In the subsequent breakthrough operations, in order to eliminate the Japanese anti-tank infantry groups and anti-tank gun positions, two 107 rocket launcher batteries, one 122 rocket launcher battery, and one 107 rocket launcher battery were concentrated in one direction on the right wing.
Seven volleys were fired in one breath.
The two attached 150 howitzer companies, five 105 howitzer companies, four 76mm cannon companies, and three 120mm heavy mortar companies are under the guidance of front-line artillery instructors.
. also used barrage fire, covering layers of tanks and infantry units to advance deep into the enemy.
Intense artillery fire exploded the entire right-wing defense of the Japanese army from three to more than ten kilometers into a sea of fire. The aviation force also deployed a bomber squadron from other directions to carry out carpet bombing on the right-wing position of the 100th Division.
, to cover the breakthrough operations of ground troops.
Under the full cover of ground artillery and aviation, Hou Guozhong later mobilized tank troops to cover a mechanized infantry regiment of the Anti-Japanese Alliance, and strengthened the cooperation with two 76mm self-propelled artillery batteries and two self-propelled anti-aircraft machine gun companies.
Restart the attack.
Taking into account the first round of attacks, the Japanese infantry anti-tank team, which was a great threat to the counter-attack tanks, specially adjusted the tank combat plan. Each tank company was strengthened with a quadruple self-propelled anti-aircraft machine gun and a seven-gun
The 16mm self-propelled artillery is specially responsible for suppressing the Japanese anti-tank firepower points, suppressing the Japanese infantry anti-tank groups, and cooperating with the infantry to attack enemy positions.
At the same time, in the follow-up assault, the mechanized infantry regiment that Hou Guozhong transferred to the front line was equipped with perhaps the first batch of wheeled infantry fighting vehicles in the world. As the tank attacked, its power far exceeded the original half-track vehicle. Basically,
Wherever the tanks hit, the infantry followed them. At the same time, the vehicle-mounted machine guns hit accurately and hard, suppressing the Japanese anti-tank groups.
After twenty-one hours of fierce fighting, the defense system of the 100th Division on the right flank was finally completely defeated. They seized the front line behind the 100th Division and separated the 100th Division from the Japanese 22nd Division in Texas.
came and directly threatened the flanks and rear of the Japanese 22nd Division on the Texas battlefield.
The defensive tactics and system design on the flanks of the 100th Division, from then until Japan's unconditional surrender, became the main combat mode used by the Japanese army to defend against the penetration of anti-alliance tanks. It was even transplanted to the Pacific battlefield to deal with US tanks.
offensive.
However, compared to the flat North China Plain, during the battle for the Pacific Islands, the Japanese army used this tactic to take advantage of the terrain of the combat area and made some improvements, and the effect was even more obvious. In addition, the Japanese army has always built defensive fortifications.
At that time, he showed his talent for sneaking around.
The Battle of the Philippines at the end of 2004 and the Battle of Okinawa in the first half of 2005 brought even heavier losses to the US armored forces and even the infantry. Especially during the Luzon Campaign, the tank units invested by the US military even
The loss reached two-thirds.
For the intensive small and medium-sized firepower of the Japanese army, long-range direct firepower is deployed in control of main traffic routes, deep concealment of semi-permanent fortification groups, or field fortification groups built using terrain. A combination of long and short range, multi-level
A large-depth defense system with firepower distribution.
And use machine guns and artillery fire to cover the anti-tank team, and use terrain and field fortification groups, as well as underground transportation trenches to attack in multiple ways. Cooperate with the direct fire points deployed in depth to carry out multiple attacks on the US tank group.
It is almost impossible to do anything about the vast tropical jungle of Luzon Island.
It was just that as the war progressed and Japan's local resources were depleted, the number of anti-tank weapons except rocket launchers became worse. In addition, the Japanese army equipped most of its tanks to the Chinese battlefield, so it did not let them go.
