Republic of China: Ace Pilot

Chapter 278, Battle of Cáceres: Tank Battle of Germany, Italy, and the Soviet Union - Tanks Converge, Mechanized Air-Ground Coordination

The Shrike's 20mm cannons fired, but only the rapid-fire cannon shells completed their strafing as the aircraft's fuselage rotated.

Although these 20mm cannon shells were not armor-piercing, they still caused devastating damage to the enemy.

A barrage of machine gun shells pounded the makeshift armored vehicles. The steel plates couldn't withstand the impact of the explosions and were flung off, instantly killing the soldiers behind them.

A soldier from the Long Rifle Party was hit squarely by machine gun fire, and the shattered debris scattered in the sky, splashing onto his comrades.

The scene was so horrific that it broke the soldiers.

Some soldiers even dropped their weapons, knelt on the ground, and prayed while weeping, as if this would save them from disaster.

Fang Wen had an idea. He deliberately let the praying soldiers go and fired in other directions.

After the attack, apart from the corpses and the soldiers kneeling and weeping in prayer, the other attackers withdrew from the square and disappeared into the darkness.

In the darkness of night, only the mournful prayers remained, plunging the city into a strange mood.

At this moment, Fang Wen jumped off the plane and found George Baker.

"Could we start with their faith and undermine their fighting spirit?"

"How do we do it?" George Baker asked, puzzled.

Fang Wen explained his thoughts: "I deliberately let those soldiers who knelt and prayed go. Could we make something out of the combination of their cowardice and faith?"

George Baker's eyes lit up. The Falange were mostly believers; perhaps it was worth a try.

He shouted, “The gods will not save your souls; we spared you. In this sacred place, you started the conflict and deserve your punishment. Now, the killing has stained the square with blood, defiling its former holiness. Is this what you wanted?”

George Baker's words were not only addressed to the Falange, but also to the people of Cáceres.

The action team, which originally consisted of only a dozen or so people, was naturally at a disadvantage, but now it faced an enemy ten times its size and inflicted heavy losses on its opponents.

This battle within the city not only demonstrated its power but also brought bloodshed to this ancient city.

This also caused city dwellers to feel disgusted.

Immediately, from the houses outside the city square, someone shouted: "Stop fighting! Bloodshed is not needed here! Your faith has been defiled!"

As soon as one person spoke up, more people joined in, and a continuous stream of angry shouts followed.

The attacking Phalanx soldiers became the target of their condemnation.

Perhaps they felt there was some truth to it, or perhaps they were devout believers, or more likely they were afraid after suffering repeated setbacks and heavy losses.

After a while, the Phalanx officer responded from the darkness.

"This is war, and we have no other choice, but let's end it here tonight and give this sacred city some peace. I propose a truce tonight, and our troops will temporarily retreat to the north of the city."

Fang Wen and his men were naturally delighted with this suggestion; reinforcements would arrive after tonight.

George Baker responded loudly in Spanish: "We agree to a truce tonight in the name of God."

"In the name of the Lord, let us cease hostilities tonight."

The two sides reached a verbal agreement, and then the Phalanx soldiers actually began their retreat.

The enemy retreated, but vigilance could not be relaxed. That night, none of the action team members rested, all on guard against the enemy going back on their word and launching a sneak attack.

But in the latter half of the night, there was indeed no movement; in the name of faith, the enemy truly quieted down.

The next morning, dense gunfire erupted from the north of the city. After a while, reinforcements marched into Cáceres in a grand procession.

This is the agricultural workers' militia self-defense force that George Baker described, dressed in various uniforms and carrying a wide variety of weapons.

But their fighting spirit was high; they had just repelled the spearmen in the battle north of the city.

Immediately afterwards, Fang Wen and George Baker met with the commander of the reinforcements.

The opposing side has a better understanding of the battle situation and provides a detailed map description.

"According to our intelligence, the rebels' armored forces entered from Portugal, along with troops and mercenaries sent by Franco from his Moroccan colony. They will pass through here in as little as two days."

George Baker asked urgently, "Who will stop them?"

"The Republican Army is tied down in Valencia and Madrid by the north and cannot send reinforcements for the time being. But I heard that Soviet-supplied tank units may come over, and their target is to block the Beekeeper Tank Unit of the Condor Legion."

Fang Wen listened to the militia commander's words and originally thought that Cáceres would not send troops to hold the line, but he did not expect that the Soviet-supported tank force would actually want to fight a blocking battle here.

Moreover, their opponent was the German tank force.

Therefore, the city of Cáceres is currently out of danger.

