Anti-Japanese War: From Becoming Chu Yunfei to Rising

Chapter 467: Entering Burma! The British army was defeated in the Lashio air battle, and the expeditionary force arrived at the front line (please subscribe)
I don’t know if it was the fierce air force confrontation over Burma that prompted the Japanese army to launch the attack.

The Japanese 15th Army hastily launched an attack on Burma without completing its war preparations.

When the terrain is difficult to pass and maneuvering is difficult.

Shojiro Iida quickly completed the corresponding offensive deployment.

It drew part of the troops from one of the infantry regiments under the 55th Division of the Japanese Army to form a "charge" detachment to launch a diversionary attack in the direction of Towa before the main force.

(As shown in the picture above, Dawei area is very close to Bangkok. There is no terrain on the map. This area is mountainous and steep, and there are many rainforests.)
The main force of the 55th Division launched a fierce attack on the Maodanmian line.

The main force of the 33rd Division took this opportunity to quickly attack in the direction of Pegu.

The Japanese offensive intention was quite clear; their goal was to completely capture the Salween River line and make full preparations for subsequent operations.

Fighting begins on the Thai-Myanmar border.

The Fifth Army and the Sixth Army immediately moved south along the Burma Road as requested by the Supreme Command.

The direction they were heading towards was Yangon.

According to the original troop transport plan, they should have taken British military vehicles south to Lashio.

With the help of the British, they quickly maneuvered to the area south of Myanmar.

Obviously, the two sides did not have a detailed transfer plan for this.

After the Fifth and Sixth Armies left Lashio.

The British side responded.

With the matter already settled, the Allies even formed a consolation mission.

It was simply because they knew clearly that this military train included not only Chu Yunfei, the chief adviser of the Yunnan Advisory Group, but also General Stilwell, the chief of staff of the Far East Theater.

No matter which one comes, they need to handle it with great caution.

Followed by a harsh sound of steam.

The troop transport train soon stopped at Lashio Station.

Chu Yunfei and the others quickly left the stuffy canned food truck. Stilwell was in a good mood to joke, "My old friend, I wonder how long it has been since you stayed with these soldiers."

Chu Yunfei thought about the question seriously, and then responded: "It's been at least a year, which is really regrettable."

The head of the British delegation, Ms. Maya Black, immediately walked over.

Seeing themselves surrounded by the crowd, Chu Yunfei and Stilwell looked at each other.

Before they could even start greeting each other.

Japanese fighter planes flew over Lashio.

Chu Yunfei and Stilwell still greeted the staff of the visiting group in the station with smiles on their faces.

Maya Black was already sweating coldly at this time, his slightly fat body was trembling slightly, and fear lingered in his whole body.

When Japanese planes attempted to dive and drop bombs, and even attack the station.

The roar of the engine came from the clouds above the sky.

One after another, P-40 fighter planes roared down and swooped down on the Japanese aircraft that came to carry out air strike missions.

This time.

Two squadrons were dispatched, with a total of twenty-four fighter jets, far more than before.

The troop strength of both sides was almost one to one, and even Chu Yunfei was curious about how these "National Army pilots" from the United States would perform.

Stilwell looked up at the ongoing air battle in the sky and advised: "Commander Chu, it's time for us to set off for the air-raid shelter."

"I'm still curious whether these high-priced mercenaries can perform as well as before!"

The skills of these American pilots are relatively average among the US military.

Moreover, Commander Chennault’s resume and even his military rank were all forged.

The Flying Tigers were not actually a volunteer form of the Soviet Volunteer Air Force in aid of China.

But they are real high-priced mercenaries.

The monthly salary of every pilot, ground staff and technician is three times what they earn in China.

For every Japanese fighter shot down, the Nationalist government would provide a bonus of $500 as a reward without verification.

Although the Soviet Volunteer Air Force in aid of China received the best material benefits, its salary was nothing compared to that of the Americans.

Especially since these Americans like to conceal their battle results, Chu Yunfei was thinking of finding a reason to remind Chang Ruiyuan.

Isn't this the opportunity?

After watching the fight outside for a few minutes.

Chu Yunfei accepted the advice readily and followed Huang Baitao, Stilwell and others into the underground air-raid shelter of the station.

Then just sit on the stool.

