At the beginning of the artillery bombardment, they just landed on the position one by one or exploded around the position.
As the previous thirty or so artillery shells were scattered in different locations, after the Japanese artillery test-firing was completed, the position was no longer exploding one by one, but in large pieces.
Although the area of the mountaintop position with a width of 800 meters and a depth of 60 meters is not very large, it is still hundreds of thousands of square meters, or nearly 0.5 square kilometers.
However, under the wild bombardment of a group of twelve howitzers, there was a sea of fire everywhere, with gravel and wood flying everywhere in the gunfire. The terrible air waves rolled up everything on the surface and then slammed it down.
The old monkey had no time to argue with Lin Hao about whether the market was open or not. Even though he was depressed because of the heavy casualties in the infantry squad and wanted to die, he was shaking constantly like he was sitting in the shell hole of a boat in the rough sea.
The only thing he can do now is to cover his ears with his hands, huddle on the ground and prop his elbows on the ground to prevent his chest and abdomen from touching the ground.
Otherwise, even if the two of them were lucky enough not to be hit by the artillery shell, the violent concussion caused by the grenade explosion would shock their internal organs and die quietly. Both of them are veterans, and they subconsciously used the most correct way to hide.
In the bombhole.
As for whether he can survive or not, it all depends on God.
As for the fleeing Japanese troops in the position below, when the first grenade streaked across the sky and exploded, their escape speed increased by another 20%.
Compared with the Chinese mortars chasing them, the 105 howitzer with the scream of death is obviously much more terrifying.
A 4-kilogram mortar shell may take away the lives of one or two people, but an 18-kilogram 105 howitzer can kill a quarter of the running people.
Even though they were already 500 or 600 meters away from the top of the mountain, the hot air waves generated by the explosion of the shells on the top of the mountain still seemed to burn their buttocks.
Not to mention them, even the three tanks were like frightened rabbits, running down the mountain at full speed. Si Benhao men knew very well that despite the Chinese machine guns, they were arrogant because of the Chinese
Without a cannon. Even if it was just an infantry cannon, their thin-skinned armored vehicle would be beaten into pieces. The Chinese 20mm machine gun on the previous position has proven that steel plates more than 20mm thick are really fragile.
Not to mention the 105 howitzer. Even if it doesn't hit directly, the air wave alone can overturn a 15-ton tank.
A grenade exploded more than 200 meters away from the defeated soldiers, causing them to increase their speed again.
Including the duo of Second Lieutenant Matsuda, who was already more than 300 meters ahead of them, even though they were 800 meters away from the center of the bombardment, Captain Matsuda and "Sooner or Later" were still pale on their faces.
The terrifying smoke of the 105 howitzer that destroyed the world was rising in clouds. The nearest one was only a few hundred meters away.
"Baga, hurry, hurry, run." Captain Matsuda completely gave up his dignity as a bullshit captain at this moment, and expressed his inner feelings so frankly to the private for the first time.
That is, run away quickly. If you don't run faster, you will be turned into ashes by Lieutenant Commander Hatori's crazy bombardment.
In desperation, the private did not support the superior officer who could save his life and ran away. Instead, he carried Second Lieutenant Matsuda, who was on one leg, on his back. He gritted his teeth, puffed out his cheeks, and his eyes were a little bulging, and ran for his life.
Running wildly ahead of the squadron of tanks that were already at full power, and ahead of the more than 100 colleagues who were also desperately trying to escape under the chase of mortar shells.
Brainwashed by the Nazis, they have always shouted "board" and launched brave charges against the enemy. The infantrymen known as the Imperial Army of Japan, after all their courage was worn away by the hail of bullets from the independent regiment, faced with their own artillery shells.
, they were just like a group of frightened rats, and their escape speed could completely break the record in the history of the Japanese army.
The expression on Lieutenant Colonel Hatori's face was unclear as he looked through the telescope at the battlefield that had been completely shrouded in gunpowder smoke. No one knew whether he was grateful that the defeated soldiers were able to escape quickly enough, or whether he was frightened by the defeated soldiers.
He looked extremely angry.
Due to the sudden changes in the situation on the main battlefield, the battlefields on both wings became irrelevant. Because of the howitzer fire, the Japanese 2nd Infantry Battalion took the initiative to retreat the soldiers back and distance themselves to avoid being accidentally injured by their own artillery fire.
Although the distance was still nearly a thousand meters, no one could guarantee that the shells would hit this side if the muzzle was slightly tilted. The two chief officers of the 772nd Regiment on the top of the mountain saw that the Japanese were actively retreating, so they stopped attacking.
Just get down the slope and withdraw the main infantry force on the top of the mountain to the back. The scorching air wave a thousand meters away made even the mad general who always fights without fear of his life tremble slightly. He is not afraid of death.
But it doesn't mean that he doesn't cherish the lives of his officers and soldiers. Under the power of such cannons, all bravery and strength will be turned into powder.
However, the Japanese artillery seemed to have taken medicine. They didn't care about the two wings at all, and just poured the artillery shells desperately towards the main position of Jiuguan. Five minutes, ten minutes, fifteen minutes... The bombardment continued for almost 20 minutes and still nothing happened.
stop.
The hill at Jiuguan that carries the position is shaking under the raging artillery fire. Not to mention the top of the mountain, which is swaying like wind and rain, even in the tunnel halfway up the mountainside, which is 200 meters away from the top of the mountain, the lantern hanging on the top of the pit is also shaking non-stop.
