Throughout World War II, the Japanese army has never been able to develop anti-tank guns with excellent performance. In addition to using flat-firing field guns to replace the urgently needed large-caliber anti-tank guns, the most effective anti-tank means is also to bring weapons to the opponent. The weapon that causes the greatest losses is the human bomb attack.
It is probably quite a joke to say that the best anti-tank weapon of the Japanese army throughout World War II was actually the Type 90 field gun. Although this type has excellent performance, it is not suitable for the strategic needs of the Japanese army because it is relatively bulky. , and artillery that was not very popular with the Japanese army, although it was not popular with the Japanese artillery, its huge destructive power against tanks when fired flatly, became the most powerful anti-tank weapon of the Japanese army in the entire World War II.
However, the main function of this kind of field gun is fire suppression, and because of its excellent performance, the Japanese army with limited production capacity is reluctant to use it as a special anti-tank gun. In addition, because of its high price and limited production quantity, the Japanese army Throughout the war, the most commonly used anti-tank weapons were meat bombs strapped with grenades or Molotov cocktails, or those strange but ineffective anti-tank magnetic mines.
Although the Japanese anti-tank guns are not something to be afraid of, those Japanese meat bullets that are not afraid of death are also a considerable threat to tanks. Not to mention the T-26, the main tank of the current anti-alliance equipment, because of its relatively weak armor. It's hard to withstand that kind of suicide attack.
Even the US Army Sherman medium tanks and the Soviet T 34 medium tanks a few years later suffered heavy losses under these crazy meat bomb attacks. Therefore, Yang Zhen did not pay much attention to the Japanese suicide attack tactics. on top of its slow-developing anti-tank guns.
In order to deal with the meat bomb tactics that the Japanese army might launch in the face of their own armored cluster offensive, Yang Zhen not only thought about it himself, but also asked Chen Hanzhang to study hard and formulate some targeted tactics. At the time, many people felt that this was basically in vain. The work of strength, on the battlefield, had an unexpected effect on those who objected and thought it was a futile waste of gasoline and ammunition.
At that time, the anti-tank guns equipped by the Japanese army not only failed to play their intended role and were unable to destroy the oncoming Anti-Alliance tanks, but suffered heavy losses under the attack of the Anti-Alliance infantry. The Japanese army once again sacrificed its performance in Nomonhan. During the battle, when the Soviet armored forces used meat bomb tactics to cause serious losses, they desperately discovered that under the opponent's intensive infantry firepower, their own tactics had extremely limited effect.
Those Japanese soldiers who faced the anti-alliance armored offensive, holding Molotov cocktails or Type 99 tank blasting mines, or strapping explosive bags and grenades all over their bodies, and risking their lives to launch a body bomb offensive, were beaten by the infantry following the tanks. Or the parallel machine gun on the tank, which cannot get close to its target at all.
Although relying on the so-called warrior spirit of the Japanese soldiers and not fearing death, the meat bomb tactics adopted also achieved a small number of extremely limited results, blowing up the tracks of several T-26 tanks, but this relied on the physical strength of the Japanese soldiers. The obtained victory was unable to stop the tanks of the Anti-Japanese Alliance, which easily tore apart the blocking positions of various divisions of the Kwantung Army under the cover of infantry.
Especially the 28th Division, which was regarded as the key breakthrough. After the Anti-Japanese Alliance launched a full-scale attack, in less than six hours, the front-line positions were completely overrun. Even the deep positions were attacked by the opponent's infantry and artillery tanks. Under the coordinated impact of multiple arms, it also seemed a bit precarious.
At 6 o'clock in the morning, the anti-alliance forces received the response and dispatched more than 100 tanks to cover the infantry and launched a full-line attack. The 28th Division's front-line positions were under the impact of the opponent's infantry, tank, and artillery units. Less than six The commander of the 28th Division, Lieutenant General Ishiguro Sadzo, could not help but be stunned by the news that the entire front line had been breached within hours, and that the deep positions were in danger under the fierce attack of the opponent.
