I work as a mercenary in northern Myanmar - #421 - Chapter 414 Advanced Artillery Reconnaissance

From joining the battlefield to frightening off the first wave of Kachin attacks, Chen Chen has not met Peng Deren.

Logically speaking, of course he had to meet with Peng Deren to confirm the command authority, gather information, and get familiar with the personnel, but the tense battle situation did not allow him to take a moment to breathe.

If the opponent’s artillery is not dealt with as soon as possible, the Allied forces will still lose this defensive battle across the river.

Yes, they have many planes and are very intimidating, even making people fearful at the sight of them;

Yes, they have M2s, and possibly tanks with thicker armor. Once the King of Land Combat appears, it will be almost impossible for our side to handle it.

——

However, these contrasts of strength and weakness that are most “prominent” from the perspective of an onlooker are not actually the main issues at all.

No matter from which perspective, the magic weapon that can truly defeat the enemy on the modern battlefield is the gun!

The confrontation between artillery is often the background board on the battlefield, the fireworks behind the protagonist, and the props that fill in the sound effects. But in real situations, it is also the real reaper who reaps the most lives.

Therefore, Chen Chen could not waste any time when he had the opportunity to reduce the combat effectiveness of the artillery or even completely disable it.

“Notify Peng Deren and ask him to prepare the M56.”

“At the same time, concentrate all the rockets and aim them at the target we have given.”

“We are going to give them a saturation strike and try to kill them with one blow.”

“Group 4 will follow me, conduct forward reconnaissance, determine the enemy’s deployment position, and intercept their artillery reconnaissance team if necessary.”

“The rest of the team quickly rushed to the Gunong position, under the command of White Dog, to assist the Allied forces in defending the Gunong and Hoban positions.”

“clear!”

Replies from each group came over the radio. Chen Chen acted quickly and led the team to start maneuvering back in the direction they came from.

At this time, the artillery attack from Kachin had ended. When passing the Huli position, Chen Chen saw a devastated scene.

The range of this position is actually not very large, with the three lines of defense being less than 200 meters apart. For the deployment of nearly 300 troops, this position is really too small.

And it is precisely for this reason that the casualty rate on the position is astonishingly high.

There were wounded soldiers everywhere, blood and broken limbs everywhere. When Chen Chen turned the corner of the trench, he subconsciously reached out to help him. The sticky touch instantly made him retract his hand.

There was a piece of intestine hanging on it.

The intestines were mixed with the soil and looked like slugs dug out of the ground.

In fact, Chen Chen can be considered a normal person with weaknesses. At least he feels physiological disgust towards all kinds of slippery creatures.

But this time, after actually “touching” such a thing on the battlefield, he seemed to have completed desensitization in an instant.

Because he knew that behind this touch, it no longer represented the aversion to poisons engraved in human genes, but the extremely heavy death.

“Captain, how to arrange the route?”

Lin He on the side asked. Chen Chen hesitated for a moment and replied:

“We still have to cross the river. First we go north along the Nujiang River. There is a narrow river channel about two kilometers away. We swim from there.”

“Visibility conditions are now so good that the crossing may be detectable.”

The veteran who followed Chen Chen frowned and said.

“It’s already four o’clock in the afternoon, and we still have two hours before the scheduled crossing point. By then, visibility conditions will have dropped and conditions will be sufficient.”

“clear.”

The veteran stopped talking and continued to move forward with Chen Chen.

Within a few dozen meters, they passed by the private soldier company of the 7th Brigade led by the Li Gang to support the Huli position. The morale of these private soldiers was quite stable. After all, they had not suffered heavy casualties since they entered the battlefield, and they could even Said that he won a big victory as soon as he came.

But even so, Chen Chen took a quick look and found that this private battalion had already experienced considerable attrition.

Seeing Li Gang standing aside, Chen Chen stepped forward and asked:

“How many people ran away?”

“Not many, only twenty or thirty. I sent the few people out now because there is a huge shortage of people over there.”

“However, the Confederates have almost escaped.”

“Basically there is not even one out of ten soldiers left in the second company. Peng Deren’s Guards Platoon is probably left with more than half.”

“We are preparing to move to Gunong. The Huli position can no longer be defended no matter what.”

“They are extremely afraid of this place. If the fighting continues and there is another round of artillery fire, these people will all disperse.”

“clear.”

Chen Chen nodded slightly and did not raise any questions about Li Gang’s deployment.

In fact, his move was quite smart.

