This iron rolling mopping up tactic was invented by the commander of the North China Front Army, Okamura Neiji.
Okamura Neiji once used this tactic to deal with the soldiers and civilians of the Eighth Route Army's Jizhong Military Region, and the effect was remarkable.
Afterwards, Okamura Neiji prepared to use this tactic to deal with the Eighth Route Army and ordinary people in northwestern Shanxi, but not only did it not achieve the effect, but he suffered heavy losses.
However, this does not mean that this tactic is useless. For example, in the scene in front of us, the iron rolling sweeping tactic can exert its greatest power.
Nearly 30,000 Japanese soldiers were trapped in a narrow area of 7 kilometers long, which was most suitable for the iron rolling mopping up tactics.
Of course, before the iron-rolling sweep begins, the Japanese must first drink a large pot of wine.
Li Yunlong wants to use artillery to teach the Japanese in the First Division a lesson. What the hell is artillery firepower?
It is not the Japanese's exclusive right to charge the infantry after the artillery bombardment.
The Japanese troops entering the ambush circle were a total of 3 infantry regiments, 2 artillery regiments, 1 cavalry regiment, 1 engineer regiment and 1 baggage regiment.
These three infantry regiments are all from Class A divisions and have very strong combat effectiveness.
They are the 7th Infantry Regiment, the 49th Infantry Regiment, and the 57th Infantry Regiment.
In addition to the fact that the artillery regiment has little combat effectiveness in close combat, the Japanese engineering regiment and the heavy baggage regiment also have very strong combat effectiveness.
Therefore, in order to reduce his own casualties, Li Yunlong did not hesitate to fire all the shells.
The 1st Artillery Battalion and the 2nd Artillery Battalion of the New Regiment first bombarded the two Japanese artillery regiments.
The Japanese's two artillery regiments have a total of 72 cannons, 12 of which are 105mm howitzers, and the rest are 75mm field guns or 75mm mountain guns.
Once the Japanese are allowed to set up the cannon, it will also be a great threat to the new regiment of infantry.
In a preemptive strike, a convoy of more than 100 trucks towing two artillery regiments was instantly enveloped in smoke. One truck was hit by artillery shells and ignited a raging fire.
Some trucks were even loaded with gas bombs, which exploded and poisoned a large number of Japanese.
As for the truck loaded with conventional armor-piercing bombs and high-explosive bombs, it exploded instantly. The truck was turned into parts in an instant, and even the mountain cannon towed behind was thrown flying.
ahead.
As the battle began, the main force of the Eighth Route Army, more than 40,000 men, was dispatched.
Some of them gathered towards the highway and seized the commanding heights under the cover of artillery fire to prevent the Japanese from escaping.
Some of them gathered towards the beginning and end of the position, preparing to start an iron rolling sweep.
The battalion's 82mm mortars, 60mm mortars, 75mm mountain guns, 105mm howitzers, and 150mm howitzers all opened fire.
A total of more than 800 artillery pieces of various calibers poured shells towards the road.
On average, there were more than 100 artillery pieces bombarding the Japanese every kilometer.
There were more artillery shells than the Japanese had imagined, and the entire highway was shrouded in explosive fireballs and smoke.
Under the cover of fierce artillery fire, the Eighth Route Army soldiers quickly approached the road, built a defense line about 500 meters away from the road, set up weapons and fired at the Japanese to prevent them from escaping.
Faced with the sudden attack, the Japanese were a little overwhelmed at first, but they were the elite among the elite after all.
Soon, the Japs stabilized their position and tried to counterattack on both sides to kill the Eighth Route Army's artillery positions.
However, they soon encountered intensive firepower from the Eighth Route Army.
If facing ordinary Eighth Route Army troops, even if this group of Japs is ambushed, they can break out with their powerful combat effectiveness and fierce firepower, and even fight back.
But it was the Eighth Route Army troops from the three regiments of the Eighth Route Army in northwest Shanxi that ambushed the Japanese.
The equipment is all semi-automatic firepower, submachine guns, light and heavy machine guns, and the firepower density is extremely powerful.
The bazooka, M2 heavy machine gun and 20mm machine gun swung around, and the Japanese who rushed up were torn into pieces.
Even though the Japanese set up grenades and mortars to knock out the Eighth Route Army's firepower points, the dense artillery shells soon hit the Japanese firepower points.
A Japanese transport plane flew over from high altitude.
In the transport plane, Mitsuo Nakazawa used a telescope to look at the ground through the cabin glass, with shock, anger and grief in his expression and eyes.
What was shocking was that the Eighth Route Army actually carried out such a large ambush, and that the Eighth Route Army actually had such powerful artillery firepower.
Angry that the Eighth Route Army dared to ambush the 1st Division of the Empire of Japan.
Sadly, under the artillery fire of the Eighth Route Army, two artillery regiments were wiped out, and soldiers of the First Division were killed and injured in droves.
These are the real main force of the First Division.
My heart aches for Lieutenant General Mitsuo Nakazawa.
