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After saying that, he handed a walkie-talkie to the liaison officer in the front passenger seat. He saw that there was no one behind the window on the street side of the liaison point, so he said, "Trotsky, park the car right at the entrance. We'll start the assault as soon as we get out. Group A, come with me to the second floor. Group B, clear the first floor."
"clear."
The sharp screech of brakes echoed through the street. The little green men who poured out of the car split into two groups and stuck to the door on both sides. Trotsky unfolded the patch explosive that looked 90% like a sanitary napkin in his hand, used the adhesive on the back of the patch explosive to stick it to the wooden door, stepped back to the side of the door, made room for the blast, and then pressed the detonator.
With a loud bang, the wooden door shattered into pieces. Before the smoke had even cleared, the eight-man squad had already begun their assault: each person was assigned to their own firing range, which did not overlap, but together they completely covered the attack team's line of sight.
"Hurry, hurry, hurry! Find ∠≤Shu∪! Group: 仈￡—五』岐6六≠@四』←死2"
Captain Miller's Teams A and B quickly passed through the death funnel at the door. As planned, Team A continued to advance, clearing out the kitchen and living room on the first floor, while Team B turned left into the stairwell after passing through the entrance hallway. "Approach!" The moment the scout from Team A stepped onto the stairs, a bullet from the second floor hit his STSh-81 helmet.
Volume 1: Chapter 35 (Part 34) - Raid on the Liaison Point (Part 2)
The STSh-81 helmet, a bulletproof helmet assembled from three titanium alloy armor plates, still offered excellent ballistic protection even at such close range. A 9mm round-nosed pistol bullet couldn't possibly penetrate the helmet and harm Trotsky; the bullet ricocheted upon impact, embedding itself in the wall. He merely shook his head slightly before recovering, yelling "Close fire!" as he raised his gun and pulled the trigger on the figures lying in ambush on the second floor. The AKS-74U's rate of fire of 650 rounds per minute easily suppressed the enemy on the second floor. Kostya, behind Trotsky, pulled the pin on an RGD-5 assault grenade and threw it towards the second floor. The grenade flew over Trotsky's shoulder, accurately landing behind the ambush victim on the second floor.
Trotsky and Kostya quickly retreated from the stairs, and after a bang, they stepped back up the stairs. This time, they were not attacked again. Behind the second-floor stairwell, there was a person lying on the ground, his back already blown apart by the RGD-5. Trotsky carefully kicked away the submachine gun next to him, lowered the muzzle, and subconsciously fired a shot into the person's head.
"Blyat! The captain said to try to capture them alive!" Kostya spoke a step too late, looking at the bullet hole in the back of the unfortunate guy's head, where blood mixed with brain matter was gushing out continuously. Even though this guy was lucky enough to escape with his life from the RGD-5, he was now dead beyond dead.
"We can just catch him later," Trotsky replied nonchalantly as he pushed forward, though a lingering fear still lingered in his heart. Being shot in the head was no pleasant experience. Even if his bulletproof helmet withstood it, if the bullet had deflected ten centimeters downwards, he could have met Stalin. The STSh-81 wasn't the masked, fully protected MASKA-1SH; it offered no facial protection. He'd definitely have to find the quartermaster to get him a MASKA-1SH when he got back.
At that moment, a figure wearing a vest and shorts emerged from the second room on the second floor—also the last room—and raised his submachine gun to fire. Just then, Trotsky and Kostya turned into the first room, and Miller, who was in third place, pointed his gun in that direction. He lightly tapped the trigger, and two bursts hit the gunman in the chest. The gunman fell to the ground before he could even pull the trigger.
"Room safe!"
