Anti-Japanese War: I have unlimited assistance

More than an hour later.

Northwest Shanxi.

Above Daguzhen Airport.

More than 40 Japanese planes have arrived in Ping'an County and have begun to descend.

Two Type 2 reconnaissance aircraft took the lead in conducting high-altitude reconnaissance, flying over Daguzhen Airport.

The 40mm and 128mm anti-aircraft guns below opened fire, and plumes of smoke exploded around the two Type 100 reconnaissance aircraft.

"Such powerful anti-aircraft firepower."

The two reconnaissance pilots gasped.

Although they were about 4000 meters above the ground, a distance that a 20mm autocannon wouldn't be enough, and a 40mm anti-aircraft gun would be insufficient, the enemy was equipped with large-caliber anti-aircraft guns, all of which had proximity fuses. The Japanese planes had very thin skin, and being hit by shrapnel would result in either death or serious injury.

The two Japanese reconnaissance pilots used a spiral maneuver to quickly pull their planes into the clouds. One of the pilots radioed his commander to report the situation at the airport:

"Report: The enemy is equipped with large-caliber anti-aircraft guns. No enemy aircraft have been detected on the runway."

The commander asked, "How many large-caliber anti-aircraft guns does the enemy have?"

"Be careful, gentlemen," the reconnaissance pilot replied. "The enemy has four large-caliber anti-aircraft guns, all twin-mounted, equipped with proximity fuses."

What? So that means the Eighth Route Army's airfield had eight large-caliber anti-aircraft guns?

Upon hearing this news, the Japanese pilots were filled with envy.

Even the airports in Beiping and Shenyang were only equipped with 20mm anti-aircraft guns, a small number of 75mm anti-aircraft guns and Type 99 88mm anti-aircraft guns. These anti-aircraft guns could not be considered large-caliber anti-aircraft guns.

An airfield in a mountain valley belonging to the Eighth Route Army was actually equipped with four twin-mounted large-caliber anti-aircraft guns.

In addition to large-caliber anti-aircraft guns, there must have been a large number of 20mm and 40mm anti-aircraft guns and anti-aircraft machine guns.

The Japanese pilots looked grim; even without the Eighth Route Army planes, today was still going to be a tough battle.

"First formation, attack! Fighters fly at high speed to draw air defense fire, bombers enter from the flanks."

Suppressing his envy, the Japanese commander said:

"Bombers should drop their bombs at an altitude of 600 meters and immediately move away after dropping the bombs; they must never dive down to straf the enemy."

"The second formation is circling in the air, awaiting orders."

"Attack, destroy the Eighth Route Army's airfield, and leave the Eighth Route Army's planes homeless."

The reconnaissance planes had already discovered that the Eighth Route Army only had a few airfields.

As long as the Eighth Route Army's airfield is destroyed, the Eighth Route Army's planes will be unable to land, and the pilots will have to parachute out and watch the planes crash, thus achieving the tactical objective.

"Hi…"

A response came through the radio.

The Japanese pilots could already vaguely see the runway of Daguzhen Airport in their line of sight.

Then the first formation of 10 fighters and 12 bombers began to dive, while the remaining 8 fighters and 12 bombers circled in the air, waiting for an opportunity.

When the first Japanese squadron was still two kilometers away from the airport.

Major Yamanaka, the commander of the first squadron, instinctively glanced to his side and rear, and his pupils immediately contracted.

"Da da da…"

Thirty Eighth Route Army fighter planes and attack aircraft came speeding in from the clouds behind the first Japanese formation, accompanied by conspicuous chains of ammunition.

At this moment, the pilots of the first Japanese squadron were focused on the airfield and anti-aircraft fire on the ground and did not notice the high-speed approaching aircraft at all.

Caught off guard, four Japanese planes were hit on the spot. One was shot down in mid-air, and the other three fell to the ground with long trails of smoke.

"Baka! We're under attack by enemy aircraft!"

"There's an ambush."

"I've been hit."

