Chapter 1662: 1663 half tank battalion
Chapter 1662 1663 Half a Tank Battalion
“Looking at the map, we are only about 30 kilometers away from the border.” The gunner took the time to take out a can from the storage box next to the turret, opened the lid and started gobbling it.
The driver was not idle either. He also crushed a pack of instant noodles, sprinkled the ingredients on it, and ate it with a mouthful of mineral water and a mouthful of instant noodles.
They were both so hungry that they didn’t eat much on the way. Liu Guozhu was okay. He had just eaten a piece of bitter chocolate, which refreshed him.
"In other words, we are less than 70 kilometers away from the target?" Liu Guozhu spread out the map on the turret, lowered his head and compared it: "If we work hard tonight, we will probably reach the border."
They have been on the offensive these days. Fortunately, there were no problems with troop communications and supplies were timely, so there were no major problems.
In fact, there are still many small problems: Liu Guozhu's tank battalion now has less than half of its usable tanks left, and the rest are scattered on the road behind them, waiting to be repaired before they can catch up and join the battle.
There were no direct battle losses. They lost a tank in a battle, and the other party didn't know what kind of bad luck it was. A 150mm caliber shell directly hit the 96 tank, and the turret was blown off. .
At present, Liu Guozhu directly commands only 21 tanks, including his own command tank. The 1st company suffered the greatest losses, with only 5 tanks left to fight; the 2nd company had 7 tanks left; the 3rd company, like the 2nd company, also had 7 tanks left.
The remaining two tanks are directly under the battalion headquarters. Originally, Liu Guozhu's battalion was fully equipped with 50 tanks and two armored reconnaissance vehicles...
All the armored reconnaissance vehicles at the battalion headquarters were broken down on the road, and the troops now providing reconnaissance intelligence were the mechanized infantry temporarily assigned to them. In order to enable Liu Guozhu's troops to have a certain independent combat capability, the division headquarters reinforced them with a battalion of mechanized infantry and several wheeled assault guns.
So now Liu Guozhu's unit can no longer be called a tank battalion, but a slightly strengthened mixed armored battalion.
"The infantry company said that they hoped to have a meal and rest before continuing the attack. A wheeled assault gun went out for reconnaissance. They said that no decent enemies were found 5 kilometers ahead." A non-commissioned officer at the battalion headquarters stationed Reported the situation to Liu Guozhu under the tank.
"The 1st Company lost another one... We only have 20 vehicles left." The gunner took off his earphones and said vaguely while chewing the starch in the can.
"It's really bad news." Liu Guozhu smiled indifferently. Now one less tank is nothing to him: anyway, if you have too many lice, you won't have to worry about too many debts.
“When will the air force support be in place?” Liu Guozhu looked at the noncommissioned officer standing under the tank and asked.
The noncommissioned officer immediately replied: "Last radio communication, four attack planes have taken off, and it is estimated that they will arrive in about half an hour..."
"Let the infantry stay to eat and rest... The 2nd Company advances to Village No. 205 on the map to set up defenses, pay attention to the flanks... The 3rd Company covers the east side of the 2nd Company and controls the side roads with more difficult terrain to avoid wasting time. Let them Pay attention to ammunition and fuel. If you encounter an enemy, retreat immediately! We have no combat capability." He only has two artillery shells left in the tank, and the machine gun ammunition is almost exhausted. The fuel in the tank can allow them to advance for more than 20 kilometers at most. Any more and they may be stranded on the road due to lack of fuel.
But Liu Guozhu still felt that it would be a pity not to use the last bit of oil and ammunition, so he decided to send troops to the front in advance to control the strategic arteries.
“Understood!” The sergeant saluted with a military salute, and then went to give the order. Liu Guozhu didn't wear headphones and the tank didn't start, so he simply let the sergeant convey the order.
Soon, ignoring the infantry who had already begun to cook, the tanks' engines roared again. One after another, Type 96 main battle tanks drove out of the village and drove along the road towards the next target.
The black smoke column left by the bombing could still be seen in the distance. Liu Guozhu twisted his sore neck twice and put away the map he had just spread out.
A few minutes later, he saw the supply team's cars, trucks loaded with fuel, and ammunition trucks covered with canvas stopping along the road one after another. Logistics soldiers holding weapons were chatting and laughing from where they were waiting for supplies. The tank soldier took the cigarette from his hand.
“Stay away and smoke!” Liu Guozhu shouted to a few smokers, and then directed the troops to start replenishing ammunition.
The disadvantage of the three-man crew is here: when they are cleaning the tank and replenishing ammunition, they do have one less coolie. These physical tasks are definitely not easy. As exciting as the automatic loader is when it dumps ammunition on the battlefield, it is also annoying when it is replenished.
It is not easy to increase the power of reloading ammunition, but it is indeed easy to design an automatic loading machine structure. For the armored soldiers of the Tang Empire, sacrificing a little power for the sake of speed of fire was actually completely tolerable.
In any case, their 125-meter cannon can pierce everything with one shot, and there is no so-called insufficient power problem at all. Many times, Tang's technical personnel concluded from battlefield feedback that tank artillery was overpowered, and hoped to reduce the caliber to increase the amount of ammunition they could carry.
There is no way. For the Tang Army, 40 rounds of artillery shells are really too few. They miss the early days when their tanks had 70 rounds of artillery shells.
Although the improvement of the fire control system allows the 40 rounds of artillery shells they now have to play a far greater role than the original 70 rounds, that's just the way it is.
As the battalion commander, Liu Guozhu was qualified not to carry the shells, but he still chose to help. He stood on the tank, took the warhead from the driver below, and handed it to the gunner behind him. The whole process is rather cumbersome and not a pleasant thing.
There is no way, the infantry also has to load bullets in their own magazines, and the air force ground crew also has to load ammunition for the cannon... It is even worse when they hang missiles. Several people need to work together to pick up the missile and hang it on the aircraft pylon. That is not the case. An easy job.
“Bring more ammunition for the machine gun!” Liu Guozhu ordered while carrying the shells. In order to continue fighting, each unit will try their best to carry more ammunition and supplies. This is also an unwritten rule of frontline combat.
“Don’t worry! It’s still the same.” The gunner agreed with a thumbs up.