His consciousness has switched to the three-dimensional combat map, observing the air battle in the sky.

After half an hour of fierce fighting, the Japanese army fled in panic, and the Flying Tigers' fighter planes immediately launched a fierce pursuit.

Calculate the time if the Japanese plane took off from the airport in northern Vietnam.

After arriving and fighting over Myanmar for such a long time, it is almost time to return.

Otherwise they won't have the fuel to fly back to their own airport.

Judging from this air battle, the casualty ratio of both sides was basically close to 1:1.

I don’t know whether the previous battle record was a bit too serious or the Japanese sent their elite troops this time.

When Chu Yunfei and others left Lashio again and took a car to continue heading south.

Along the way.

Many villages along the way were burned down and turned into ruins, and many indigenous Burmese people were living on the sides of the road, hoping to get help from the British.

"That's not right, Lord Jun. The Japanese haven't reached here yet, so why are all these villages burned down?"

"The Japanese have made a lot of preparations for their attack on Burma. There must be many spies who have defected to the Japanese. In order to prevent us from gaining a foothold in Burma, they will definitely try their best to destroy our rear area. This is not a good thing."

Huang Baitao, who was riding in the same jeep with Chu Yunfei, immediately understood: "Chief of Staff Stilwell, if we fight alone in Lower Burma, we cannot be sure of the safety of our rear, which will inevitably require more combat forces."

Stilwell nodded slightly, and frowned at this time: "The Japanese should not be underestimated. According to intelligence, they have organized an armored assault force called the "Silver Wheel Force" for a quick assault, and have now broken through the Shilin River defense line held by the British."

"Silver Wheel Army?" Huang Baitao was surprised: "Is it a new type of tank?"

"It's not clear yet. According to British intelligence, these armored forces attacked them in the jungle."

Tanks, jungle?
These two words never seem to go together.

There are many swamps and even muddy areas in the jungles of Southeast Asia.

It sounds a bit strange that tanks launched an attack from the jungle, and it may even make people subconsciously think that this is an impossible thing!
"Do you find it incredible?"

Stilwell said with a hint of mockery: "At least that's what our British allies told us."

Chu Yunfei naturally knew what was going on.

In order to maintain the speed of advancement, the Japanese also wanted to bluff and undermine the morale of the British on the battlefield in Malaysia.

They removed the rubber rings from the bicycle wheels and rode just the chrome-plated metal wheels.

Once you start riding, a strange gnagging noise is heard.

The reason was the large number of troops and the poor quality of the British troops.
Therefore, it was rumored to be an armored unit.

From the very beginning, Chu Yunfei didn't expect this group of second-rate troops to be able to exert much combat effectiveness.

Being able to delay for some time is already very good.

"After the Japanese attacked the Philippines and Malaysia, I suggested to MacArthur and the friendly forces that if they could not retreat further, they should destroy all weapons before surrendering to the Japanese. Even if they only destroyed the heavy weapons, no one would blame them."

Chu Yunfei said at the right time: "Mr. Stilwell, precisely because the combat effectiveness of our friendly forces is too weak, we need more support from the United States for the entire defense of the Yunnan-Burma Road. At the very least, we need to ensure that our logistics routes are unobstructed."

"Because of the lack of communication and the fact that many local Burmese people were bribed by the Japanese army, we were unable to directly provide supplies locally. Many things had to be transported from China, and the number of refugees generated by the war in our country was huge."

Stilwell looked depressed when he talked about this matter: "I have told the Chairman about the current situation countless times. Although you have successfully completed the currency reform and carried out the wartime economic system transformation, the Nanjing Wang Puppet Government, including the Japanese, are also issuing various currencies, and even counterfeit currency that disrupts the financial market."

“Not only can ordinary people not trust any currency, they can only go back to the era of barter.”

"In the face of material shortages, market circulation was severely distorted, and many generals, officials, and businessmen engaged in hoarding, smuggling, and even speculation to make a fortune from the national crisis."

"Chu, with all due respect, the fact that the economy of the Shancheng government has been able to sustain itself until now is truly a miracle."

Chu Yunfei nodded slowly: "This miracle was not created by the Shancheng government, but by this nation, this group of people who have endured the war and are looking forward to victory."