Trotsky's voice came from the first room, and then the two returned to their base, while Team A continued to advance. As Team A approached the second room, they smelled smoke coming from inside. The gunman on the ground didn't seem like he could hide a pistol; he was blowing red bubbles. This time, Trotsky didn't fire a follow-up shot, but simply kicked the submachine gun on the ground far away and continued his assault into the second room. Hearing the commotion at the door, the woman inside threw the documents in her hand into the burning barrel and lunged at the pistol on the table. However, Trotsky shot her, shattering her right scapula. The woman screamed and collapsed onto the table. Kostya rushed over and roughly tied the woman's hands behind her back. After confirming that there were no other enemies in the room, Miller pulled a nylon cable tie from the belt hanging on Kostya's back and tied the woman's hands tightly. Mark, the fourth member of Group A, swung his short-barreled rifle behind his back, reached directly into the burning barrel, pulled out all the burning documents, threw them on the ground, and stomped them out.
"Blyat, this is burning me!" Mark clapped his hands, clearly scalded by the flames. He crouched down and picked up the documents—they were quick enough that while some documents were burned, many more were preserved, even though much of the content had been licked away by the flames.
The woman tried to struggle, but Kostya grabbed her by the back of her collar and pulled her back, allowing Miller to slap her hard across the face with the butt of his gun. Only then did the woman calm down. Trotsky checked on the gunman outside, and the guy was still breathing, his chest rising and falling.
"This is Team B. The first floor has been cleared. No enemies encountered. No casualties reported. Over." Miller's headset transmitted the report from Team B's leader.
"This is Team A. The second floor is cleared. One killed, two captured. No injuries. One prisoner requires medical support. Over." Miller finally breathed a sigh of relief and switched the radio to the channel for contacting the Elgins: "All done. We need to bring the prisoners out through the main entrance. Do not fire, repeat, do not fire!"
After a long pause, the liaison officer's voice finally came through the radio: "Understood, we will not fire."
"Alright, lads, take the prisoners and let's go!" After receiving the reply, Miller gave the order to evacuate.
Watching the Amelia Volunteer Army soldiers escorting the prisoners away, the liaison officer couldn't help but click his tongue in amazement. These eight men, they hadn't even been inside for five minutes, had they? They were done so quickly, and judging from the sounds they just heard, they made quite a commotion... This doesn't look like the firepower of eight men at all; you'd think it was a whole company!
This time, not all members of Teams A and B returned to their Tiger armored vehicles. Instead, two men escorted two prisoners onto an Elgin Kingdom army truck. Two Tiger armored vehicles, one in front and one behind, sandwiched the truck as they sped towards the Kingdom's field hospital. The three men inside the truck had their index fingers on the trigger guards, ready to fire at top speed should anything happen. Although they had destroyed one Belken liaison station, no one could guarantee that this was the only Belken liaison station in Svorberari. These were the intelligence personnel they had on hand; this was a necessary precaution.
"Gentlemen, my men have successfully dismantled the Belken's intelligence liaison station in the western district. One was killed and two captured. We also seized a large number of documents from the Belken that they hadn't had time to destroy. They will send these documents over after they take the prisoners to the hospital." After learning of the operation's great success from Yelena, Lu Wu immediately announced this good news in the 44th Division's command headquarters, which immediately drew applause.
"This is the first joint operation between the Kingdom of Elgia and the Amelia Volunteer Army. I believe the success of this joint operation is a good omen. The invaders' army will evaporate without a trace like dew under the scorching sun under our combined attack." As he said this, the applause in the command post became even more enthusiastic.
……
As planned, two updates per day will begin today.
Then, I was incredibly busy the past few days and barely wrote anything, relying entirely on my stockpiled chapters. I was very dissatisfied with the few chapters I wrote over the weekend last night, so I deleted and rewrote them. So now…
Danger, draft, danger
Volume 1: Chapter 36 (Thirty-Five) - Model Workers
A person willing to betray their country for money is unlikely to have a strong will. Miller didn't waste much time on the Georgian gunman. After the gunman survived the surgery and woke up, Miller took him to a small room and injected him with a small dose of pentoxifylline. With the help of persuasion, the gunman quickly broke down and spilled all the information he had. Unfortunately, this gunman was clearly just a peripheral member of this intelligence station, possessing extremely limited intelligence.