Although he was a little surprised that the defense line of his 28th Division was destroyed so quickly, Lieutenant General Ishiguro Sadzo knew that if he could not block the defense line that was torn apart by the Anti-Japanese Alliance as soon as possible and allowed this situation to continue, he would The 28th Division will face the danger of being divided across the board.
Lieutenant General Ishiguro Sadazou reacted without any hesitation. He immediately retracted the defense line despite the air strikes of the Anti-Japanese Alliance, and immediately retracted the Thirty-sixth Regiment deployed on the Yao'an front line back to Qian'an and to the front flag of Guo'erluosi, and moved The last two infantry brigades in the division reserve also quickly moved into the second-line position.
And concentrated all the artillery of the division, as well as the attached heavy artillery, to launch fire interception at all costs against the enemy in front of them, in an attempt to block the resistance forces in front of them within the second-line position. As for the entire 28th Division, the final Yao An's line of defense on the west side has actually been abandoned by him.
Lieutenant General Ishiguro Sadzo knew very well that if the enemy's attack could not be blocked in front of the second-line position and the current situation continued, the entire 28th Division's defense line would be in danger of being completely separated, and once the 28th Division The divisions were divided, what would be the outcome of waiting for the 28th Division, especially what consequences would it have on the entire Kwantung Army's defense posture once the garrison in Qianguo collapsed.
For senior generals of the Kwantung Army like Lieutenant General Ishiguro Sadzo, he clearly knows what the current defense focus of the Kwantung Army is. He also knows that for the Kwantung Army, Xinjing, the seat of the Kwantung Army headquarters and the capital of Manchukuo, is the capital of the Kwantung Army. The city that symbolizes the army's rule in Manchuria is the focus of the Kwantung Army's current defense. For the Kwantung Army, Xinjing cannot be lost under any circumstances.
Once the front Guo direction is broken through, it means that the integrated Kwantung Army defense line will be split from the west. Not only the 51st Division deployed on the line from Nanxing'an to Yao'an will become a lone army and face the risk of being encircled, but also the entire Kwantung Army. The flanks of the army's first-line defense will be completely destroyed.
Once the front line of Qianguo is lost, the Songnen Plain from the front line of Qianguo all the way to Xingjing will be basically unobstructed, and there is no danger to defend the Songnen Plain. Once the Anti-Japanese Alliance concentrates a large number of tanks, it will be along the front line of Qianguo and Fuyu. When attacking Xinjing, not only Xinjing is at risk, but also the several divisions deployed to the north of Xinjing, which contain almost all the elites of the Kwantung Army, are also in danger of being surrounded.
Although it has been more than half a day since the Anti-Resistance Alliance launched its attack, the 28th Division has not yet received a notification from the Kwantung Army headquarters, and it is even less clear whether the 29th Division, which is responsible for the line from Shulan to Jilin east of Xinjing, will Did the 7th Division on the front line of Buyeo, Deokhye, and Yushu across the twin cities also encounter the same ending as themselves?
Since the Anti-Japanese Alliance launched its attack, the radio communication between the 28th Division and the Kwantung Army Headquarters in Xinjing has not been smooth. The high-power radio station responsible for communicating with the Kwantung Army Headquarters has no other than rustling noise interference in the headphones. , we couldn't get any useful information, and the wired telephone line to contact Xinjing was interrupted for a long time, and it was never repaired and unblocked. I'm afraid there was something wrong.
Although the direct communication between the 28th Division and the Kwantung Army was completely cut off and it was impossible to know the situation on other fronts, Lieutenant General Ishiguro Sadazou knew clearly that the attack launched by the Anti-Japanese Alliance would not fall only on his own. Overhead, the Anti-Japanese Alliance tried their best to conceal their strategic intentions and concentrated so many troops and equipment at once. If they did not move, it would be a full-scale attack.
