afterglow

Chapter 340: Very different; difficult for the British
The stocky soldier carrying the Type [-] flamethrower half-knelt on the ground, pointed at the observation port of the frontline command post, and pulled the trigger.

The gasoline was rushed out by the compressed nitrogen, and then turned into a fire dragon and spewed into it!
"Ahhh——" A fire suddenly broke out outside the headquarters, and harsh and miserable howls came from inside.

Several figures shrouded in flames staggered out of the Z-shaped trench behind the headquarters.

Some people took out their pistols and committed suicide, some were knocked down by flying bullets, and some fell to the ground after running for more than ten meters and did not move.

"boom!"

"Da da da--"

The surrounding soldiers were kneeling or lying down, shooting with guns, feeling the rolling heat wave coming towards their faces.

The smell of gasoline, charcoal fire, and the burnt smell of barbecue mixed together to form an unbearably nauseating smell.

"on!"

The Ming soldiers of this breakthrough team turned over into the trench one after another and began to eliminate the remaining enemies here.

A dozen British and Indian soldiers came from the side along the trench to support, and the two sides launched a hasty encounter.

The fierce exchange of fire at close range made their ears buzz, and the sand splashed by the bullets flew away. The leading Indo soldier was hit by a series of 9.6mm pistol bullets in the blink of an eye, and fell down in the trench screaming. .

Centralizing the equipment of automatic weapons for the breakthrough team is one of the basic principles set by Zhou Changfeng. Except for a few people in this team of more than [-] people who use semi-automatic rifles, the rest all use Type [-] submachine guns and Type [-] automatic guns.

The officers and soldiers of the [-]st Marine Brigade in the trench used ferocious automatic firepower to suppress the enemy forces that were very close at hand. The bullets that hit their heads and faces were so heavy that the British and Indian soldiers were unable to do anything.

In this zigzag-shaped trench, they were suppressed and hid in the corner, in a dilemma.

The emphasis in encounters is swiftness. Movements and decisions must be quick, sharp, and sharp, leaving no room for the enemy to react.

A sergeant calmly and calmly took a Type [-] grenade from his waist, pulled out the pull ring, opened his hand slightly, and the metal handle immediately flew away, and the delayed powder tube was also ignited.

After a second's pause, he leaned back slightly and threw it hard.This series of movements is as smooth as flowing water, without any delay.

"boom!"

The grenade made a parabola and fell towards the corner of the trench, exploding as soon as it hit the ground!
Fragments and shock waves swept across this area. The three or four British and Indian soldiers gathered here were blown to pieces and they let out shrill screams and calls for help.

The Ming soldiers there were divided into two groups. Some of them pushed forward in the trench; others climbed out of the trench on the shoulders of their comrades and attacked from above.

The exchange of fire between the two sides did not last long. The wolf-like [-]st Marine Brigade had completely shattered the defenses of these British and Indian troops. They only dared to retreat while fighting.

The two machine gunners of the third squadron stepped over three bodies that were smoking and bloody, climbed out of the trench, put their light machine guns on their waists, and fired several rounds at the enemy nearly a hundred meters away. Long burst of shots.

The British noncommissioned officer who was yelling was immediately shot to death by two 7.36mm heavy-pointed bullets. The bullets penetrated his chest and took away a mass of flesh and blood when they came out from behind!
He immediately collapsed and died. Without the British leader, the remaining Indian and Indian soldiers were in disarray. The British and Indian troops' retreat while fighting turned into a panicked rout.

In just over two hours, the beachhead defensive positions and deep positions of the British-Indian 8th Brigade collapsed one after another.

Lieutenant Colonel Terrence, commander of the Lyla Cole Regiment (battalion), evacuated before the headquarters was captured. However, he was later blown into pieces by a 112mm anti-kill bomb, leaving only one broken piece wearing a precious Vacheron Constantin watch. Arm can prove that he is not "missing".

At noon, the tank battalion of the [-]st Marine Brigade also completed the landing.

The infantry's efficiency far exceeded expectations. The tank soldiers who were impatient couldn't help but feel a little disappointed. After waiting for a long time, they couldn't even get any leftovers?

Chen Min, the leader of the Second Regiment, reported to Zhou Changfeng via radio: "Reporting to Jun Zuo, the headquarters has captured all targets. The enemy in front of us is vulnerable and is being defeated. We are consolidating the current position."

Standing outside the bridge of the Zhenguan, Zhou Changfeng picked up the telescope with his left hand, looked at it, and asked: "Gather the troops, consult with the chariot battalion, and immediately organize to continue the attack and develop in depth."

"Are you going straight to the airport?"

"Of course, don't give the enemy a chance to regroup."

"As ordered!"