So Miller set his sights on the woman. And this woman was clearly more determined than the gunman. In the interrogation transcript, she attempted suicide, but the cyanide capsule in her molar had already been removed, and her suicide attempt by banging her head against the wall was stopped—as for biting her tongue, that would only cause her pain, unless those little green men stood by stupidly and did nothing, watching her bleed to death.
So she expressed her stance through silence. Her intelligence advisor had told her: intelligence has a time limit; no matter what happens, remaining silent and self-hypnotizing are the best ways to resist various interrogation methods. Your superiors will soon notice your disappearance, and the destruction of related intelligence and the disconnection will proceed quickly according to a pre-set procedure. As long as you survive the intelligence's expiration date, you will be the ultimate victor. But as soon as you talk to the interrogator, your defenses will be breached. The interrogator will use this gap to gradually tear open this vulnerability. Initially, their use of various tortures might just be to extract your name from you. You might think this answer is insignificant—after all, the interrogator may already know your name from other sources—but your answer signifies your surrender. Starting from this point, it's only a matter of time before the interrogator extracts the information they want from you.
Miller was amused by this uncooperative attitude; it seemed the other person was trying to help him refine his interrogation skills. Since the other person was being so helpful, he couldn't very well refuse such a kind offer.
Thus began a contest of interrogation and counter-interrogation.
Unfortunately, Miller did not finish the match. He withdrew from the competition a day later, leaving the remainder to the Elgia intelligence agency, as the next phase of the campaign had already been planned.
It was unrealistic for the Chinese People's Volunteer Army, nominally a brigade but actually only a battalion, to annihilate the 73rd Infantry Division. Therefore, their objective was to inflict continuous damage on the 73rd Division on its advance towards Svobera, annihilating its armored units and weakening the 73rd Infantry Division's advantages of superior manpower, manpower, and morale. Subsequently, the 44th Infantry Division would use the city as a focal point to drag the 73rd Division into urban warfare—using terrain to further offset the Belken infantry's superior training. While the 73rd Division's attention was entirely occupied with urban combat, the 73th Brigade would utilize its mobility to penetrate from the rear, cooperating with the 44th Division to defeat the Belken offensive.
According to Lu Wu, if you can flank and attack from behind with low risk, why bother going head-on?
The key to the entire plan lies in the first phase. Its importance is like, or even more important than, the way you need to weaken the boss's armor in a game like "Kakegurui" to clear the E7 summer event. After all, in "Kakegurui," you don't need to weaken the armor, and you can gamble on the nation's luck to let a high-luck CI player unleash a critical hit to finish the boss off. But now, if the Chinese People's Volunteer Army doesn't disable the tanks of the 73rd Infantry Division, once these armored vehicles with comprehensive defenses, wide artillery coverage, and infantry cover enter the city, it will be difficult for the Ergia to hold Svorbella.
The focus of the first phase was on the application of air power. Because the Amelia Volunteer Army lacked heavy artillery, it could only rely on a number of air vehicles to carry out beyond-visual-range strikes—not only Su-7BMKs, but even interceptors like the MiG-21 PFM had to carry two FAB-500 M-54 bombs to act as attack aircraft.
Since the Amelia Volunteer Army lacked satellite reconnaissance, the task of obtaining enemy positions and guiding air strikes fell to the rapidly mobile air assault companies. Infantry were divided into reconnaissance teams of 3 or 4 men, and once the Belken main force was spotted, they would immediately call for air strikes. The Mi-43's mobility advantage and rich ground attack payload gave it the capability of integrated reconnaissance and strike. It could launch attacks on small units on its own. If a single attack helicopter could not handle the situation, it would call for support from nearby attack helicopters. If that still didn't work, it would call for Su-7s. If 2.5 tons of aerial bombs still couldn't handle the situation, it would fly a few more rounds, since aerial bombs weren't expensive anyway.
