Age of Rebirth

The reason why Ito Yansaburo wanted to attach this personal opinion that would definitely offend people and be suspected by others to the base camp was also due to his own reasons. He knew too well the virtues of the bigwigs in the base camp. One is a good player, but if it comes to commanding operations, it is really not flattering!

Yansaburo Ito, who has led the army for many years in battle, knows the role of the base camp. Isn't it a joke to let a group of bigwigs who are thousands of miles away from the battlefield dictate to the combat troops? No matter how high it is, can there be a frontline commander who understands the actual situation on the battlefield?

Of course not, General Ito has reflected on that the reason for his disastrous defeat in the South China mainland was directly related to the blind command of the base camp after the China Independent Division. At a critical moment in the battle, the base camp came to an order that was inexplicable and violated the actual situation on the battlefield. Do you think you are executing or disobeying?

Therefore, General Ito made up his mind to keep the ugly words in his head and leave a foreshadowing for his disobedience. He didn't have much hope for this, but unexpectedly, the base camp actually agreed to his request, answering It is just a sentence, "The success or failure of the decisive battle in Australia depends on you. You will exercise command independently, and you will not receive any interference!" Moreover, the Australian combat plan has not been changed, just two words, "Approved!"

Although the words were a little cold, but the meaning was very clear, which made Ito Genzaburo stunned for a long time. In fact, it was because Emperor Hirohito spoke out, "Ordering out many doors will easily cause the frontline commanders to be at a loss. . . . , the decisive battle in Australia I will completely leave it to Aiqing Ito. I believe he can create miracles!"

Otherwise, take those bigwigs in the base camp.Especially the tempers of Minai Koichi and others from the Army Department. Based on these words, Ito Yanzaburo will never be easy. They have enough reasons to be angry. The post of the commander of the Imperial Australian Front is given to you by the Army Department. Yes, but now you say something like this, why are your wings so stiff?

What you Yanzaburo Ito said about "not being disturbed by the base camp," is nothing more than targeting a few respected army leaders such as His Excellency Yone.Insinuating that the defeat of the imperial army in the past by the Chinese devil Tang Qiuli was all caused by the leapfrog command of the headquarters. It is vicious enough, and it looks like a white-eyed wolf!

Ito Yansaburo didn't care to think so much, as long as it was at the critical moment of the Australian campaign, those bigwigs in the base camp should stop jumping out and point fingers, and fight according to their own established battle plan, plus the newly added Italian weaponry.It is still very sure to win this war!

In mid-September, Ito Genzaburo held a military meeting in Darwin.At the meeting, a detailed deployment of the combat plan for the Australian battlefield counterattack was made.Ten days later, in late September.A total of 160 million troops were divided into three groups.Heading towards southern Australia.

The specific offensive deployment of the Japanese army is, West Road, the first to fifth armies newly formed for the Australian Front Army, with a total strength of about 40 troops, attached to three tank brigades, and possessing more than 41 m1940 medium tanks. Six heavy artillery brigades, with Italian [-]-style [-]mm caliber artillery and more than [-] Japanese-style [-]mm caliber field guns, air support is the First United Air Force, with a total of Centaur fighter jets and Mistral bombers More than three hundred frames.

The western attacking force, starting from Kalumburu, attacked southern Australia through Fedora, Royhill, Mount Vernon, Argut, etc., and went straight to Perth and Ball at the southernmost point. Dayton and other places occupied the vast areas west of the Great Sand Desert, the Gibson Desert, and the Great Victoria Desert, and looked for opportunities to annihilate the independent division troops in the area.

On the middle road, the newly formed Sixth Army to No.12 Army of the Australian Front has a total strength of more than 41 people. It is equipped with six tank brigades, has more than 1940 m[-] medium tanks, and ten heavy artillery regiments. It has Italian [-]-style [-]mm caliber artillery, more than [-] Japanese-style [-] large-caliber field guns, air support for the second and third United Air Forces, has Italian fighters and bombers, as well as Japanese fighters and More than [-] bombers.

The attacking force in the center, with Darwin as the starting point of the attack, passed through Birdham, Wokop, Kniston, over the MacDonnell Ranges, through Montgranny, Mali and other places, and attacked southward, with the goal of finally capturing Adelaide. Ryder, the commander of the offensive force on the road, was personally served by General Ito, and Lieutenant General Miura and Hitoshi, the commander of the Sixth Army, were the deputy commanders.

On the East Road, the newly formed No.13 to No.19 armies of the Australian Front, with a total strength of more than [-] troops, are equipped with seven tank brigades with more than [-] medium tanks and ten heavy artillery regiments. There are nearly a thousand Japanese and Italian large-caliber artillery, and the air support firepower is the Fourth and Fifth United Air Forces, which have more than [-] Italian fighters and bombers and Japanese fighters and bombers.