Stilwell did not speak directly because of Chu Yunfei's status: "According to statistics, the cost of repairing the Yunnan-Burma Road is only 5,800 national currency per kilometer, equivalent to 1,500 US dollars. However, a large proportion of the workers' wages have not been paid."

But Chu Yunfei could feel it quite clearly.

What Stilwell wanted to express was that Chang Ruiyuan was no longer a qualified leader at this time. Chu Yunfei avoided talking about it and continued, "Regarding this matter, the Military Control Commission has already started relevant investigations. For example, regarding the repair of the Yunnan-Burma Road, the number of corrupt bureaucrats who have been executed has exceeded 50. In addition, four division commanders and three regiment commanders have been arrested and handed over to military courts for trial. Their properties have been confiscated and related preferential treatment has been cancelled."

Stilwell nodded, obviously approving of the corresponding measures: "Unfortunately, regarding the deployment of relevant auxiliary arms to maintain the smooth flow of the Burma Road as much as possible and the measures on logistics, I will communicate with the British side and reach relevant agreements as soon as possible."

"In that case, thank you very much, Mr. Stilwell."

As they were talking, another air raid arrived.

Chu Yunfei and Stilwell looked at each other, quickly jumped out of the jeep, and hid in the jungle on both sides of the road.

The Japanese air force was obviously not interested in their small-scale team and directly attacked Huang Baitao's moving troops.

A moment later, the sound of short and intense aerial gunfire was heard.

The large-caliber machine guns and light machine guns that accompanied the battle took corresponding air defense measures, but the effect was not good.

Stilwell seemed a little helpless: "Machine guns can't effectively interfere with them. I have long said that you need to provide you with a large number of Oerlikon machine guns to prevent the harassment of these Japanese fighter planes. The damn congressmen actually used insufficient funds to prevaricate "us". They should just throw them on the battlefield and let them also experience the taste of being attacked by Japanese air raids."

Chu Yunfei frowned, he keenly realized that something was wrong.

The frequency and number of Japanese air raids far exceeded those before.

There are only two possibilities for this situation.

The first possibility is that the Japanese army increased its air force strength, on this basis they were able to roam freely over northern Myanmar.

There is a major premise for this possibility.

That is, the Japanese troops made breakthrough progress on other battlefields.

The second possibility is that their whereabouts were leaked.

The latter possibility is not very high. After all, Chu Yunfei and Stilwell should have been in Lashio at this time, instead of advancing with the troops.

There is basically no possibility of leakage.

Boom, boom, boom!

The mobile anti-aircraft guns of the anti-aircraft artillery battalion also began firing into the air at this time.

There was no hesitation.

Chu Yunfei used the anti-aircraft artillery guidance skills as soon as possible.

dong dong dong~
In the sky, the models of the Japanese fighter planes could not be seen.

Just from its appearance.

It is somewhat similar to the Ki-102a Cannonbird, a heavy fighter jet that Chu Yunfei remembered would be put into service two months later.

The 37mm machine cannon and 12.7mm machine gun are still capable of combat in high-altitude areas.

However, the performance is excellent.

Facing anti-aircraft artillery, all guidance skills are in vain.

As a fighter pilot, Kenta Honda was laughing on the radio about the lack of anti-aircraft fire.

He had just gotten out of attacking stance and was about to leave the battlefield when he heard an explosion behind him.

The next second, he turned back suddenly and found out.

Half the fuselage had been torn off.

At this moment, Honda Kenta was stunned.

How come the anti-aircraft guns suddenly became so accurate? This is really outrageous.

Okubo's exclamation came from the radio: "Honda-kun, you've been hit, Honda-kun, parachute quickly!"

next second.

A white umbrella flower blooms in the sky.

Another explosion followed.

Suddenly, Kenta Honda looked at the other half of his fuselage.

In just a few seconds, it turned into a fireball.

And at this moment, above the newly formed 11th Army.

The dense anti-aircraft shells formed a barrage of bullets as if they were free.

The other Japanese fighter planes were performing various difficult maneuvers in an attempt to avoid the incoming shells.

Some Japanese fighter planes on the edge of the battlefield immediately moved up and left the battlefield.

The battle lasted less than five minutes.

Two of the six fighter planes were shot down in mid-air. Honda Kenta was lucky enough to survive by parachuting.

His teammates were not so lucky. They didn't even have the chance to parachute.