This is a typical tactic that utilizes asymmetric advantages. For the Belken, who lack air superiority and even air defense, it would be an absolute disaster. However, for the Ergia and Amelia allied forces, it would be an absolute boon—except for the 48th Air Assault Company and "Witch No. 1," who would likely become the busiest people in the entire Villand Province. Although such a mission was extremely simple for the 48th Company, carrying out such a tedious task would still drain their energy. Since arriving in Ens World, they had hardly had a break—first, the raid on "Wakan" village, then the annihilation of the Royal Fusiliers Regiment, and the raid on the intelligence station in Svorbella. Miller and his men were constantly on the move, and when Lu Wu went to Svorbella, they still had to wait fully armed in the Doe. They were practically the model workers of the entire 7th Brigade.
"Sir, I think you need to form a new reconnaissance unit. If we're constantly being asked to do everything, we'll probably die from overwork. It's not that we can't be deployed, but we are, after all, an air assault unit. Our primary responsibility is to conduct raids and break stalemates. We can handle occasional side jobs, but if we keep doing these small-scale operations, we'll have to regroup the scattered teams when we need to launch an air assault, which will probably take some time." Miller didn't refuse the mission, but just sighed and offered his opinion.
“A new reconnaissance unit? I’m already preparing for it, but it might take some time.” Miller raised an eyebrow at Lu Wu’s words; it sounded a bit like empty promises. “As you know, we’ve always lacked various long-range support firepower, not even mortars. Although we have CAS (Combat Aircraft), their range is limited, making them unsuitable for large-scale fire suppression. CAS is perfect for dealing with small groups of enemies, but right now we only have a few aircraft capable of providing CAS, and the enemy’s numbers are so large. What we need now is this kind of large-scale suppressive firepower, so…”
"So?" Miller gradually understood everything.
"So, we're going to form an artillery unit to fill this gap. You know, forming an artillery company isn't easy. Besides preparing the basic artillery, you also need to prepare an ammunition platoon, a command platoon, and several service units... So, you'll have to hold on a little longer." Lu Wu patted Miller on the shoulder and said earnestly, "Even the richest man has no surplus grain. Why don't you go ask BVVD how much my head is worth?"
……
That's all for today's update. We'll talk about the rest tomorrow.
Volume 1: Chapter 37 (Part 36) - The Establishment of Long-Range Artillery (Part 1)
Lu Wu originally envisioned the 7th Brigade as a standard unit consisting of three tank battalions, one motorized infantry battalion, one air defense battalion, one communications battalion, one logistics battalion, one equipment support battalion, one engineer company, one reconnaissance company, one chemical defense company, one electronic warfare company, one medical company, and one sniper platoon. However, frankly, his 7th Brigade is still largely a shell brigade, at best half a motorized infantry regiment. Its organizational structure and equipment are severely lacking, making it almost incapable of conducting a campaign. Therefore, filling these equipment gaps is Lu Wu's primary task.
What the 7th Brigade lacks most right now is artillery, specifically howitzers—long-range artillery capable of indirect fire. According to the Russian army's artillery battalion organization, it should be equipped with 18 152mm self-propelled howitzers. The system also provides development for such vehicles—a self-propelled artillery line starting with the 2S3 Acacia self-propelled howitzer. Unfortunately, this is a Tier V vehicle, which the Army cannot obtain in the short term. He must find other ways to fill this gap. Therefore, he focused on all sorts of unusual vehicles, since some of them don't carry conventional, straight-trajectory cannons, but rather indirect-fire howitzers.
Yes, I'm talking about you, KV-2.