Zhou Changfeng actually only has a relatively general impression of the wars in history. He only remembers the review and analysis of some classic battles relatively clearly.

The Battle of Malaya was obviously not one of them. He only knew that in this battle, known as the "Shame on the Empire on which the Sun Never Sets," the performance of the British Commonwealth troops was really lackluster.

Air Force General Robert Popham, who served as commander-in-chief of the Far East, was rather conceited. He was full of prejudices against the Japanese, believing that they could only imitate and not be afraid of them.

At the same time, the British army believed that the complex terrain of the Malayan Peninsula was not suitable for deploying armored forces. Therefore, the tens of thousands of troops were not equipped with tank troops, but only some armored vehicles.

In this way, a series of fatal mistakes resulted in a disastrous defeat that was recorded as the "Shame of the Empire" - the entire army of [-] troops on land, sea and air was wiped out, and the opponent's casualties were less than [-].

But it is different today. The commander-in-chief of the Far East is Air Force Lieutenant General Arthur Tedder.

He was a rigorous and pragmatic staff general. Although he lacked the ability to command large corps in combat, his careful study of the Ming army made the poor preparations in history no longer exist.

Under his strong request, the British army dispatched two tank regiments (battalions) from the mainland two months and half a month ago respectively. Foreign tanks.

A10型巡洋坦克中规中矩，战斗全重16吨，正面装甲厚30㎜，装备两挺7.7㎜机枪和一门QF2磅炮（40㎜）。

The emergence of the two tank troops made the British Commonwealth army faced by the Ming army stronger, at least there would no longer be a unilateral crushing situation.

After hurriedly eating some field rations, the [-]st Battalion of the [-]nd Regiment of the [-]st Marine Brigade launched an attack on the airport with the support of eight medium tanks.

Do it all at once, second time tired, third time exhausted!

Ever since Zhou Changfeng worked hard to obtain forty Type [-] medium tanks, the First Marine Brigade added an additional independent tank team.

Amphibious tanks with thin skin and large fillings are really not suitable for accompanying infantry in attacks on land. This kind of task of advancing in depth should be better done by medium tanks.

Several reconnaissance detachments had previously figured out the general situation of the enemy in front of them through close reconnaissance, and now the offensive was launched immediately.

"Boom—boom—"

On the artillery position deployed on the beach, 36 112mm and 80mm howitzers from the [-]st Marine Brigade Mountain Artillery Regiment began a fierce bombardment.

Unlike the artillery regiment of an Army division with three battalions and twelve guns per battalion, the artillery regiment of the [-]st Marine Brigade has two battalions with eighteen guns per battalion.

The difference is that the latter's organization is larger and more bloated, and the deployment time is longer, but the coordination is more convenient and the firepower is more concentrated.

Rounds of 112mm and 80mm anti-explosive bombs landed on the outer defense line of Kota Bharu Airport. Fires broke out one after another. From the telescope, you could see fragments of civil fortifications being blown away.

Amidst the roaring explosions, the British and Indian soldiers huddled in foxholes or trenches and shivered, waiting anxiously for the arrival of the Ming army.

More than a dozen smoke bombs landed in front of the British and Indian defense lines, and the continuous gray-white smoke blocked their vision.

During this period, the two teams of the Second Regiment and the First Battalion left their respective offensive starting positions and began to move toward the impact starting positions.

Because the enemy is suppressed at this time and it is difficult to organize effective defensive firepower, you should try to close the distance with the enemy's position.

The officers and soldiers of the Ming Dynasty were divided into many groups, moving at a staggered pace, and moved forward quickly while the enemy had no time to pay attention.

In the next more than half an hour, countless artillery shells fell in turn, almost turning the outer defense line into powder.

"Damn, cheer up, those Chinese are coming soon!" "You idiots, grab your guns and prepare to defend!"

In the bombed-out front-line positions, British officers and non-commissioned officers patrolled back and forth, scolding and ordering their Indus to get ready.

Before the wisps of green smoke dissipated, someone shouted in horror: "They are coming!!!"

Only a thousand meters away, eight tanks lined up in a row were slowly advancing, which made people feel a little nervous and became more and more uneasy.

In the past half hour or so, two teams of more than 300 Ming troops had arrived less than [-] meters away from the airport's outer defense line, dug individual lying foxholes on the spot, and made all preparations.

"Listen to me! Just follow the usual drill. There is nothing to panic."

"Remember, don't get too close to the chariot, you are asking for trouble! Don't think..."

"Boom! Boom!"

While the officers were lecturing loudly, the defensive firepower of the British and Indian troops finally came to their senses and began to attack the Ming army, which had approached such a distance.

"Concealment!!!" A warrant officer shouted loudly and immediately leaned down.