Sanfu Nakazawa wanted to cry but had no tears.
Although the soldiers of the First Division are very powerful in combat, they are not superhuman after all. They will die if they are hit by bullets, and they will be torn into pieces if they are hit by artillery shells.
"Send the order to lower the flight altitude."
Mitsuo Nakazawa ordered to a combat staff officer beside him.
The combat staff officer was suddenly startled and immediately advised: "Your Excellency, Division Commander... This, this is too dangerous. The Eighth Route Army below has extremely powerful anti-aircraft firepower."
Hearing this, Sanfu Nakazawa had a look of helplessness on his face.
He originally wanted to lower the transport plane to find the weak point of the Eighth Route Army's ambush position, and then use radio to direct the troops on the ground to break out from the weak point.
But if the altitude is lowered, even a fighter with high maneuverability will be difficult to survive, not to mention the transport plane he is sitting on, which will be more likely to be shot down.
"Did the reconnaissance plane take off from Peiping Airport?" Mitsuo Nakazawa asked.
"The reconnaissance plane has taken off!" the combat staff replied.
"Have the orders to move to Datong been issued to all regiments?" Nakazawa Mizuo asked again.
"The order has been issued." The combat staff hesitated, "But..."
"But what?"
"The commander of the 1st Brigade, Shinpei Ito, and the Commander of the 2nd Brigade, Yoshio Anten, were both shattered."
"Baga!" Mitsuo Nakazawa's chest heaved violently and he cursed, "Order the pilot, let's return to Datong."
Mitsuo Nakazawa did not dare to stay too long above the battlefield.
Who knows if Eighth Route Army will call for air support?
If Mr. Eighth Route Army calls for air support, his transport plane will definitely be shot down.
"Hi!"
The combat staff hurried to the cockpit to deliver the order.
…
In the field of view of the telescope.
Watching the Japanese transport plane circle around the edge of the battlefield, then fly away quickly.
Li Yunlong, who secretly asked the anti-aircraft artillery to prepare, secretly said it was a pity.
Shooting down a plane is a lot of money.
Nowadays, the new regiment's anti-aircraft firepower is very powerful. As long as the Japanese transport plane flies closer and lower, it can be shot down.
"It's so enjoyable!"
"Enjoyable!"
Watching the transport plane fly away, Kong Jie didn't feel any pity at all, he was enjoying watching the battlefield below.
At this time, the formations of the devils in some areas have dispersed, while the devils in other areas have gathered together, trying to carve out a bloody path.
The artillery muzzle fireworks on the Eighth Route Army's position continued to bloom, and the dense artillery shells drew arcs and hit the Japanese near the highway.
Boom boom boom...
Dense explosions continued to occur near the highway.
The shelling continued, and rounds after rounds of shells streaked across the sky, like meteors, hitting the location of the Japanese.
Of course the Japs didn't want to be bombed, but they were helpless. Both sides of the road were full of firepower from the Eighth Route Army, and it was difficult to get out even if they wanted to.
However, such a large ambush circle is not the condescending ambush terrain like Miaoergou and Dawangou.
It is simply impossible to achieve without flaws and loopholes.
In particular, one-third of the Eighth Route Army troops in the ambush were new recruits.
The Japs in the 1st Division were not good at dealing with enemies either. They quickly found several loopholes in the Eighth Route Army's ambush circle, and thousands of Japs escaped.
Fortunately, Li Yunlong sent a reserve team to plug the loophole in time and stopped the Japanese from escaping.
Li Yunlong raised his wrist and looked at his watch. The bombardment lasted for a full hour, and at least 2 basic shells were fired.
"about there."
"Command, the cavalry, armored battalions and tank battalions are coming forward."
"Let's see the power of the iron roller sweep."
Putting down his hand, Captain Li looked at the correspondent Chen Baoshan on the side, and gave the order to start the sweep with a stern expression.
"yes!"
Chen Baoshan took the walkie-talkie and began to order:
"Hey, this is the regiment headquarters. Calling the 2nd Cavalry Battalion, the Armored Battalion, and the Tank Battalion."
After the last delivery of 20 armored vehicles arrived, Li Yunlong used these 20 armored vehicles to form an armored battalion.
Although there are only 20 armored vehicles now, there will be more in the future. Li Yunlong is sure of this, so he directly expanded the battalion.
Under the cover and cooperation of the soldiers of the first battalion of the division, the armored battalion and the tank battalion attacked and swept forward from the end of the encirclement circle toward the head of the encirclement circle.
The cavalry battalion swept from the head towards the end of the encirclement.
The cavalry battalions and chariots rolled forward like iron rollers.
More than 30 tanks and 20 armored vehicles advanced towards the forward attack in a direct width direction of several hundred meters.
Although it is not a plain terrain, there is no problem running half-track armored vehicles and tanks on this terrain.
The soldiers of the first battalion were distributed on both sides of the tanks and armored vehicles, slowly moving forward with the tanks and armored vehicles.
The Japanese's more than 60 tanks and armored vehicles were almost all lost in previous battles, let alone against the new regiment's tanks.