Speaking of the KV-2, Lu Wu immediately thought of the 152mm M-10T howitzer. The name itself suggests its suitability for indirect fire support for infantry. However, after carefully comparing the parameters of the two guns, Lu Wu discovered that the reality was quite different. The M-10T howitzer on the KV-2 differed from the original M-10 howitzer, mainly in two areas: caliber and elevation angle. The original M-10 howitzer had a 23-caliber barrel and an elevation angle ranging from -1 to 65 degrees, achieving a range of 12.4 kilometers when firing standard shells. The M-10T howitzer, however, housed in the MT-1 turret, had its caliber reduced to 20 calibers, and its elevation angle decreased to -5 to 12 degrees, significantly reducing its range. Clearly, such a gun was unsuitable for use as part of a gun corps.
After eliminating the "reliable comrade," Lu Wuxuan immediately thought of the ZIS-3 cannon, the core of Soviet support firepower during World War II. Although its performance was mediocre, this cannon was always the support artillery for Soviet divisions and regiments, and it was also the most numerous artillery piece in the Soviet army. This 76.2mm caliber cannon can fire OF-350M high-explosive shells with a charge of 621 grams of TNT, and its maximum range can reach 13.29 kilometers. The Soviet SU-76 tank destroyer used this gun, but it had the same problem as the M-10T: its elevation angle was only 15 degrees. This obviously made it unable to perform long-range artillery missions to its full potential. It was better suited for deployment behind infantry lines as support firepower. However, the infantry of the 7th Brigade were mechanized infantry. Their infantry fighting vehicles were equipped with machine guns, anti-tank missiles, and grenade launchers. At the very least, they had the 125mm main gun of the T-72 AV, so they did not seem to lack short- to medium-range direct fire support.
But he quickly found a seemingly excellent candidate—the SU-122, an anti-tank destroyer equipped with a 122mm M-30 howitzer. The M-30 howitzer was the mainstay of the Soviet medium divisional artillery during World War II, boasting a range of 11.8 kilometers and firing OF-462 high-explosive fragmentation shells loaded with 3.67 kilograms of TNT, making it ideal for the 7th Brigade to bombard the Belken. However, mounting the M-30 howitzer also brought the problem of reduced range—the elevation angle was reduced to only 25 degrees. After all, the SU-122 was positioned as an assault gun, not a self-propelled gun, and didn't require such a high elevation angle. But this wasn't a major problem for Lu Wu—there were assembly workshops in the industrial area below the base. He could have the support company use the facilities there to modify these assault guns to increase their range. If modification on the T-34 chassis was impossible, they could simply be salvaged and used. The only problem is that this is a Tier II ordinary vehicle. He cannot have the production workshop manufacture this vehicle until he has finished developing all the Tier I vehicles. Modification also takes time, and the low efficiency of this purely manual modification is foreseeable. It may even push back the delivery date of the equipment.
Ba Luwu tossed the tablet back onto the table, leaned back, and found himself enveloped in a pair of soft hands. It was Yelena. He didn't turn around; he recognized her simply by the familiar touch.
"Commander, what's wrong?" A slender hand pressed on Lu Wu's temple and gently massaged it.
"We're considering building our long-range artillery," Lu Wu sighed, closed his eyes, and began to calculate whether he could use Golden Eagles to unlock all Tier I vehicles and directly equip the SU-122. The cost of less than a thousand Golden Eagles seemed quite worthwhile.
"Commander, what do you think of this?"
Sugiru opened his eyes and saw that the tablet Yelena was holding displayed a tank destroyer named SU-5-1. This self-propelled gun was equipped with a 76.2mm 1902/30 gun. Judging from the model number, you might think it was an old relic developed before World War I, but in reality, it was a relatively recent invention from the 1930s. This gun not only appeared on the Eastern Front but also served as Soviet aid in China, outperforming Japanese artillery with its 13.2km range. Most importantly, the SU-5-1's main gun possessed excellent elevation and depression angles from -5 to 60 degrees, and it was a Tier I vehicle!
Of course, as an early experimental product, the SU-5-1 also had many shortcomings. First, if it were to be used as the core of long-range artillery fire, the 76.2 mm caliber was insufficient in terms of lethality. To increase its lethality, a large number of these guns would have to be produced, which would undoubtedly increase the manpower cost of setting up artillery units. Second, it used the chassis of the T-26, with a top speed of only a pitiful 30 km/h, and it also lacked protection—only a small gun shield on the front of the gun could block some bullets.
