In order to ensure that the troops can replenish food and other supplies in the area of activity, as well as the troops' urgently needed reconnaissance of the enemy's situation, Lin Zhiqiang also transferred a group of enemy officers, reconnaissance staff, and experienced veterans from the old base areas based on his experience in the pass. Scouts, and the backbone of veterans transferred from the Anti-Japanese Alliance.
Two reconnaissance platoons were drawn from the reconnaissance companies in the two regiments, plus five combat squads drawn from the most complete regiment, and cadres at all levels were drawn out to form a group of armed work teams. , specifically dealing with the Japanese and puppet military police and the puppet Manchukuo police in various group tribes, eliminating the Japanese and puppet grassroots political power, and creating favorable conditions for the activities of the troops.
In order to strengthen the combat effectiveness of these armed work teams as much as possible, Lin Zhiqiang specially allocated a batch of submachine guns from the army. In addition to having two submachine guns, each squad also specially equipped a grenade cannon. These armed work teams were equipped with some explosives and new anti-Japanese counterfeit Soviet-made F-1 grenades. Each armed work team was also assigned an experienced company commander to command.
The task Lin Zhiqiang gave them was very simple, which was to deal with the Japanese and puppet military police and military police in the group tribes, as well as the grassroots regime of the puppet Manchukuo. In addition to raising some food and supplies for the troops, they also wanted to get the Japanese and puppet troops at all costs. intelligence, and this intelligence includes all military intelligence, and when necessary, all necessary means can be used, even some methods and means that do not follow policy in the eyes of those cadres within the customs.
After painstaking adjustments, although the current establishment of the army has been reduced, the organizational structure has been greatly enriched. Moreover, after adjustment, the brigade has a complete organic regiment in hand. Although the remaining regiment only has four companies, However, the strength of each company has reached full strength, or even over-strength, and after internal adjustments, the troops have at least unified the caliber of weapons based on the regiment.
Even in order to achieve the uniformity of weapon calibers as much as possible, after weighing the pros and cons, Lin Zhiqiang transferred all the existing Polish water-cooled heavy machine guns and French heavy machine guns in the army, and exchanged them with other troops one-on-one for the Type 92 heavy machine gun. The calibers of heavy machine guns are as unified as possible. As for other rifles, they can only be adjusted within the brigade first. If the number is not enough, the status quo can only be maintained temporarily. At least it must be ensured that within a regiment, the caliber of light weapons is Consistent.
In fact, Lin Zhiqiang is not satisfied with the current adjustment of the army's equipment. He feels that the troops within the customs dress a little randomly when distributing weapons allocated by the Anti-Japanese War. The troops of the 129th Division transferred from the Taihang Mountains are better. When distributing weapons, At that time, based on the quantity and type of equipment distributed, an all-Japanese weapons brigade and a full 79-caliber weapon brigade were formed. Those that were insufficient in quantity were fully equipped through internal adjustments.
Ensure that the equipment of each brigade is unified, at least in terms of calibers of light machine guns and rifles. Although there are three types of heavy machine guns, we should also tap the original potential and use the brigade as the basic organization as much as possible to achieve universal ammunition and resist joint deployment. Some of the French-made heavy machine guns that came over were equipped with one brigade as much as possible due to their special calibers.
However, although the original troops of the Shanxi-Chahar-Hebei Military Region have now achieved sufficient weapons establishment, each man has one gun, and have eliminated miscellaneous weapons such as old sleeves that lack ammunition, they have not done anything about their own internal weapons. Weapons were adjusted, and the calibers of weapons used in the troops were not unified as much as possible.
Not to mention the newly formed columns, the equipment is still a bit messy. Even the regiment-level troops still have German caliber 79 and Japanese caliber 65, two different calibers. As for the caliber of the pistol, it is even more Use whatever you have. There are a lot of ammunition, such as speed machines and shell guns with dozens of rounds, and American and British revolvers with a small amount of ammunition, or even only a few rounds of ammunition each, or only one round for your own use.
The 18th Group Army, which started by seizing and collecting weapons, originally had all kinds of weapons. The rifles and pistols in the army can be called a world exhibition. Except for the German-caliber rifles with a large amount of equipment, the rest of the rifles and pistols , exhibitions can be held if there are many types and calibers.
After decades of warlord melee, China, which still had many factions in the early days of the Anti-Japanese War, had all kinds of weapons. When it came to the 18th Group Army, which was in short supply of weapons, it had all kinds of weapons, even those made by warlords from all over the country. Weapons of low quality are also available as long as you can find bullets.
As for the Hanyang-made and Jin-made 65 rifles, rifles produced by regular manufacturers are already quite good weapons. If we can get the Czech machine guns and rifles that the 29th Army imitated at the Dagu Shipyard, they will also be considered very good. Well, as for being able to get rifles made in Belgium, the Czech Republic, and Germany imported by warlords from all over the world, that would be amazing. Seizing a Type 38 can make a soldier so excited that he can't sleep for several nights.
This situation has caused the troops to be already short of ammunition, and even more so. Many types of rifles, each with a few rounds of bullets, are gone after they are fired. However, the number of weapons is always insufficient, and some troops are still equipped with several There were a lot of broadswords and spears, and the rifles had to be captured in combat. These rifles were just for show, so they were not eliminated.
