capture Quancheng, making great contributions.
So he took two steps and was promoted to the commander of the Third Army of the Second Legion.
This time, he, the commander of the Third Army, will serve as the commander of the Third Column and be fully responsible for the battle along the way.
Gu Zhengyang, commander of the Second Legion, was in charge of Quancheng.
Luo Qing had only one word for the defense line on the north bank of the Long River in northern Xinjiang: bomb!
Concentrate troops on one point, and then use various artillery and fighter planes to bombard that point.
When the bombing is almost over, the BMP-1 infantry fighting vehicles will force their way across the Long River and attack the opposite direction.
The pontoon bridge troops completed the construction of the pontoon bridge within a day, allowing the large troops to cross the river.
This is the battle plan formulated by Luo Qing.
This point is in Qiyang, about 20 kilometers north of Quancheng.
Although this is the place where the Northern Frontier Army has the largest number of stationed troops, the newly formed Anwu Army is also stationed here.
But this is also the area with the flattest terrain, and crossing the river here is conducive to the deployment of large troops.
When all the troops were in place, Luo Qing also received news that the Fifth Column had defeated the Northern Frontier Army and was marching towards Shimen City.
After seeing this message, he began to feel anxious.
He originally thought that the Fifth Column would be the slowest route.
After all, the area where they are located is mountainous, which is not conducive to the deployment and maneuvering of troops.
But no one expected that their progress would be so fast, to an unbelievable degree.
Then they must speed up as well.
This battle is related to whether the Renaissance Army can dominate the entire north.
Therefore, both Luo Qing and the entire Fuxing Army seemed a little anxious.
"Chief of Staff, the following orders are recorded.
The 5th Artillery Regiment, the 16th Artillery Regiment, the 17th Artillery Regiment, the 1st Railway Artillery Regiment, and the 1st Independent Heavy Artillery Regiment launched a large-scale artillery bombardment on the Qiyang River bank defense line in northern Xinjiang on the north bank of the Long River.
After completing four hours of artillery preparation, the artillery bombardment was extended to the rear to block the passage between the enemy's first and second lines of defense.
At the same time, contact the Second Air Force Command and have them launch a large-scale carpet bombing campaign against the Qiyang front, sending as many fighter planes as possible."
"Yes! Commander!"
As Luo Qing gave the order.
On the plain across the Qiyang line stood a row of artillery pieces that had already been erected.
Hundreds of artillery pieces formed a large-scale artillery group on this plain.
Among them, the 5th Artillery Regiment belongs to the 5th Motorized Infantry Division.
装备36门M2A1型105毫米榴弹炮、18门M1A1型155毫米榴弹炮、18门B-4型榴弹炮、喀秋莎火箭炮24辆。
The 16th Artillery Regiment and the 17th Artillery Regiment are respectively affiliated with the 16th Mechanized Infantry Division and the 17th Armored Division.
The two artillery regiments have the same organization and are self-propelled artillery regiments.
两个炮团一共装备108辆M7型牧师105毫米自行火炮、36辆M41型155毫米榴弹炮、36辆M40型155毫米加农炮、48辆安德柳莎自行火箭炮。
These three artillery regiments alone are equipped with 105 144mm guns.
155 108mm howitzers and cannons.
203 36mm howitzers.
72 Katyusha and Andryusha self-propelled rocket launchers.
This does not include the fact that each regiment is also equipped with an artillery battalion.
Excluding rocket launchers, the total number of these artillery pieces alone is as high as 288.
If these 105mm howitzers are included, the number will be even greater.
In terms of scale, the artillery units of these three divisions combined are no less than that of an artillery division.
This is just the artillery regiment of three divisions. You should know that the Third Column also has a railway artillery regiment and an independent heavy artillery regiment.
Among them, the First Railway Artillery Regiment played an important role in the battles of Daocheng and Quancheng, and even damaged Fuso's battleships.
This railway artillery regiment is equipped with a total of 12 K5E railway guns.
The caliber of this thing reaches 308 mm, and its power is far beyond the reach of the artillery of three artillery regiments.
The 1st Independent Heavy Artillery Regiment was even more explosive.
They were equipped with fewer but larger caliber rounds.
It was also specially prepared by Jiang Hua for the Northern Frontier Army.
This thing is the famous Karl mortar in the original World War II.
Although it is not as famous as the 800mm caliber Gustav.
But its caliber reached 600 mm, and it was specially developed for the Marchinos Line of Defense. It is a siege gun type.
Therefore, its range is not very far, only about 6 kilometers, its weight is 124 tons, its speed is only a pitiful 10 kilometers per hour, its maneuverability is very poor, but its power is very great.
The maximum weight of a single shell can reach 2.2 tons.
You can feel how powerful it is from its weight.
The total number of artillery pieces in the two artillery regiments reached 20.
This number is a very impressive figure even in Xizhou.
On the battlefield of the ancient country, these things are invincible.
As the order was issued, all artillery positions began to operate efficiently.
The heavy artillery pieces standing on the battlefield are like sleeping beasts, standing majestically and ready to go.
"put!"
"emission!"
Almost at the same time, all the artillery pieces began firing.
The muzzle spewed out dazzling flames like a fire dragon, and the deafening sound of the cannon resounded through the sky.
The moment the shell was fired, the air wave emitted from the muzzle swept across the surroundings, raising huge smoke and dust, covering the artillery position.
Hundreds of artillery shells whizzed across the sky and smashed towards the Northern Xinjiang Anwu Army positions, which were only a dozen kilometers long.
Almost the moment the artillery shells were seen, an early warning was issued on the position.
The Northern Frontier Army rushed to the nearest fortifications, bunkers or anti-artillery holes in panic.
At this moment, staying in the communication trench of the position is waiting for death.
In an instant, artillery fire erupted on the position like a volcanic hell, and dense flames bloomed in the position.
It seemed that every shell contained violent energy.
When they are released, they brutally destroy everything around them.
The bunkers and fortifications seemed so vulnerable in the face of these shells.
The communication trenches were also blown down section by section.
Wood, gravel, and shrapnel mixed together and swept around.
Those Northern Frontier troops who had not yet had time to run into the fortifications were immediately blown away, with corpses scattered all over the ground.
An entire section of the position was engulfed in artillery fire, and the flames of the explosion and the smoke of the burning gathered into a terrifying hell. The scene was extremely spectacular.
Especially when the Karl mortar fired a high-explosive bomb weighing 2.2 tons.
Earth-shaking and mountain-collapse are enough to describe its power.
One shot created a huge crater with a diameter of more than ten meters and a depth of more than six meters.
The fortifications in the Northern Frontier Army’s positions were not that deep.
So under Karl's mortar, the anti-artillery holes on their position were of no use.
The fortifications and the people inside were all destroyed by a single shot from the Karl mortar.
The soldiers inside were blown to pieces without feeling any pain.
The explosion of the Karl mortar was like a heavy hammer hitting everyone's heart.
Amidst such intensive explosions, the fear in the hearts of the Northern Frontier Army on the battlefield was infinitely magnified.
At this moment, they seemed to be waiting for death to come.
The news that the Fuxing Army launched a large-scale artillery bombardment on the Qiyang front line quickly reached the Longhe Defense Line Command.
It immediately caused a huge sensation.