"We can make up for the lack of firepower with the BM-13 'Katyusha' self-propelled rocket launcher." But Yelena's next words solved the biggest problem of using this self-propelled artillery to some extent: "The SU-5-1 has high accuracy but low firepower, while the BM-13 has high firepower but poor accuracy. They complement each other and can also appropriately reduce our assembly costs."
Volume 1: Chapter 38 (Part 2) - The Establishment of Long-Range Artillery
Compared to the SU-5-1, the BM-13 "Katyusha" is a younger, more recent weapon. Its truck chassis and 73 km/h speed allow it to quickly relocate after each salvo. The 16 132mm M-13 rocket launchers are also formidable weapons. More importantly, the Katyusha emits unique sound and light effects upon launch, and Yelena is confident these rockets will leave a lasting impression on the Belken people.
Although, in Lu Wu's view, this thing should be on display in a museum, not on the battlefield, and its price on Anton Star had been inflated to an absurd level by capitalists, even doubling the price of the T-72 AV, he had no other good options at the moment. Anton only gave him two types of Soviet-made self-propelled rocket launchers; the other was a T-26 chassis-based 85mm rocket launcher design with a range of only 5.9 kilometers, which obviously couldn't meet his long-range strike needs. Fortunately, the SU-5-1 wasn't a high-end vehicle; its production required resources and Silver Lions, not Golden Eagles. He himself had accumulated enough Golden Eagles to form a new reinforced company of 15 T-72AV tanks, so assembling a rocket launcher company wouldn't be a problem.
“Then we will use the SU-5-1 and BM-13 as the core to form a mixed artillery battalion.” Lu Wu quickly finalized the decision.
A company of BM-13 "Katyusha" rocket launchers and two companies of SU-5-1 self-propelled howitzers, deployed on flat ground, could cover enemy formations at least 8-13 kilometers away, with acceptable firepower. Further distances could be handled by attack aircraft and army helicopters. With such a mixed artillery battalion, the 7th Brigade finally had the capability to "attack beyond the horizon." Of course, the 7th Brigade's ability to attack beyond the horizon was certainly not comparable to that of the Russian battalion tactical groups during the Ukrainian civil war, but such firepower was already better than that of the artillery battalions of the Kingdom of Algeria. Not to mention that the 7th Brigade's artillery also had mobility and off-road capability, which was like patching up a broken leg.
In terms of specific organization, he did not intend to adopt the 4-vehicle organization of the rocket artillery battery commonly used by the Soviet Army in World War II, nor the 6-vehicle organization of the rocket artillery battery of the Russian Army battalion tactical group. The Russian Army used the 6-vehicle organization because they at least used the BM-21 Hail, which can fire 40 rockets at a time, and 6 vehicles are enough. His Katyusha's launch capacity is only 40% of that of the Hail, so he naturally had to make up for it with a slightly larger number of rockets. He planned to use a large organization of 9 vehicles and 5 platoons—a command platoon without Katyusha rifles, two 4-vehicle fire support platoons, a 1-vehicle test firing platoon, an ammunition platoon equipped with trucks, and several service units. The SU-5-1 also had the same 9 vehicles and 5 platoons organization, but the ammunition platoon would be larger because the SU-5-1 itself could only carry a single-digit amount of ammunition, while the 76.2mm gun had a relatively fast rate of fire, capable of firing 10-12 rounds per minute. At full speed, the ammunition on board would be exhausted within a minute, at which point the ammunition platoon would be needed. In comparison, the Katyusha had a faster rate of fire, but its reloading time was also longer, requiring approximately 10 minutes to complete one reload.
"I feel that the damage from 76.2 is still a bit too small..." Although the equipment for the artillery company has been finalized, Lu Wu is still not satisfied. He thought of the SU-122 again, and a plan to do both well came to mind.