“Requesting support, requesting tactical guidance…” came the alarmed cry of a Japanese pilot over the radio.

However, the Japanese pilots were quick to react and made evasive maneuvers the moment they were attacked.

However, the remaining 18 Japanese planes were almost all pinned down.

"idiot."

Seeing one fighter jet and three bombers shot down in a single encounter, Major Yamanaka felt a chill run down his spine.

Looking back, he led a fighter squadron to ambush a squadron of the Nationalist Air Force. They suddenly attacked from behind and shot down four enemy planes in one fell swoop. That battle was his claim to fame; he shot down three Chinese planes all by himself.

After that, he was transferred to the 2nd Air Group of the Kwantung Army, and had not participated in air combat for more than a year.

Those damned Eighth Route Army guerrillas actually set up an ambush over the airport.

How did they know that the Locust Army's air force was going to attack the airport?

"Raise the price, then avoid it."

Despite his doubts, Major Yamanaka acted swiftly, immediately accelerating and gaining altitude, while loudly alerting the other pilots.

At that moment, he was caught by a Mustang fighter jet, which suddenly opened fire from behind. He pushed the control stick in front and climbed at a steep angle.

A minute later, Colonel Yamanaka was covered in sweat. No matter how he tried to dodge, his opponent was able to stick to him tightly.

What's even more critical is that the 20mm shells fired by the enemy are getting closer and closer to his fighter jet.

"idiot…"

On the other side of the sky, Major General Kumagai, the commander of the Japanese air regiment, was furious.

What were those reconnaissance pilots doing? They couldn't even detect the Eighth Route Army's ambush!
The moment the first formation was ambushed, he ordered the bombers of the second formation to return to base immediately, while leading eight fighters to provide reinforcements.

but,

On their way to reinforce, a group of Eighth Route Army fighters flew in from the flank and shot down two fighters in one encounter.

Major General Kumagai was very confident in the skills of his pilots and immediately ordered them to engage in battle, as this was a reward for their efforts.

However, after several rounds of close combat, the Japanese air formation was completely outmatched.

Their planes couldn't even beat the Eighth Route Army's attack planes, let alone their fighter planes.

The Japanese Type 1 and Type 97 fighter planes were not only thin-skinned, but their cockpits were also made of plexiglass. Once hit, they would either be shot down or severely damaged.

The Japanese warplanes had weak firepower, while the Eighth Route Army's aircraft cabins were all made of bulletproof glass. 7.7 mm bullets had little effect on the Eighth Route Army's aircraft, and only 20 mm cannons could cause them damage.

After several rounds of fighting, the Eighth Route Army lost two attack aircraft, while the Japanese suffered 20 casualties.

"Baga, retreat immediately."

Major General Kumagai immediately issued the order.

If we don't retreat now, our entire army will be wiped out.

However, the Eighth Route Army pilots had no intention of letting the Japanese planes escape, and Zhang Chengwu immediately led his planes to give chase.

The Japanese pilots pushed the throttle to the floor, speeding the planes to their maximum speed, only to turn around in despair and find that the Eighth Route Army planes were rapidly approaching.

"Fuck me!"

The fact that they shot down more than 20 Japanese planes in just a few minutes left the Eighth Route Army's air defense personnel and ground crew on the ground dumbfounded.

Is it really that efficient?
Although the airport's air defense firepower was not weak, some of it was reduced as the campaign to capture Taiyuan began, and the firepower was not as strong as before.

If there were no air interception, we might have been able to shoot down a few Japanese planes, but the airport runway would definitely have been destroyed.

In a scenario like this, more than 20 Japanese planes were shot down directly, and the remaining fleeing Japanese planes were also in grave danger.

"Haha."

As his comrades shot down more than 20 planes, the pilots on the ground who were not on missions laughed triumphantly.

Although two Eighth Route Army aircraft were damaged, the pilots ejected in time, resulting in no casualties. Only two aircraft were lost, which Boss Lin will reimburse later. (End of Chapter)