Because on the battlefield, once a position suffers heavy casualties, the soldiers defending the position will naturally become afraid of the position itself.

This kind of fear requires long-term combat to eliminate. In the absence of conditions, the best way is to transfer the original soldiers and switch defenses with other teams.

Both sides have a new environment, and the “fear value” of both sides has basically been refreshed.

“Pay attention to safety, pay attention to the enemy’s movements near Xiaoshan Bridge, and remember to take Tao away. They are likely to attack near Xiaoshan Bridge and deploy anti-tank missiles in advance.”

“clear.”

Li Gang nodded in reply, while Chen Chen continued to lead the team forward.

After crossing a farmland, the group of 10 people went directly into the jungle. The journey was actually extremely boring. In order to avoid excessive physical exertion, everyone remained silent along the way.

Halfway through the journey, when Chen Chen stopped to use the GPS to determine his location, Lin He said with some emotion:

“I thought the Allies really stood up this time, but I didn’t expect it.”

“This is the first battle, and hundreds of their men have fled. If we fight a few more battles, how many of the 3,000-strong Allied Forces will be left?”

“We don’t have to fight for a few more times. If we can’t silence the opponent’s artillery positions the next time we cross the river, the Allied forces will disperse.”

Chen Chen replied calmly.

In fact, he never had much hope for the Confederates.

The civilian martial arts here in Pubei have a unified characteristic, that is, after a certain amount of training, they can play very well and “professionally” in the downwind game, but as long as there is a little headwind, they will enter. An avalanche situation that is about to collapse.

Having persisted until now, the Allied forces have basically exhausted their passion for “holding on to their homeland”. If they cannot win another battle, these people will not even be able to play their role as line-filling infantry.

After hearing his answer, Lin He nodded thoughtfully, then asked again:

“So why is this happening? The Kachin have occupied Lao Cai, which is their territory. If it were us, they would probably fight back at all costs.”

“This is a very complex issue.”

Chen Chen shook his head gently and continued:

“Of course, from a simple point of view, the most important thing is that they didn’t win.”

“Or some conspiracy theories. We don’t want them to win.”

Lin He’s expression froze for a moment. After a moment, he breathed a sigh of relief and said solemnly:

“I understand.”

“It’s because there are some things that can only be done by us.”

“That’s right.”

Chen Chen nodded again, and then ordered:

“Pack your gear and get ready to cross the river!”

At the same time, inside the Second Command Post of the Allied Forces.

Peng Deren, who had recovered, finally heard the first good news from the correspondent, but before he had time to celebrate, Chen Chen’s order, which seemed like “child’s play”, had been sent to him at the same time.

He was relatively calm in response to Chen Chen’s order, but the adjutant beside him was already in a state of shock.

Looking at the correspondent with a determined look on his face, the adjutant asked:

“Are you sure you want to mobilize all the rocket launchers? Just to blow up a watchtower?”

“This is our last heavy firepower. If we finish it all at once, if Kachin organizes a large-scale attack later, we will not have any room for resistance!”

“Please confirm again for me. It is impossible for the Dongfeng Corps to issue such a nonsensical order. Isn’t it just a watchtower? Why don’t you just send someone to touch it?”

Upon hearing the adjutant’s words, the correspondent glanced at Peng Deren awkwardly, then turned back to the adjutant and replied:

“It has been confirmed. The order is to mobilize all 107 rocket launchers and M56 artillery to fire at the distant observation tower according to the given target.”

“The artillery reconnaissance team will give coordinates and shooting instructions after approaching. Their artillery will arrive soon. We will prepare the equipment and they will lead the artillery bombardment.”

After the words fell, the adjutant frowned tightly. After a few seconds of silence, he looked at Peng Deren and asked:

“Commander, look at this.”

Peng Deren scratched his head subconsciously and didn’t know how to answer for a moment.

He actually knows something about the style of the Dongfeng Corps. Those who can use cannons do not use guns, and those who can be blown up do not shoot to death. No matter what the situation, stick to one thing to ensure safety.

But the problem is that our current conditions are extremely limited and ammunition is insufficient. This strategy of “killing mosquitoes with cannons” still seems too extravagant.

Can it be less? Can we not use rockets and only use M56 for artillery fire?

Or, even if rockets are used, can only half be used and the other half be prepared for emergencies?

He really wanted to call Chen Chen and ask him his questions.

But Peng Deren also knew that once Chen Chen’s order was issued, it would be unquestionable.