The Americans paid more. But even in the Battle of Luzon, the Americans lost nearly a thousand tanks and armored vehicles.
The tactics learned by the Japanese army during the battle with the Anti-Japanese Alliance were not this kind of tactics. The Japanese army almost copied them. The Anti-Japanese Army developed a more flexible one based on the original anti-slope tactics of the Japanese army, allowing the Japanese army to fight in the mountains.
, even in the face of the inferior forces of the Anti-Alliance, the mountain anti-slope tactics were basically useless, leaving the Americans helpless.
Not to mention the U.S. military facing more complex terrain in the Pacific, it is the combat force of the Anti-Japanese Alliance. In the face of the enemy's way, looking around Bishen, copying its own tactics and defense system to deal with its own Japanese army, all suffered considerable
Loss. Of course the Americans don't care about the loss of hundreds of tanks.
But for the entire northwest Shandong battlefield, which had so many tank troops in total, the loss of a reinforced battalion was quite heavy. Of course, the losses in this battle were so huge, and it was not just a tactical issue.
There are other things that are very subtle.
When the 100th Division rescued the 72nd Division, they captured the German Panzerfaust rocket launcher imitated by the Japanese army during the frontal blocking of the troops. However, no one paid attention to the large number of weapons similar to their own that were equipped by the Japanese army.
, even some troops did not report it.
Although the Japanese Type III tanks appeared on the battlefield for the first time, the front-line combat troops still classified this latest Japanese tank into the Type I variant in the intelligence. The number of tanks dispatched during the Japanese offensive phase was similar to that of Type III tanks.
In the case of discrepancies in the establishment of the Fourth Independent Tank Brigade, no detailed verification was conducted.
Including Chen Hanzhang, there was insufficient judgment on the possibility of the North China Front Army improving tank firepower. The estimation of the Japanese defense determination on the En County battlefield was not very sufficient, and the reconnaissance of the Japanese army's defense in depth was not careful enough. The pre-war reconnaissance focused on the front.
Not enough attention was paid to the flank defense of the 100th Division.
In fact, to put it bluntly, the reason for this situation is that the troops still have some thoughts of underestimating the enemy. The battle to encircle and annihilate the 72nd Division went relatively smoothly. Although it has not been finally resolved, it is not a combat reason. Let the troops
Some cadres have a high fever in their heads again.
Just as Yang Zhen pointed out in the telegram to Chen Hanzhang, the lessons of the Battle of Tongzhou have not aroused enough vigilance and have not awakened some cadres from the idea that I am the best in the world. For the One Hundred Division
The right wing assault obviously did not pay enough attention to the allocation of troops and firepower.
When the attack was launched, there was some disconnect in the tactical coordination between the infantry and armored forces, and the infantry could not always maintain a distance from the armored forces. During the battle, the Japanese army did not pay enough attention to the large number of infantry anti-tank groups. The experience and lessons of this battle are important for
The troops, especially commanders at all levels, should summarize and reflect on it.
However, although the flank penetration of the 100th Division suffered certain setbacks, the frontal assault operation of the Anti-Japanese Alliance progressed relatively smoothly. After the infantry opened a gap for the tanks, one battalion and two tank companies were invested frontally.
Cooperate with the mobile troops to quickly penetrate deep into the 100th Division.
It's just that although they broke into the Japanese army's frontal deep positions, the large number of anti-tank rocket launchers deployed in depth by the 100th Division, as well as the Type 88 anti-aircraft guns used for horizontal fire, also posed a great threat to the anti-allied tank troops. Fortunately, they cooperated in the battle.
The infantry cooperated well with the tanks, creating a favorable opportunity for the tanks to quickly break in.
Compared with the tightly defended flanks, in order to rescue the 72nd Division, the front of the 100th Division, which is storming towards Zaonan, is far less well-defended. The most fundamental thing is that the main force of the entire 100th Division still adopts the
The attack posture and its flank deployment were the result of repeated instructions from Lieutenant General Uchiyama Eitaro himself, as well as the lessons learned from the past mistakes of the 72nd Division.