Another fighter plane crashed into the deep mountains and forests in northern Myanmar after being damaged by anti-aircraft fire.

The thunderous cheers echoed throughout the highway.

The soldiers were extremely excited. Having not fought for a long time, they now regained the feeling of fighting bloody battles and risking everything in Shanxi.

Chu Yunfei naturally didn't have the leisure to ask people to search whether the Japanese pilot was still alive.

Report a kill.

The Shancheng side will not send people to the deep mountains and forests in northern Myanmar to verify the battle results.

Stilwell, the Chief of Staff of the Far East Theater, is watching here. Is it possible that the battle results are falsified?

Seeing Stilwell standing there in surprise, Chu Yunfei took the initiative to explain: "We have trained to the extreme in the use of weapons and equipment. The superb quality of the soldiers can maximize the power of the weapons themselves."

"In order to encircle the Burma Road and even launch a corresponding counterattack, we do need more air defense weapons and more fighter planes."

Stilwell nodded slowly: "Please rest assured, my friend, "we" will do our best to support you."
-

Fifteen days.

Huang Baitao's troops had just arrived in Swa, the Fifth Army had just arrived in Babang, and the Sixth Army had just arrived in Pegu.

Towei, an important military stronghold of the British Army in southern Myanmar, was captured by the Japanese army.

Early the next morning.

Chu Yunfei had just received the news that Tuwa had been captured.

There was no time to provide corresponding combat ideas, and even no command orders were issued.

Six hours later.

Part of the Japanese 55th Division had already captured Baan with great force.

The troops surrounded Mawlamyine, an important town outside Yangon.

The Japanese army was only 105 kilometers away from the defense line of the Fifth and Sixth Armies.

And this point in time.

The expeditionary force's supreme commander had not yet had time to confirm, the battle was fought in such a confusion!
Biaoguan (about 100 kilometers north of Pegu), the front-line headquarters.

Telegrams came one after another, and Chu Yunfei, Huang Baitao and others looked very ugly.

Bao Zhishan could not hold back and was the first to complain: "The Japanese attack was like a simple march. They did not encounter any decent resistance at all. It is hard to imagine that our allies are in such a state."

Zhang Dongkai was quite worried: "Before the battle, the Lord always told us to be mentally prepared. These British people are simply unreliable. If we fight the Japanese fiercely and their defense line is breached, then we will be..."

Chu Yunfei said, "So after entering Burma, we can only rely on ourselves. It will take at least three days for our mobile artillery unit to arrive."

"The artillery battalion of the 200th Division and the mountain artillery regiment of the 5th Army are also on their way. We don't have much time left. At least we must prevent the Japanese from successfully attacking Yangon."

Sun Ming asked in confusion, "Sir, what's going on with Stilwell? Why did he leave so quickly? And what Stilwell said before about dispatching the US Army to reinforce Burma, is that reliable?"

"Of course it's unreliable."

Chu Yunfei smiled and said, "Even if Stilwell made a promise, it may not be possible to do it, but as long as we ensure that Yangon does not fall, there will be a steady flow of supplies arriving."

"According to Stilwell himself, the next batch of about 5,000 military trucks and hundreds of tons of military fuel have arrived at the port of Yangon. These materials will all be assigned to the expeditionary force for combat."

"In addition, there are 1 M3A75 mm howitzers, and dozens of American instructors and translators accompanying them, who will help the expeditionary troops master the use of these artillery as soon as possible and put them into front-line combat."

"If it performs well in the Myanmar environment, further artillery assistance will be provided."

Sun Ming asked in confusion, "I remember you said before that the climate of many small islands in the Pacific Ocean is not much different from that of Myanmar. Could it be that these Americans are planning to use Myanmar as a testing ground for their new weapons?"

"Yes and no..." Chu Yunfei obviously didn't want to dwell on this question for too long. He then turned to look at Feng Wenxiang: "Old Feng, your regiment will stay in Biaoguan for garrison. Be sure to be alert to the direction of Nanmo and Meiqi. Judging from the map, the Japanese army is likely to risk crossing the mountains and cut off the supply line of our main force in the south."

Feng Wenxiang immediately stood up and said, "Yes, sir, please rest assured, I, Old Feng, will defend Biao Pass to the death!"

(End of this chapter)