The eastern attacking force, starting from Cairns in northern Australia, passed through Annivale, Chalves, Ngonha, crossed the Bawang River, and in the Cobar area, divided into two groups again, all the way through AI Wenhuo, Benyugo and other places went straight to Melbourne, and the other way crossed the Lachlan River, passed through Gurgoy, Juney and other places, went straight to Canberra, the port city in southern Australia, and then attacked eastward, attacking Sydney, Newcastle and others.

Then, the central and eastern attacking forces attacked in opposite directions and swept across the southern part of Australia. The tactics of the three-way offensive force depended on each other for the left and right adjacent forces to advance steadily and gradually. Through a series of battles, the independent division was oppressed to Australia. The small area in the south was divided and encircled, and then encircled and wiped out one by one, while the west offensive troops, after eliminating the independent division troops, immediately moved eastward to join the central and eastern offensives!

The newly formed No.20 Army of the Australian Front, with about 10 troops, served as the general reserve force for the battle, waiting for orders at any time. After that, the troops that arrived in the Australian battlefield successively from the North American battlefield were organized into four armies, serving as the main force of the Australian campaign. The second echelon of troops is ready to invest in any direction at any time.

Judging from the deployment of Ito Yansaburo, the focus of the attack is on the southeastern region of Australia, especially the vast area east of the Great Sand Desert, the Gibson Desert, and the Great Victoria Desert. The fertile land of the Australian continent has concentrated industrial bases In this area, it is a veritable cabbage heart. For this reason, General Ito invested more than 120 million troops in the middle and east roads, nearly [-] tanks, and nearly [-] combat aircraft.

Japan has emptied its fortunes, and General Ito invested all the heavy equipment and combat aircraft bought from the Italians at one time. He has fought against the British and American allies in the Australian mainland for more than two years. I am very familiar with the situation in southern Australia. Southern Australia, especially the southeastern region, has a developed industrial base, which can provide continuous logistical support for the independent division of China. Force the independent division to fight a decisive battle with itself.

Judging from the comparison of the strength of the independent division in the Australian battlefield with the Japanese army, the independent division is slightly inferior to the Japanese army, with nearly 20 fewer people. The number and quality of tanks greatly exceed the number of Japanese tanks. Battelle's armored forces command , The strength of the armored forces on the Australian battlefield is ten tank brigades, more than 300 tanks, the strength of the aviation force, and the number of combat aircraft of the Southern Flying Group of the Independent Division, which is basically the same as that of the Japanese army.

But before the war, Tang Qiuli issued an order to transfer eight fighter regiments, five bomber regiments, and more than 800 combat aircraft from the Northern Flying Group. Therefore, when the Australian campaign began, the number of combat aircraft in the Independent Division There are more than 700 more than the Japanese army. On the whole, the Japanese army has more troops than the independent division, but the number of heavy equipment, including artillery and tanks, and combat aircraft is less than that of the independent division.

More than 160 million Japanese troops, divided into three groups, rolled southward, rolling up smoke and dust all over the sky, and the momentum was very alarming. Such a large-scale military offensive operation could not be hidden from the eyes of the reconnaissance troops of the independent division brigades. Soon, intelligence from all sides , are all brought together in Shizhi.

"Report!" Chief of Staff Zhao Yuhe came to the division commander's office after knocking on the door, "Report division commander, received information from the reconnaissance units of various corps that the Japanese army has begun to attack, this is intelligence!" gave him.

Tang Qiuli looked at it carefully, and said calmly: "Ito Yanzaburo couldn't bear the loneliness anymore, and before all the Japanese troops on the North American battlefield were mobilized, he hurriedly called and gave orders. , Split up and fight!"

"Yuhe, I would like to remind Deputy Division Commander Tang that the Sulu Mobile Corps alone is facing the Japanese army attacking on the west road. The pressure is not small. With a force of more than 30 people, it is against more than 40 Japanese troops. The force is at a disadvantage. The main purpose is to stop the Japanese army. Continuing to attack the Perth area is the main focus, blocking the footsteps of the Japanese attack is victory!"

"It will take several days for more than 100 million Japanese troops to pass a distance of more than 200 kilometers. The Japanese troops cannot be stopped. Order Le Yiqin and Liu Cuigang to start fighting!"

The prelude to the decisive battle in Australia kicked off. Le Yiqin and Liu Cuigang had previously formulated a combat plan to use the land-based fleet of the Southern Aviation Group on the islands in the Southwest Pacific to attack northern Australia, forcing the Japanese air force to fail to deploy all combat aircraft. Put into the offensive, and then, with the Australian battlefield air force commanded by Liu Cuigang, on the one hand, conduct air combat with the Japanese aircraft fleet, and on the other hand, try to attack the Japanese ground forces as much as possible.

After receiving the combat order from the division commander, Le Yiqin personally led the team, commanded a huge fleet of more than 600 fighter jets, and rushed to the northern part of Australia with a murderous look. In addition, he left four fighter regiments with more than [-] fighter jets , which specializes in monitoring the carrier-based aircraft of the Japanese Navy's combined fleet, and is also responsible for responding to the first echelon fleet.

(to be continued) (to be continued...)