If the goal of the Anti-Japanese Alliance is really Xinjing and the Kwantung Army troops north of Xinjing as the Kwantung Army Headquarters had expected earlier, then whether it can hold on to the front line from the former Gorros Front Banner to Buyeo is extremely important to the Kwantung Army. Crucially, as for whether the Nanxing'an area, which has not yet seen any action, is also one of the targets of the Anti-Japanese Alliance's all-out attack, that is not something he has to worry about.
For Lieutenant General Ishiguro Sadazou, the fire has already reached his eyebrows. Naturally, he has to take care of his head first. As for his butt, let's wait until the fire reaches there. The terrain of the Nanxing'an front line is compared to the terrain of Ma Pingchuan in the former Gorros Front Banner. , there are too many good things, and there is favorable terrain to rely on. Presumably the 51st Division's ability to withstand attacks is much stronger than our own.
Now for him and the 28th Division, under the enemy's large-scale multi-arms coordinated offensive, holding the line from Qianguo to Fuyu is the most important, and other places can no longer be taken care of at the moment. Compared with the area north of Xinjing where the troops are concentrated, the defense area of the 28th Division is too wide. Anyway, even if the 28th Division evacuates, there will still be the 51st Division that has just been reorganized to defend there. Naturally, the Eighteenth Division doesn't have to worry too much.
Lieutenant General Ishiguro Sadazou nervously adjusted his deployment, concentrated all available forces, and tried to stabilize the already unstable deep position under the onslaught of the Anti-Union armored forces. At the same time, he launched an attack in front of him, but he also did not expect that The start was going to be so smooth. Chen Hanzhang, while closely observing the progress of the battle, sent a telegram to Yang Zhen reporting that he had broken through the Japanese frontal defense line across the board.
As the commander of the armored forces of the Northeast Anti-Japanese Allied Forces, Chen Hanzhang was ordered to command an armored brigade, a cavalry brigade, and two infantry divisions from the direction of Qiqihar to the front line of Guoguo in this battle. He was originally prepared for a tough battle. After all, where does the real combat effectiveness of the Japanese army lie?
In addition, during the pre-war preparations, in order to conceal Wang Guangyu's true combat intentions on the western front, Chen Hanzhang's troops made a lot of noise on the front line, and it can even be said that they consciously attracted the attention of the entire Japanese army to themselves. , after all, the terrain from Qianguo to Xinjing is the most favorable to the entire tactical intention of the Anti-Japanese Alliance.
Breaking through here is equivalent to cutting off the connection between the Japanese army on the middle route and the Japanese army on the western front. If the Japanese 28th Division on the front line of Qianguo is defeated, the flanks of the heavy troop cluster deployed by the Kwantung Army on the central line will all be exposed to the eyes of the Anti-Japanese Alliance. Under the banner, the front line from Qianguo to Buyeo can be seen by anyone with a bit of strategic vision of its importance to the entire deployment of the Japanese army.
But it is precisely because the terrain here is extremely conducive to launching an attack, especially for large-scale armored cluster operations, that the headquarters uncharacteristically repeatedly requested that Chen Hanzhang make as much noise as possible in order to draw the Japanese army's attention as much as possible. Transferred from the Western Front to cooperate with Wang Guangyu's offensive on the Western Front.
According to this order, before the battle was launched, Chen Hanzhang had already predicted that under the current situation that had attracted most of the attention of the Kwantung Army on the Western Front to himself, after launching the attack, the resistance would be more fierce. , Chen Hanzhang was even prepared to pay more than half of the casualties of a division.
Precisely because he had a true understanding of the Japanese army's combat effectiveness and a detailed estimate of the extent of resistance he could encounter, Chen Hanzhang thought of almost all possible unexpected situations before launching the attack, but The only thing is that the breakthrough was like this, and the breakthrough was so smooth after the attack was launched, which he had not expected before.