, the dust rustling down is frightening.
Liu Lang and Ye Zifei, who were sitting in the tunnel, both had solemn expressions on their faces. Even if they were like this in the tunnel, one could easily imagine the situation on the top of the mountain. The four soldiers of the second platoon and third squad of the company who were left behind did not know what happened to them.
The phone line had been cut off fifteen minutes ago, and the soldier hiding in the bunker of the frontline headquarters had not sent back any information for fifteen minutes.
Of course, Liu Lang is not worried that the Japanese will launch an attack at this time, if they really think that they are immortal.
Even the Third Reich Army, which had the best infantry and artillery coordination in this era, was unable to charge the infantry under such artillery fire. He was just worried about his four soldiers.
In the third infantry squad, apart from the four wounded soldiers who were sent to the rear hospital for rescue, there are only four people left. And two of the four wounded soldiers are too seriously injured. It remains to be seen whether they can survive the night.
.
If...then the Third Infantry Squadron could basically announce the dismantling of its organization. Looking at Cen Changqing, the platoon leader of the second platoon of the company who was sitting two meters away from the entrance of the tunnel, and no one could pull him away, you can tell how much he was suffering in his heart.
But Liu Lang also understood the young platoon leader. He just wanted to get closer to his soldiers.
The shelling was just the first step of the Japanese army. After 20 minutes, the guard at the entrance of the tunnel blew a bamboo whistle, which was an air defense alarm.
Amidst the roaring sound of artillery, the roar of Japanese aircraft engines in the sky gradually reached Liu Lang's ears.
The Japanese army actually sent out bombers again, risking being shot down.
Through the observation hole, a dozen Japanese planes were looming in the clouds, and a series of bombs were dropped from high altitude.
The three air defense positions hidden in the mountains all opened fire fiercely. There were three thousand infantry in the entire Jiuguan area. Even if all the air defense positions were destroyed, it was necessary to ensure that the Japanese aircraft could not drop bombs below one thousand meters. Otherwise, the losses would be huge.
It's unbearable.
However, the purpose of the Japanese aircraft this time was obviously not to compete with the independent regiment's anti-aircraft artillery position. There was no dive bombing. They all dropped bombs at high altitude in the direction of the main Jiuguan position, and then raised the nose of the aircraft and turned around to leave.
.
Dropping bombs at a height of 1,500 meters basically guaranteed their safety, but their accuracy was far from perfect. Twelve Japanese planes dropped at least twenty heavyweight aerial bombs and dozens of bombs, and only two hit the old
After closing the main position, the others either fell into the ravine or were thrown into the nearby mountains.
However, even those two are terrifying enough.
The power of the 250-pound aerial bomb explosion was so powerful that even sitting in a tunnel more than 200 meters away from the top of the mountain, I felt the tunnel tremble violently and then turn into darkness.
Several lanterns hanging on the top of the pit swung violently and hit the top of the pit, breaking into pieces.
If you look down from a high altitude, you can even see with the naked eye through the thick smoke that a large crater with a diameter of five meters appears on the top of the mountain.
The strong machine gun fortifications that could almost withstand the bombing of 105 howitzers were blown into ruins by the power of 250-pound aerial bombs.
The log as thick as an adult's waist is gone. The 25mm steel plate that was sandwiched in a gasoline barrel filled with sand and gravel to protect against tank guns is still there, but it is like a piece of paper that has been crumpled by a huge force.
It was inserted into the position. However, it was more than fifty meters away from where it once was.
The old monkey's battlefield experience saved four soldiers. Not to mention that hiding inside would be blown to ashes, even if they were hiding within forty meters from the center of the explosion, they would be shocked to death by the huge energy of the aerial bomb. There was no chance.
The four machine gun fortifications that had been exposed to the eyes of the Japanese artillery observers were indeed the key targets of the Japanese howitzers. The number of shells falling within a range of three to four hundred meters around them was four times that of other positions. In addition to those accidentally hit by aerial bombs,
In addition to one hit and destroyed, two more were destroyed by howitzers shelling them continuously for 20 minutes. If time is not spent on repairs, they will no longer be usable.
But miraculously, Old Monkey and Lin Hao, who were hiding in a cave that could only be protected from mountains and cannons, were still alive. Although their bodies were covered with a thick layer of mud, they looked like two clay figures, but they were still blinking.
, still breathing.
Luck is really good.
Under this kind of bombardment, luck really accounts for the majority of those who survive.
Those who were unlucky, like the dozen or so Japanese soldiers who were dragged behind, ran just a little slower because they were reluctant to leave their compatriots with limited mobility behind.
A grenade exploded more than 70 meters away from them, and the ferocious air wave violently overturned the five or six people who had no time to lie down, and three others were beaten to death by the roaring stone fragments and shell skins.
The bloody man was killed on the spot at the last moment when he was about to escape from the battlefield.
There were not many Japanese troops who survived. Excluding the wounded who were sent to first aid, there were 160 people standing in line in front of Colonel Hatori, nearly a squadron.
However, compared to the nearly 400 people in the two squadrons who attacked aggressively before the war, this disgraced team of more than 160 people seemed very shabby.
The 1st Infantry Battalion suffered a casualty rate as high as 60% in this brutal offensive and defensive battle.