"Where is Mead? Let's go over and consult with the professionals about equipment modifications." Lu Wu looked up, admiring Yelena's long, white neck.
At first, Yelena would feel shy and blush or even be at a loss because of such an aggressive gaze, but now she can remain calm. She picked up her tablet, opened the schedule, glanced at it, and replied: "The first batch of BT-7 fast tanks in the industrial zone has been assembled, and the support company is now conducting factory inspections on these equipment."
"The first batch of BT-7s has already rolled off the production line?!" Lu Wu exclaimed in surprise. The Ergia's resources had only been in the warehouse for a few days, and the complex process of producing everything from steel to armor plates, artillery, and finally tanks had already been completed? Anton is amazing! For you, I'll wipe out the usurper BVVD!
"Yes, Commander. The first batch of BT-7s consists of 5 vehicles. After the acceptance test is completed today, they can be delivered to the Ergia. However, Snow White suggests that we wait a few more days until these new recruits have completed the first phase of basic training before making the delivery."
“Then let’s do as Bai Xue says.” Lu Wu waved his hand, got off the comfortable pillow, straightened his clothes, and said, “Let’s go to the production workshop and take a look at the first tank we built ourselves.”
The production workshop was a bit of a distance from Lu Wu's office; it took them about fifteen minutes to reach the underground assembly workshop. A platoon from the support company had been there for some time, and the testing of the BT-7 was nearing its end. Among the support soldiers was a muscular man with his coat wrapped around his waist and his upper body bare; Lu Wu immediately recognized him as Captain Mead, the company commander.
"Sir! The support company is inspecting equipment. Please give instructions." Mead, who was drinking water, noticed two extra people at the workshop entrance out of the corner of his eye. After taking a closer look, he jogged over to them to report. As for the rest of the support company, they continued with their tasks.
"At ease." Lu Wu casually returned the salute. "How's the quality of these tanks?"
Unlike his own heavy equipment, whose armor plates were somewhat dented and the paint was peeling, this batch of BT-7s in front of him looked brand new, and even the air was filled with the faint smell of fresh paint.
“I’ve never seen tanks this new and in such good condition. When we first saw them, there wasn’t a single scratch on the tracks.” Mead’s gaze at the tanks was filled with a kind of fanaticism. After all, for the past few decades, he had mostly dealt with all sorts of dilapidated junk, with worn-out exteriors and riddled with holes inside. He salvaged the usable parts from these junk for the army’s maintenance spare parts, earning him the nickname “Scrap King.” The reconnaissance pod for the MiG-21PFM was one of his creations. When had he ever seen equipment in such good condition? It was like a scavenger from a junkyard walking into an MSI factory and seeing a newly packaged RX6900XT.
"Does this thing come with a fire extinguisher and a repair kit?"
“Yes. Not only does it come with its own fire extinguishing and maintenance systems, but the tracks, filters, suspension, brakes, transmission, and engine are all brand new. You won’t find a single old part on it.” Mead gave an answer that made Lu Wu’s expression twist.
Damn it, why can the Ergia use new goods while I can only use second-hand refurbished goods?! At this moment, Lu Wu actually felt a little envious of the Ergia.
Qiu...
4. How about a recommendation at the top of the hour?
Prism Volume 1: Chapter 39 (Thirty-Eight) - SU-122 Modification Plan
Si Danlu quickly adjusted his mindset. This was actually good news. The equipment produced through the industrial zone was fully loaded, which meant that if advanced equipment such as the T-72B3, T-90A, and MiG-23 were produced in the future, they would not need to spend extra resources on changing the configuration.
So he quickly steered the conversation to the purpose of his trip.
"Converting the SU-122 into a self-propelled howitzer? That's not something just anyone can come up with." Mead stroked his stubble, looking eager to try. "In terms of hardware, we undoubtedly have the conditions for modification. The industrial park has workshops for various purposes, and the equipment inside is very comprehensive. Cutting, assembly, and welding are all basic. We can even use the machine tools in the workshop to make some parts."