As long as the order is confirmed, asking yourself again is just superfluous.

Thinking of this, he said:

“Don’t ask anything.”

“Prepare according to the orders of the Dongfeng Corps.”

“Since they want to issue this order, they must have their reasons. Besides, Chen Chen has made it very clear to me that the enemy’s artillery reconnaissance team will be attacked this time.”

“As long as it can be pulled out, the enemy’s artillery will be completely disabled.”

“The profit from such a fight is only a few dozen rockets. Why can’t it be worth it?”

“Hit me, hit me hard!”

“.clear.”

The adjutant opened his mouth hesitantly, but in the end he didn’t say much, but turned around to arrange the equipment.

Peng Deren glanced at his leaving figure, but the worries in his heart were not completely eliminated.

What if the opponent has more than one artillery reconnaissance team?

What if the enemy moves faster than your own?

This is a big gamble. If you lose, you will really have nothing.

Mangka, Fire Watchtower.

A well-equipped team was crawling on a tall tower. A huge antenna like a telegraph pole was set up next to them. The top of the telegraph pole was not a street light, but a huge radar.

AN/TPQ-50, this thing is actually not just an “anti-artillery radar”, but a serious artillery detection radar.

It can not only conduct a 6,400-meter all-round search for enemy indirect fire, but can also track and locate mortars, artillery and rocket launchers. The positioning distance ranges from 500 meters to 10 kilometers, which can completely cover the Qingshui River battlefield.

In addition, in friendly mode, this radar can also calibrate friendly artillery fire. When the ballistic trajectory of friendly artillery shells is within the search area, it can provide corrected shooting with an error within 50 meters.

It can be said that the combat effectiveness that an artillery team can exert is completely different with and without AN/TPQ-50.

——

Of course, the advanced equipment here is more than just the AN/TPQ-50.

This artillery reconnaissance team has a total of 8 people, 4 of whom are responsible for peripheral security, and 4 are responsible for equipment deployment and reconnaissance guidance. Each of them is wearing the most advanced equipment, from laser rangefinders to individual PDAs. Everything is available. As long as they simply input the coordinates, they can quickly use the PDA to calculate the shooting elements and quickly transmit them to the rear positions. Within two minutes, they can complete an artillery strike.

It can be said that they have broken away from the scope of traditional artillery reconnaissance. Their real positioning is a “human version” of the comprehensive mast of the artillery reconnaissance system.

With such equipment appearing in Pubei, the CIA has truly spent its money.

And this kind of capital did bring them rewards. Relying on this mast, they even successfully transformed an artillery battalion that had only received the most basic training into a modern artillery battalion that could quickly carry out indirect fire!

Such battle examples will inevitably provide new arguments for the theory of equipment victory, and the team stationed here obviously also holds this idea.

Lying on the slightly damp wooden floor, one member of the team put down the heavy telescope in his hand, and then said:

“I really didn’t expect that the opponent could actually block the first round of Kachin’s attack. It seems that the role of modern equipment on the battlefield is crushing.”

“You see, they just fired a few individual missiles and defeated the Kachin army.”

“If we give them another artillery battalion and an artillery reconnaissance system, it’s hard to say who will win and who will lose.”

Hearing his words, the captain on the side laughed and replied:

“These few missiles are actually their limit. The first round of attacks is just a trial, and the next battle is the real final word.”

“The other side’s attention was probably completely attracted by the aircraft, armored vehicles and tanks, but they ignored the artillery fire falling on their heads.”

“This was a big mistake and they will pay for it”

“Maybe they’ve already discovered it?”

The team member asked noncommittally.

“If it has been discovered, then they must at least find a way to organize an artillery counterattack. As far as I know, they have artillery and rockets.”

“But so far, their rockets have only hit targets on the river beach and within visual range.”

“There is no way, time is too short, not even the Dongfeng Corps can save them.”

“Anyway, we have to find a way to find their rocket launcher positions as soon as possible. If we don’t destroy them, it will be a problem for subsequent attacks.”

“clear.”

The team member nodded slightly, and after two seconds of silence, he suddenly spoke:

“You said, they won’t already be targeting us, right?”

“If they discover our location, will they come directly and kill us?”

After hearing his words, the captain smiled disdainfully and then said:

“Kill us?”

“We are 7 kilometers away from their position.”

“How to do it? Should we use the rockets and small-caliber artillery shells they have?”

“Stop making trouble, even if they can find us, they won’t be able to hit us.”