Faced with the firepower of a new group of armored vehicles and tanks, the Japanese fell one by one.
On the other side, one after another Yunlong swords were slashed in the air, and as the bloody arrows were fired, one after another the heads of the Japanese fell to the ground.
On the top of the mountain, in the field of vision of the telescope and artillery scope, we saw an almost one-sided battle.
Li Yunlong, Zhao Gang, Xing Zhiguo, Kong Jie and others all had expressions of fierceness and joy on their faces.
To sum it up in two words, it’s a pleasure.
Ding Wei glanced sideways at Li Yunlong. After this battle, Li Yunlong will probably become famous again.
The Fifth Army fought a bloody battle at Kunlun Pass and killed more than 5,000 people from the 21st Brigade of the Japanese Fifth Division at the cost of more than 10,000 casualties. The Fifth Army became famous in the first battle.
In this battle, after excluding the thousands of Japanese who escaped, the Eighth Route Army could kill at least 20,000 Japanese.
These are not ordinary Japs, but Japs who belong to the Class A Division just like the Fifth Division.
"Old Li, the escaped Japanese are heading towards Datong."
Zhao Gang put down the telescope and said.
The Japs have a strong fighting capacity, and the terrain is not perfect. There are loopholes in the coordination and connection between the battalions. There is no way to allow the Japs to escape with thousands of people.
But this was what Li Yunlong and the others expected.
From the beginning, Li Yunlong had no intention of killing all the Japanese. It was too difficult.
As long as the main force of the 1st Division can be killed, it will be considered a success.
Judging from the current situation, Li Yunlong has achieved more than half of his strategic goals.
The Japanese who escaped from the encirclement did not return to rescue the Japanese in the encirclement, and the Eighth Route Army did not have extra troops to chase the escaped Japanese.
The 1st Cavalry Battalion was chasing the Japs' cavalry regiment. They no longer knew where they were going. They were probably dozens of kilometers away.
Li Yunlong narrowed his eyes and said: "No, the 2nd Independent Brigade is in danger. Immediately order the 2nd Independent Brigade to retreat towards Hengshan."
The 2nd Independent Brigade was responsible for blocking the Japanese 26th Division, but it was able to block it for some time.
However, once the escaping Japanese army reunited with the 26th Division, the 2nd Brigade would be at risk of getting dumped.
Once the 2nd Independent Brigade was made dumplings, it would probably be annihilated by the Japanese. Li Yunlong would naturally not let this happen.
"yes!"
Chen Baoshan quickly picked up the walkie-talkie and asked the regiment radio station to contact the 2nd Independent Brigade for retreat.
"Order the 2nd Independent Brigade to retreat?" Kong Jie suddenly said in surprise, "The Japs from the 26th Division will be able to arrive in a few hours at most if they march at full speed. Before the Japs from the 26th Division arrive, our side Can you finish the fight?"
"It should be no problem." Li Yunlong looked at the sky and then at the battlefield before saying.
"but……"
"In order to prevent the 26th Division and the escaped Japanese from counterattack, we must be prepared to respond."
There are still more than 20,000 Japanese soldiers in the encirclement. The Japanese soldiers will definitely not give up easily.
…
Beiping.
Iron Lion Alley.
North China Front Army Headquarters, in the Operations Hall.
A communications staff officer and a combat staff officer quickly walked into the combat hall hand in hand.
The communications staff officer immediately reported to Okamura Ningji: "Report to Commander, the reconnaissance liaison plane has arrived over the battlefield in northwestern Shanxi and has returned the latest news."
Okamura Neiji raised his head with a gloomy face and motioned to the communications staff to continue.
The communications staff officer glanced at the combat staff officer, who then pointed at the map and reported:
"Commander, the battlefield is in this area, about 7 kilometers in length, and the Eighth Route Army is on both sides of the road."
"The Eighth Route Army hid from reconnaissance planes and scouts by wearing snow-white robes."
"About 5,000 Locust Army soldiers have broken out of the Eighth Route Army's encirclement and are turning towards Datong."
"However, the gap was quickly blocked by the Eighth Route Army, and there are still more than 10,000 Locust Army soldiers in the encirclement."
"Currently, the Eighth Route Army's cavalry, armored vehicles, tank units, and elite infantry units are sweeping towards the center of the battlefield from the head and tail."
Based on the detailed battlefield conditions reported by the combat staff, Okamura Neji and Tanabe Moritake could imagine how tragic the battle was for the First Division.
etc…
Suddenly, Okamura Neji's eyes narrowed.
Use cavalry, tanks, armored vehicles, and elite infantry to sweep toward the center from both ends. Why is this tactic so familiar?
After squinting his eyes and thinking for a moment, Okamura Neiji finally remembered, isn't this the iron rolling tactic he invented?
Thinking of this, Okamura Neji almost fainted with black eyes.
Li Yunlong actually used the tactics he invented to deal with the locust army?
Okamura Neji's mentality collapsed.
(End of chapter)