Five hours later.

Soviet-supplied tank units arrived in Cáceres.

These tanks are all T-26 light tanks.

This light tank, with its high mobility, drove up the hill and reached the city of Cáceres.

The arrival of the tanks subtly altered the atmosphere in Cáceres.

Faced with more than twenty tanks, the mayor of Cáceres softened his initial tough stance.

He agreed to hand over the pilots and aircraft, but still claimed he would not participate in the war.

Then, led by municipal staff, Fang Wen met the bald eagle officer pilot.

The moment the iron gates of the detention center opened and Fang Wen walked in, the Bald Eagle Legion pilots understood their predicament.

He calmly stated, "I surrender. Please give me the treatment due to a prisoner of war."

Fang Wen nodded: "Tell me your identity."

“Captain Cooper Felix, Condor Legion,” the officer replied.

Felix's surname means good luck in Latin, and in a way, he was indeed lucky to be hit in aerial combat and then captured alive.

Fang Wen noted down the name of his defeated opponent and said, "You and the plane will be transferred. If you're lucky, you can rest until the end of the war and won't have to fight anymore."

Then, militia soldiers escorted him out of the detention center.

As he was about to leave, he turned to Fang Wen and asked, "Was it the plane you were piloting that fought against us?"

"Yes," Fang Wen replied.

"You're strong, but our Condor Legion has even more skilled pilots. You'll see how powerful they are," the officer shouted. He was then silenced by a militiaman's rifle butt and dragged away.

Watching the backs of the Bald Eagle Corps pilots, Fang Wen muttered to himself.

This war is not his war; he will be going back soon.

After all, the purpose of coming here is to hone practical combat experience, not to fight to the death with German pilots.

The captured Condor Legion pilot was taken away, along with the BF.109 fighter plane whose wing and belly were damaged. They would be transported to Albacete base, a route within Popular Front-controlled territory, so there shouldn't be any danger along the way.

Fang Wen and his Asian Air Force were ordered by the International Brigades Command to assist the Soviet tank forces in their operations.

At the temporary command post in Cáceres, the Soviet tank commander spoke with Fang Wen.

He also took out a battle map and explained his ideas.

"We are preparing to launch an ambush on the high ground outside the city of Cáceres. Tanks will be concealed in multiple locations on the slopes and high ground to form a pincer fire network."

Hearing what the tank unit commander said, Fang Wen pondered.

This was a very good tactical arrangement, using high ground to attack low ground. Tanks of this era did not have an elevation angle, so they should have had no way to deal with this kind of ambush.

He asked, "In that case, you have a significant advantage. What do you need the Asian Air Force for?"

The tank unit commander pointed to another part of the map.

“We have fewer troops, only militia to assist us. We will definitely have the advantage once the ambush begins, but the enemy will retreat immediately. If we pursue them then, it will be very dangerous. My idea is to conduct an air-ground coordinated attack. After we launch the ambush, your air force will launch a second attack during the enemy's retreat. In this way, the enemy will be restrained by the air attack during our pursuit, and the effect will be better.”

Fang Wen nodded. This was a tank commander with a lot of war experience who had planned everything that might happen very thoroughly.

This was also Fang Wen's first time coordinating an attack with mechanized forces, and he hoped to gain some experience in mechanized coordinated combat through this battle.

He then engaged in in-depth discussions with the tank unit commander to understand the enemy's situation.

To facilitate better cooperation, the tank unit commander provided a detailed account of the enemy tank forces.

The enemy's tank force is a mixed force, consisting of different types of tanks, and there are many of them.

Among them was the beekeeper tank unit of the Condor Legion, which consisted of the 1st and 2nd Battalions of the 6th Tank Regiment under the 3rd Panzer Division of the German Army. They came to Spain as volunteers and were reorganized into the 88th Tank Battalion of the Condor Legion, which was divided into two companies. Each tank company was actually composed of the original German tank battalion.

Currently, the 2nd Company of the 88th Tank Battalion of the "Vulture" Legion is stationed near the city of Cáceres.

The tanks they used were German-made Panzer I tanks.

This tank's main weapon is a machine gun, and it can actually be considered a type of armored vehicle.

It was the first combat tank produced in the early days of Nazi rule, and its weaponry was nowhere near as powerful as the T-26, which was a true tank with a cannon; its 37mm main gun could easily destroy armor.

This also poses a threat to infantry.

In addition to the beekeeper tank unit, there were also CV33 light tanks supplied by Italy.

This thing is one of the smallest tanks in history.

So small, in the words of a Soviet tank commander, that it was a toy tank.