After being unable to achieve a breakthrough, after urgent discussions, Uchiyama Eitaro directly designated the commander of the 4th Independent Tank Brigade, Colonel Takazawa Hideki, to be responsible for the right wing defense. The main force of the 100th Division on the front was Lieutenant General Uchiyama Eitaro.
Under his urging, he continued to attack desperately.
Although Hou Guozhong's offensive did not catch the 100th Division by surprise like the Zaonan battlefield, it also disrupted the deployment of the entire force and firepower of the 100th Division. If it were not for Lieutenant General Harada Jiro, there would have been 70
The Second Division learned from the past and adopted a strategy of advancing simultaneously and steadily on multiple fronts.
The battlefield in Zaonan has not yet been completely resolved, and the 72nd Division is still resisting desperately. The Anti-Japanese Alliance suddenly concentrated its forces and launched a full-scale counterattack against the 100th Division. Maybe the outcome of the 100th Division will not be worse than that of the 72nd Division.
The Twelfth Division was not good at all. However, its overall frontal attack continued, which also resulted in a frontal breakthrough, which was faster than the flank penetration.
After three days of hard fighting and at great cost, Chen Hanzhang finally split the 100th Division in half. At the same time, the outflanking troops on both wings finally arrived before the Japanese 65th Division arrived.
They gathered at the midfield station behind the 100th Division to complete the encirclement formed by the 100th Division and the 4th Independent Tank Brigade.
After these three days of hard fighting, although most of the tanks of the Fourth Independent Tank Brigade were destroyed, the tank troops deployed by the Anti-Japanese Alliance on the battlefield also suffered heavy losses. The tank troops participating in the battle lost more than half of their equipment.
This price was quite taxing for the anti-alliance tank troops participating in the war. After completing the division and encirclement of the 100th Division, Chen Hanzhang had to withdraw some of the tank troops for replenishment.
After receiving Chen Hanzhang's report, Yang Zhen, who was paying close attention to the entire battlefield, did not hesitate at all. He immediately transferred the last tank reserve in his hand, which was also the only independent fifth tank regiment in the Anti-Japanese Alliance equipped with Churchill infantry tanks, and equipped it with
All two independent tank battalions of the Matilda II tanks were transferred to Chen Hanzhang.
These two tank armies were formed by taking advantage of the rest period of the campaign, using the last batch of infantry tanks assisted by the British, and the British Churchill tanks used by the Soviets in exchange for American medium tanks. Hand over these two tank armies.
After giving it to Chen Hanzhang, Yang Zhen no longer had any armored reserves in his hands.
In other words, Yang Zhen has transferred all the remaining tank forces, except for the tank cluster in the direction of Jinpu Road, to Chen Hanzhang. In the next battle, Chen Hanzhang will not be able to receive subsequent armor support. Can it be done at the scheduled time?
Within a few days, to complete the battle plan, it depends on whether Chen Hanzhang can effectively use the final reinforcements given by Yang Zhen.
Although Yang Zhen drained all his last armored reserves in order to reinforce the frontal battlefield in northwest Shandong, this reinforcement was what Yang Zhen had to give. Whether Chen Hanzhang could achieve his strategic goals on the battlefield west of Dezhou was related to this battle.
The most critical factor in success or failure.
As long as one hundred divisions can be eliminated and part of the Japanese army's follow-up troops can be severely damaged, the initiative of the entire battle will be firmly in their own hands. Even if the Japanese army concentrates a large number of troops to land on the Qikou front line, even if the Japanese army breaks through Shanxi in the southeast battlefield of Shanxi,
The interception by the Hebei-Shandong-Henan Military Region was interspersed along the Zhengtai Railway, but it was no longer able to change the situation of the war.