And just when the 32nd Division completed the breakthrough to Ruyuekou, Yi Liangpin's troops fought in a chaotic battle with the 32nd Division. The 21st Division, which had been stagnant in Yanmen Pass, suddenly all troops
They dispatched to launch a fierce attack to the north. They successively seized New Guangwu and Old Guangwu, and launched an attack on Shanyin and Dongyulin with three regiments advancing hand in hand.
Seeing the 21st Division, he finally took the bait, and Chen Hanzhang's heart suddenly fell. Although Mu Changqiu's troops had not yet reached the Pingdiquan line, they had not been able to seize Guoxian County and cut off the 21st Division.
The regiment's retreat. And now Yi Liangpin, who is entangled in the First Division of the 32nd Division, may not be able to leave Malankou according to the original plan.
However, with the Ruyuekou front line having been completely broken through, Chen Hanzhang knew that he did not have much time to wait for all the 21st Division to enter the encirclement circle. According to the current situation, Chen Hanzhang gave up the original plan according to the development of the situation.
The plan to set up an ambush on the front line of Hongtao Mountain.
Immediately ordered the troops deployed in Shentou to forcibly cross the Sanggan River south of Mayi and penetrate directly into Guangwu Fort to cut off the retreat of the 21st Division. The troops originally set up in Hongtao Mountain attacked across the board. After Chen Hanzhang was able to mobilize all
Under the cover of artillery fire, they penetrated the highway from Shanyin to Yulin. With a cavalry unit, they quickly assaulted the Zhangzhuang line. They launched a pincer attack on the 21st Division from the east and west.
Chen Hanzhang's order to all the troops was to complete the two-sided attack on the 21st Division in the shortest possible time. In fact, in this situation, Chen Hanzhang had given up his original plan to encircle and annihilate the 21st Division.
Yi Liangpin was unable to withdraw. With one hand held by the Japanese army, he now no longer had enough troops to complete the encirclement of the 21st Division.
The armored units in his hands that can be put into the battlefield immediately, except for the armored regiment equipped with T 34 tanks, are all the tank units he currently has on the Yanmenguan battlefield. There are only two T 26 light tank companies, and Yang Jicai from
The dozen or so Crusader tanks that were withdrawn from Taiyuan were not sufficient in tank clusters.
Compared with the insufficient number of tanks that can be invested, Chen Hanzhang's biggest headache is that the number of infantry cannot meet the needs. Although he temporarily changed all the cavalry he could mobilize to infantry to participate in the battle, he still felt abnormal in the use of his troops.
Tension and inadequacy.
Although most of the Japanese army was concentrated in the Datong Basin, which was relatively advantageous on the battlefield, it was not a flat plain. Although the Japanese army failed to seize Hongtao Mountain, the terrain where Guangwu Fort is located is located in a hilly area. And between Guangwu and Yulin Fort
However, it was located in a plain area. In fact, although Chen Hanzhang was in a condescending position, when he really started fighting, he was still in a position of feigning attack.
Under this situation, more troops are needed. The main force of the 10th Division, which is arriving one after another, has already moved to Ruyuekou, Yingxian, and Shanyin to deploy defenses in the southeast to hold back the 32nd Division.
, he really couldn't muster the strength to encircle the 21st Division. This battle was destined to be a defeat from the beginning.
When the troops were insufficient, Chen Hanzhang tried his best to use firepower instead. He mobilized all the artillery with a caliber of more than 100 mm that he could concentrate on hand, and used firepower with air support to suppress the Japanese army from three sides. In addition, he used tanks to cooperate with the infantry, and gradually
Annihilate one enemy unit and completely defeat the 21st Division.
Originally, Chen Hanzhang wanted to concentrate the main force of the 1st Armored Regiment, and with the cooperation of the 1st Battalion of Mechanized Infantry, forcefully penetrate the Japanese army in depth. This tactic was used once by Chen Hanzhang on the Korean battlefield. At that time, he also used the maneuverability of tanks and armored vehicles.