It is precisely because of this situation that when the Anti-Japanese Alliance transported weapons by air, they had all kinds of artillery, ranging from bayonets and bullet bags on rifles to light and heavy machine guns and mortars. When transporting weapons, they basically used The 79 German and 65 Japanese calibers are the main ones.
Except for the heavy machine guns, which were airlifted to ensure that all troops within the customs had a certain reserve, some legal Hotchkiss heavy machine guns were transported by air. All of them were Polish-made and captured Japanese-made weapons transferred from Jiangbei. At the same time, the weapons of the troops within the customs were also known. After the chaos, Yang Zhen asked each group to replace them one by one.
Since the most urgently needed weapons and equipment for the troops within the customs were given absolute priority during air transportation, by the time Lin Zhiqiang and his group of instructors arrived from the Northeast to Yan'an, and then from Yan'an through various blockades to various base areas, the troops had already completed the equipment change. At least at the beginning, he was not clear about the change of equipment in each base area.
Later, he learned that the troops in the Shanxi-Chahar-Hebei Military Region did not undergo overall equipment changes when they were distributed. Instead, when replenishing equipment, they basically adjusted and supplemented the original equipment, which is the part you are deficient in. I We will completely replenish them for you, and those that are too old and no longer usable will be replaced.
As for the original weapons that can still be used, they do not need to be exchanged. Try not to exchange them. Moreover, the supplement of weapons is mainly machine guns, grenade launchers, and other weapons with large gaps in the army. As for the relatively large number of light weapons, Machine guns will be adjusted as much as possible, those that are insufficient will be supplemented, and those that are over-staffed will be collected.
All the old guns with old sleeves, Italian-made rifles and other outdated guns were replaced. As for the original guns collected from the private sector and used by no-name armed forces, the rifling has basically been worn out, such as Hanyang, Dagu and other broken guns. Guns are also replaced, including those with bullets but whose caliber is not mainstream used by the army.
For example, some of the British-made 77 rifles, Italian-made 65 rifles, and Jin-made submachine guns equipped by the troops of the Shanxi-Chahar-Hebei Military Region were all replaced and replaced with weapons and equipment made in Japan or Poland. Although the original Hanyang-made They were all of 79 caliber, but because Polish bullets could not be used, they were all transferred to the second-line troops.
The main forces of the Shanxi-Chahar-Hebei Military Region participating in the war all exchanged weapons according to this method. As for the different calibers of weapons within the army, they were exchanged by the army themselves. The original Japanese-made rifles, the Shanxi-made 65th rifle, and the 79th rifle. The better ones are made in the Czech Republic, but all the Chinese ones remain.
The Shanxi-Chahar-Hebei Military Region used some of the remaining equipment, plus Hanyang-made weapons that the main force had replaced, to upgrade and form a group of troops. After being transferred as the main force, they continued to hold on in the base area, but the Taihang Military Region went north. Due to certain considerations, the troops were replaced one by one according to needs.
It's just that each unit is fighting independently and in a state of scattered guerrillas. Many of the units were developed or built by themselves. How many weapons each regiment has, as their superior, the Shanxi-Chahar-Hebei Military Region, is not very clear. Even the military divisions to which each regiment belongs cannot be 100% controlled.
After all, when you first develop the army, your superiors will give you a part of the backbone and a large or small organization, but you can't afford to get the equipment you need because your superiors don't have it. Some troops even don't even have the minimum equipment. You have to make military uniforms yourself.
There is no arsenal at the superior level. The National Government does not recognize the designation of these newly expanded troops at all, and naturally will not issue them with guns or ammunition. If you want to develop and grow, you can find a way to do it yourself. How many weapons you can get is up to you. It's your own. If you have the ability, use light and heavy machine guns and mortars. If you don't have the ability, just continue to use your spears and swords.
Some troops took advantage of this opportunity to lay ambushes when the troops were changing equipment, and privately kept some of the weapons that they should turn in according to the regulations of their superiors as supplementary weapons, especially those operating in relatively wealthy areas. Troops always have a certain number of spare weapons in their hands.
After all, we are all used to it. The quantity distributed by superiors is limited and cannot meet the needs of the troops. Many of the equipment on hand are made by ourselves. In case the battle losses are too large or the troops need to be expanded, , and without additional support from superiors, the firepower of the unit would be greatly weakened. This situation is something that commanders at all levels do not want to see.
When changing equipment, although the heavy machine guns were all turned in and replaced with Polish-made Browning heavy machine guns flown by the Anti-Japanese Alliance, or a full set of Japanese-made Type 92 heavy machine guns, all the original miscellaneous machine guns have been turned in. The heavy machine guns It is still impossible to hide this thing in an ambush.
Therefore, through these adjustments to equipment, Lin Zhiqiang unexpectedly discovered a number of foundations. Although the number could not make up for the current combat losses of the army, it finally replenished some of the equipment that had been damaged in previous battles. Of course, heavy machine guns and mortars There are no heavy equipment such as guns and artillery.
It turns out that this kind of weapon, which is already a heavy equipment in the 18th Army, was originally in short supply. Each regiment only had one or two mortars or five or six heavy machine guns, and even two heavy machine guns were very few. It's true, there are insufficient rifles, and there is no way to replenish these weapons. They can only find ways to capture them in future battles, but they have made some improvements in light machine guns and rifles.