After a roar that seemed very close at hand, he who was lying in the foxhole felt the ground close to his body shake!
After a few seconds, his right arm seemed to be touched by some warm liquid, and then the feeling turned into a rapidly spreading pain.

"Come here! Come here! Medical soldiers come to save people!"

The soldier next to him pulled out a roll of bandages and bandaged them randomly while calling to the medical staff at the top of his lungs.

High-explosive shells fired by the MkII 76.2mm mortar fell one after another, and explosions continued one after another.

But this had little impact on the officers and soldiers of the [-]st Marine Brigade who had already built basic bunkers. Dozens of consecutive shells dropped and only caused more than a dozen casualties.

At this time, eight Type [-] medium tanks were getting closer and closer, stopping from time to time to aim and fire.

When they were about 700 meters away, one of the tanks fired an anti-explosive bomb after a brief aiming, knocking over a Vickers heavy machine gun on the distant position.

The dust was flying, and the seriously injured British and Indian soldiers were struggling and calling for help in a pool of blood.

But at this moment, a QF2-pound anti-tank gun deployed on the left wing of the second-line position suddenly opened fire!
"Biang!"

With the crisp sound of metal colliding, the 40mm armor-piercing bullet penetrated the 24mm surface-hardened armor steel on the front of the Type [-] medium tank body.

It killed the driver on the spot, then passed through the entire interior space of the car body, got through the steel plate separating the passenger compartment and the power compartment, hit the engine and broke into pieces.

The British 40mm armor-piercing bullet contains no charge and is a purely kinetic energy bullet - commonly known as iron lump.

The directional machine gunner next to him looked at the pilot's body next to him in horror. The tragic scene was unbearable - even if only a small part of such a huge kinetic energy was transmitted, it was enough to make the fragile body fly with blood and flesh.

"Damn it, Lao Xu is dead!"

"Where are Gouri's anti-aircraft guns?!"

"Biang—Biu——"

Another armor-piercing round hit the tank, followed by a third.

The third armor-piercing tracer bullet hit the front of the turret at a large angle of incidence, ricocheted, and the shell immediately flew away, drawing a white broken line light trail in mid-air.

Almost a sharp turn!
The rate of fire of small-caliber anti-tank guns cannot be underestimated. Skilled gun crew members can even fire an astonishing rate of fifteen rounds per minute.

This means that in the event of an attack, the anti-tank gun can quickly dump a large number of shells on the target.

This is why tank soldiers hate these guys so much - they are low and concealed, and extremely difficult to detect as long as they don't fire, and the attacks of anti-tank guns are often fatal!

Historically, angry German armorers often deliberately destroyed the bodies of anti-tank artillery pieces.

"See it! Muzzle flash, ten o'clock direction!"

"Three kill bombs!"

"Kill the explosive bomb, one shot is good!"

"boom!"

"Second shot, okay!"

"boom!"

Towed anti-tank guns cannot hit and run, and qualified anti-tank artillerymen can definitely be called brave - after they open fire and expose themselves, they often have to fight to the end, either you die or I die.

However, the anti-tank artillery of the British and Indian troops is obviously not qualified.

After being fired back by several artillery shells, they panicked and ran away.

The destroyed No. 103 car emitted plumes of black smoke, its hatch was pushed open, and the crew members covered in blood struggled to climb out despite the hail of bullets.

The remaining Ming army tanks continued to advance, with machine guns and tank cannons firing on all cylinders!

Before the infantry launched an attack, the British and Indian defense lines were already crumbling under the attack of the tanks.

The tanks slowly drove past the infantry assault starting position. At this time, the Ming Dynasty officers and soldiers who had been waiting here for a long time were in high morale and extremely excited.

"These guys are vulnerable, be bold and go all out!"

"Let the chariot drive faster and prepare for impact!"

Several officers and non-commissioned officers hit the tank with shovels or hammers to signal it to move forward at full speed.

We are not yet equipped with a unified radio communication system, so we can only use this crude method for a while.

"Attach the bayonet, charge!"

"Beep beep beep—"

The tank engine roared loudly and accelerated towards the enemy position.

Amidst the sharp whistles, the officers and soldiers of the [-]st Marine Brigade who followed closely behind them launched a ferocious attack in a sparse formation with high morale.

Many of the frightened and helpless Indu soldiers turned around and ran away. The frustrated British officers shot into the air with Webley revolvers, but they were completely unable to stop the rout.

A British lieutenant shot down a deserter in anger, but was knocked down by a bullet as soon as he turned around. He was stabbed to the core with a bayonet, and bright red blood spurted out along the blood groove.

"It's hard for these British people. The guys under my command are just like local chickens and dogs!"

(End of this chapter)