The capabilities and firepower were along the mountain roads, under the cover of limited infantry, using a large-depth and rapid assault method to tear apart the Japanese army's overall defense circle.
In North Korea at that time, the situation faced by Chen Hanzhang was not exactly the same as it is now. But not only did he face a disadvantage in terms of military strength, but he also had to withstand the artillery suppression of the Japanese naval fleet. The pressure he endured was no less than the pressure he faces today.
go.
Faced with the superior strength of the Japanese troops stationed in Korea, Chen Hanzhang used this tactic to show off his power on the battlefield and disrupted the Japanese offensive. After the battle, No. 1 personally introduced this tactic.
A resounding name is "Tanks Chopping into Battle".
The current situation is much stronger than that in North Korea. Our own side has the advantage in firepower, and the Japanese army does not have the support of naval guns. In terms of the quantity and quality of heavy firepower, the Anti-Japanese Alliance on the battlefield in northern Shanxi even occupied a certain
Advantage. Although the military strength is a little tighter, the number of enemy troops facing the surrounding area is also greater than that of the original Korean battlefield.
However, Chen Hanzhang believes that under similar terrain and enemy conditions, it is absolutely appropriate for him to adopt this tactic. Moreover, the Soviet-made T-34 tanks he is currently equipped with include armor protection, firepower, and mobility.
Including, they are far from comparable to those Polish and French no-name light tanks of the past.
The power of the 76mm tank guns of these Soviet-made T-34 tanks is far more powerful than those of the French 37mm short-barreled tank guns of the past. What's more, the firepower and combat effectiveness of the infantry cover now are also far more powerful than those of the past.
.If you replicate this tactic in northern Shanxi, it will definitely play a decisive role.
But Chen Hanzhang did not expect that just over a year had passed. In the Korean battlefield, he played an unimaginable role, and even the tactics that were decisive for the stability of the battle would be used in the northern Shanxi battlefield.
However, not only did it fail to achieve the desired effect, but it actually suffered serious losses.
The 21st Division obviously made extremely detailed preparations before the war. Not only during the battle, they never rushed forward easily, but always fought steadily. Whether they were marching or fighting, they always hugged each other and
First, control the surrounding commanding heights. The most critical thing is that each regiment is equipped with supernumerary anti-tank guns.
Not only is it equipped with a large number of the latest Japanese anti-tank guns, it is also equipped with a new type of anti-tank artillery that is far more powerful than the original anti-tank guns of the Japanese army. For this new anti-tank gun, Chen Hanzhang can use his military membership as a guarantee
, it has definitely never happened before.
A T 34 tank company of the 1st Armored Regiment, with the cooperation of three Crusader tanks, repeatedly tried to use the mountain roads to carry out rapid assaults. However, they were firmly blocked by the new anti-tank artillery that appeared in the Japanese army.
On the highway, this new type of anti-tank artillery is significantly more powerful than the Japanese army's latest Type 1 anti-tank rapid-fire gun.
Chen Hanzhang, who personally commanded the front line, believed that this anti-tank gun was definitely not a Japanese-style anti-tank gun. This kind of artillery could destroy T-34 tanks from the front at a distance of 300 meters.
Other Japanese-made anti-tank artillery simply do not have this capability.
You must know that even the Japanese army's new Type 1 anti-tank gun can only penetrate the weak points on the side of this tank within a few tens of meters. And if you want to destroy this kind of tank with a narrow turret front, other than
Except for extreme good luck, this is simply not possible.
In mountainous operations, the visual straight-line distance itself is relatively short. Moreover, in mountainous terrain, the low gun body of this anti-tank gun means that in such more complex terrain, the anti-tank tanks can only adopt a first-line column during the attack.
This method of breakthrough is very suitable for the Japanese army to rely on new anti-tank guns and adopt ambush tactics to destroy the anti-alliance T 34 tanks at close range.