But the mechanized forces were not just tanks; they also included a large number of Franco rebels who were fighting alongside them. These rebels had infantry guns that posed a deadly threat to the T-26.

Therefore, the air support from Fang Wen and his team was crucial. After the Soviet tank forces attacked, the Asian Air Force was responsible for harassing and bombing the infantry forces in the rear areas, preventing them from damaging the tank forces in front.

After discussions with the commander of the Soviet tank forces, Fang Wen immediately led his team to fly back to the Albaysett base.

Back at Albacete base, the action team was disbanded on the spot. Fang Wenze and the pilots of the Asian Air Force held a pre-battle meeting to discuss the upcoming tank-aircraft coordinated operations.

The pilots found this kind of combat very novel and, from Fang Wen's description, they also felt the charm of mechanized coordinated combat.

After the meeting, everyone began pre-battle preparations.

Fang Wen also conducted a comprehensive overhaul of the Shrike.

The Shrike was damaged in the battle at the Plaza de Cáceres.

Unexpectedly, the Shrike, which had survived numerous battles in the sky without sustaining damage, was riddled with holes by the rifles of the Long Riflemen.

Fortunately, the bullet did not cause damage to the internal structure. Fang Wen simply removed the cover, cleaned out the bullet, and then made some repairs.

After the aircraft was repaired, the entire Asian air force was on standby, with their telegraph machines tuned to specific frequencies, in preparation for any requests for assistance from the city of Cáceres.

During this waiting period, Fang Wen was reflecting on what he had seen and heard during the Spanish Civil War.

This war was not only a conflict between the Spanish Revolution and its opponents, but also represented the attitudes of various European countries towards war.

Britain and France were averse to trouble, and therefore avoided the Spanish Civil War.

Germany and Italy, however, gradually became fanatical in the wave of fascism, actively sending troops and equipment to participate in the Spanish Civil War.

Meanwhile, the Soviet Union was also providing full support for the revolution in Europe.

These military aids also revealed the shortcomings of various countries' military capabilities.

The tanks of Germany and Italy are a joke at present. It is estimated that it was through the test of the Spanish Civil War that Germany began to vigorously develop tank research.

The Soviet Union, however, has always excelled in tanks, and in this era, tanks like the T-26 light tank, which are highly mobile and have strong firepower, have emerged.

In contrast, the Soviet Union's Il-16 was far inferior to Germany's Bf.109 fighter.

Therefore, both sides have their strengths and weaknesses, and both are constantly learning from experience and upgrading their equipment through the baptism of war.

Thinking of this, Fang Wen couldn't help but think of the gunboat he designed, the kind of special operations aircraft that was suitable for domestic warfare. How much of a role would it play in the domestic war of resistance against Japan?

After being tested in war, what improvements can be made to gunboats?

Thinking about this, Fang Wen couldn't help but feel a little reluctant to return to China.

After all, it's almost the end of the year, and the Japanese will launch a full-scale war next year, so we need to spend the last bit of time preparing.

Just then, Deng Zhongyu, the pilot in charge of telegrams, jogged over to report.

"General Manager, Cáceres has called, requesting that we conduct joint operations tomorrow. They are requesting that we prepare sufficient bombing ammunition."

Fang Wen nodded, stood up and said, "The number of air-dropped bombs in the camp is only enough for one bombing run. I estimate that the intensity of the coordinated operation will be very high tomorrow. I'll go to the command post to request more bombs."

After saying that, Fang Wen got up and headed to the command post.

The logistics officer at the International Brigade headquarters readily agreed to Fang Wen's request for supplies.

After all, it was a joint operation with the Soviet Union, the big brother. Originally, it was just to increase the stockpile of bombs by one unit, but the other side readily gave Fang Wen all the stock in the warehouse, which could complete three full bombing missions.

With so many bombs, Fang Wen felt that the battle was in the bag.

However, in actual combat, it's not a matter of a combat formation flying over, bombing, returning to reload, and then bombing again.

A better approach is to maintain continuous bombing and combat harassment throughout the battlefield to suppress ground forces.

To this end, Fang Wen designed a series of multi-wave bombing raids, with two to three fighter jets bombing and harassing each time. The entire air force formed three waves to maintain a continuous air deterrence on the battlefield.

Such an intensity of bombing and harassment places high demands on pilots and puts a lot of pressure on ground crew.

To this end, he also discussed and practiced with Howard's mechanics and the ground crew arranged by the International Brigades to ensure that maintenance and bombing were carried out smoothly during the aircraft's patrol and bombing operations.

(End of this chapter)