The expeditionary force began to dominate Southeast Asia by recruiting defeated soldiers

In the early morning, the faint morning light just shone through the clouds onto the river surface. Zhang Chi stood on a hidden commanding height southwest of the airport, his eyes sharp and his expression as strong as steel.

After many battles, he has grown more and more into an excellent commander.

Hao Yi looked at Zhang Chi standing in front of him and swallowed his saliva. This young master of the Zhang family, who used to be a useless staff officer to supplement the 66th Regiment, now has an aura that is no less than that of the former commander of the 96th Division.

Zhang Chi had no idea what Hao Yi was thinking.

Two days and one night of difficult sailing finally brought him to this moment.

He slowly raised the telescope, overlooking the Japanese front-line airport on the other side of the river. He scanned the entire area skillfully, and the corners of his mouth unconsciously rose slightly.

"What's the best way to destroy a plane?"

Zhang Chi asked himself this question in his heart, and many classic battle examples emerged in his mind. The answer was clear.

"Of course, we should destroy it while it's still on the ground."

He muttered to himself, his eyes fixed on the simple hangars in the corner of the airport.

The image in the telescope became clearer and clearer - rows of neatly parked Nakajima Type 10 and Type 97 fighter planes appeared extremely quiet in the morning light, like a group of lambs waiting to be slaughtered.

"In air combat, destroying a nimble fighter may require a long dogfight and precise operations by the pilot. But on the ground, just one grenade can destroy them." Zhang Chi whispered, already having a battle plan in his mind.

The fragile duralumin fuselage of the Fuso aircraft would be reduced to ashes in an instant if a fire broke out on the ground.

He put down the binoculars, turned to look at Hao Yi beside him, and said in a deep voice: "Hao Yi, dispatch a platoon to cover the landing of the artillery company of the 'Mountain Cannon'. Carry mortars and occupy the southeast slope."

He pointed to the target point marked on the map and said, "Tell them that their mission is to provide us with long-range fire support. Once the battle begins, I need them to prioritize blowing up the Japanese fuel depot."

Thanks to the intelligence, Zhang Chi had a clear understanding of the overall layout of the Japanese airport.

He didn't intend to make the same mistake as Nangumo Chuichi in Pearl Harbor. He wanted to send the Japanese fuel depot into the sky as soon as possible.

Without the fuel that had been stored for a long time, even if the Japanese could transfer more planes over, they would not be able to take off due to lack of fuel.

Zhang Chi continued his deployment, speaking slightly faster. "Send another platoon, aboard five torpedo boats, to make a circuitous route through the river and land silently in the rainforest three kilometers west of the airport. I need them to conduct a feint attack to distract the enemy's main force and buy time for our amphibious landing."

Hao Yi nodded and turned to arrange the tasks.

-------

Half an hour later, the operation officially began as Zhang Chi gave the order on the radio.

Suddenly, bursts of fierce gunfire and explosions broke out in the rainforest to the west, breaking the tranquility of the early morning.

Bullets swept through the trees like a rainstorm, and even the air seemed to be torn apart.

Major Daiki Okuya, commander of the 3rd Battalion, 215th Infantry Regiment, 33rd Division, was standing in the airport command post at this time.

His face darkened when he heard the gunshots outside.

"The enemy is coming?" his adjutant exclaimed.

Aoya Daiki did not respond immediately. He hurried to the map, frowned, and listened carefully to the direction of the gunshot.

As an experienced brigade commander, he had very sharp ears, and the intensity of the firepower coming from the gunshots made his heart tighten.

"Coming from the west?" he muttered to himself, puzzled by the sudden attack. "More than a dozen machine guns are firing. This is at least several companies of main force. This isn't harassment."

In fact, it was the powerful automatic firepower of the feint attack troops that caused him to misjudge.

The 10 12.7 heavy machine guns carried by the five torpedo boats, plus the three Bren-type machine guns of the feint attack platoon that fired crazily without regard for ammunition consumption, this was a firepower display usually only seen in infantry units of more than 500 men in John's army. This allowed Ouya Daiki to determine that the west was the main attack direction of the independent regiment.

He quickly decided: "Two squadrons, immediately enter the pre-set positions on the west side."

As soon as he finished speaking, he waved his hand and the adjutant immediately hurried away with the order.

Okuya Daiki immediately picked up the field phone and urgently dialed the regiment headquarters.

Amidst the noisy background noise on the other end of the phone, the voice of the regiment staff officer was heard: "Major Okuya, what's going on?"

"The west side of the airport was attacked by the enemy, and the firepower was extremely intense. According to the firepower analysis, the enemy is at least a battalion in size, possibly more." Okuya Daiki said anxiously.

He looked at the map, and a terrifying idea emerged from the bottom of his heart - the west side is where the main force of the Xinpingyang Division is stationed. If the enemy's main force can attack the airport from the west, then it may mean that the enemy has broken through the division's defense line on the border?

"Please contact the division headquarters immediately to confirm the border situation. I suspect that John's counterattack force has broken through the border defense line." Ouya Daigui wiped the sweat from his forehead, and his fingers holding the phone turned white with nervousness.

Various possible scenarios flashed through his mind: would the enemy's mechanized forces break through the border and advance rapidly, concentrating their forces to attack the airfield before further attacking deep into the enemy territory? Would they directly threaten the flank of the 55th Division stationed in Myitkyina?

Thinking of this, Aoya Daigui broke out in a cold sweat like a waterfall.

The 215th Infantry Regiment where he was stationed was a newly formed regiment formed after the outbreak of the war. He doubted whether those bespectacled high school recruits and the "rural soldiers" who were over 40 and had re-enlisted could really withstand the offensive of the enemy's main force.

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Through the telescope, Zhang Chi observed that the main force of the Japanese had been mobilized into the trenches and bunkers in the west by a feint attack, and the situation was just as he expected.

This means that the enemy's attention is focused on the west side, and those Japanese infantrymen with only two legs have already run to the west side of the airport, which has created an excellent opportunity for their real main attack direction - the south.

Zhang Chi did not hesitate and immediately ordered an attack.

He personally led 24 amphibious tanks, like an unstoppable steel torrent, and quietly appeared south of the airport along the river.

Relying on the leaked hydrological data, Zhang Chi's command vehicle "Mallard 1" was the first to find a suitable landing site, followed closely by "Mallard 2", "3" and "4".

They slowly drove out of the river one by one, the tank tracks leaving deep marks on the slippery river bank, and the steel monster-like body of the vehicle gradually emerged.

"This is Mallard No. 2. I'll be the first. No. 3 and No. 4, please pay attention to protecting the flanks of vehicle No. 1." The voice of the captain of vehicle No. 2 was clearly audible on the radio.

"Received on the 3th."

"Received on the 4th."

A short response sounded over the radio, and several tanks quickly adjusted their formation.

Soon, three tanks drove up the river bank, one in front, one on the left, and one on the right, protecting Zhang Chi's command vehicle tightly and forming a diamond-shaped attack formation.

They were like sharp arrows, pointing directly at the Japanese airport.