In addition, the Soviet-made tanks have a very narrow pitch angle, which means that the range of firepower is very limited. The Japanese army deployed this anti-tank gun on the mountainside, together with the Type 1 rapid-fire gun at the bottom and the 92 infantry gun at the top of the mountain.
Cooperating with each other, they pose a considerable threat to the tanks of the Anti-Union Alliance.
The Japanese army often placed the tanks deep in their own area and attacked the front and rear tanks first. After destroying the first tank to block the passage, they then switched their firepower to destroy the other tanks that were blocked on the road one by one. At close range, multiple tanks
Under the attack of firepower, let alone the T-34 tanks of the Anti-Japanese Alliance, even the new tanks of more than ten years later would be difficult to withstand this tactic.
Chen Hanzhang did not expect that he had once shown his prowess in tank battles and tank battles on the Korean Peninsula. In the mountainous area of Northern Shanxi, which is also a mountainous area, he was suddenly beaten by more than 30 new Japanese anti-tank guns.
It was contained. After losing a company of T 34 tanks and three Crusader tanks being completely destroyed, Chen Hanzhang could only stop using insertion and division tactics.
These T 34 tanks that were destroyed in this battle were the first tanks of this type destroyed by Japanese anti-tank artillery since the battle began. It was also the first time that this type of tank was equipped with the Anti-Japanese Alliance on the battlefield.
It was destroyed by Japanese anti-tank fire.
Under the circumstances of heavy losses, Chen Hanzhang could only use T 34 tanks as the main frontal assault, and the infantry covered the tanks. Instead, he used direct fire to cover the infantry attack, while the infantry was under the cover of tank artillery fire.
, first gradually eliminate anti-tank artillery, and then open the way for subsequent tank attacks.
Just by doing this, although the number of tank losses dropped to an acceptable level, Chen Hanzhang's counterattack speed dropped significantly. Especially, it had a serious impact on the implementation of the original plan, greatly delaying the achievement of the goal.
time.
The mountainous terrain in this area itself also restricted the use of tanks, making the Anti-League offensive very messy. After encountering the Anti-Union counterattack, the 21st Division seized the opportunity as soon as possible.
The surrounding commanding heights. Relying on these commanding heights, one's own defense formed a whole within a short period of time.
At the same time, the Japanese troops around any point being attacked will provide fire support and troop reinforcements as soon as possible. The 21st Division seems to have been trained in similar terrain. It advances and retreats in the battle with a certain degree of firepower.
And the deployment is also quite reasonable. The internal and external lines are closely coordinated, and its overall defense can be said to be almost watertight.
It is hard to imagine that this is the formation of an attacking Japanese division. If it were not for the formation of the Japanese army and the location where the battle took place, it was on the inside of the Anti-Japanese Alliance. It would be easy to think that this was the Japanese army.
While relying on the mountains outside the Inner Great Wall to hold on, the Anti-Japanese Alliance was the side that went all out to attack.
In such a short period of time, the 21st Division's firepower deployment and adjustment were reasonable. The tactics used in the battle were realistic, especially the speed of offensive and defensive transitions, which far exceeded Chen Hanzhang's original expectations. Chen Hanzhang
The attack was like plunging into the arms of a fire hedgehog.
Although Chen Hanzhang concentrated almost all the artillery cover at his disposal, he was unable to separate the 21st Division due to the failure of tactical deployment, which resulted in the extremely slow progress of the war. Progress in several directions was not
It went very smoothly, and in some directions it could even be said to be a failure.
As for the current situation of the entire northern Shanxi war situation, as time goes by, in the comparison of the effective forces of the two sides, it is obvious that it can only develop towards the unfavorable side of Chen Hanzhang. The development of the battlefield situation waits for no one, and time waits for no one. The most fundamental thing is that
The speed at which the situation changes does not leave Chen Hanzhang much time.