"I think what's holding us back is the issue of cost-effectiveness and efficiency. If the modification requires too many resources and a long time, then I think it's unnecessary. We might as well just disassemble the M-30 howitzer and install a gun mount." Mead unconsciously started walking in front of Lu Wu and Yelena. He suddenly stopped and said to Yelena, "I need a rough structural diagram of the SU-122 to make a preliminary assessment of the feasibility of the modification."
4 Before coming, Yelena had specially taken a few screenshots of the SU-122's perspective view from the tablet and printed them on paper, so she immediately took out these screenshots and handed them to Mead.
“Hmm, a 25-degree elevation angle is indeed a bit insufficient. There isn’t enough space in the fighting compartment to increase the elevation angle by modifying the elevation mechanism and gun shield.” As soon as he got his hands on the blueprint, Mead rejected the simplest solution.
“Could we mount the M-30 howitzer on top of the vehicle, just like the Zis-30?” Lu Wu suggested.
“Probably not,” Mead frowned, considered for a moment and refused. “The SU-122’s engine is rear-mounted. Our howitzers are generally fired at a high angle. The recoil of the 122mm howitzer may damage the engine. The gunpowder exhaust gas that escapes from the breech after firing can also be easily sucked into the engine.”
“How about installing a hydraulic mechanism on it, like the Tulip? When firing, the hydraulic mechanism would hold the cannon in place on the ground, and when marching, the cannon would be retracted onto the vehicle.” Mead proposed a method, but immediately rejected it himself. “No, that’s too bulky and complicated, not efficient enough.”
“Then let’s turn the gun around, like the Archer self-propelled anti-tank gun, with the rear of the vehicle facing forward and the gun muzzle facing backward,” Yelena suggested, but Mead didn’t seem to like the idea.
"I get it!" Mead clapped his hands. "We don't need to turn the gun around, we just need to move the engine to the front!"
Mead excitedly gestured on the blueprints: "We'll move the engine forward to free up space at the rear and convert it into an open fighting compartment. The M-30 howitzer will be mounted directly in this fighting compartment, which will improve the gun's mounting position and prevent the front armor from blocking the M-30's elevation and depression."
"So, how long would it take to modify one of these self-propelled artillery pieces? Is the process complicated? How many can be produced in a week?" Lu Wu fired off a barrage of questions.
“I don’t know.” Mead gave a high-quality answer. “This is just a preliminary modification concept. It may not actually be implemented according to this plan. After all, there may be various constraints and problems when it is actually done. We will have to wait until we get the actual SU-122 to know how to proceed.”
“You will get your hands on a real SU-122. Go ahead and give it a try,” Lu Wu promised. “I only have three requirements: First, the firepower must be sufficient to maximize the long-range strike capability of the M-30 howitzer. Second, this thing must have a certain degree of field mobility. Finally, this will be the core of our mobile artillery; these self-propelled guns must be robust and durable, and their reliability must be guaranteed!”
Mead straightened his chest: "Understood, sir!"
"Good, very energetic! If you can really pull this off, I'll have the infantry battalion treat you to drinks."
After assigning the research and development tasks, Lu Wu did not stay in the production workshop for long. After making some preparations, he gathered the members of the 48th and 588th Aviation Regiments in the briefing room.
"Comrades, we have work to do." Seeing that the three pilots were already seated, Lu Wu turned on the projector in the briefing room, which displayed a military-grade map centered on Svorbella. This was a high-precision map made based on data provided by the Ergia and supplemented by data drawn by the Amelia Volunteer Army itself.
"According to intelligence from the Elgins, we believe that the 73rd Infantry Division of the Belken Empire is advancing from the north towards Svorbella. This 73rd Infantry Division is actually a motorized unit, and we believe they will rely on several major roads north of Svorbella for rapid maneuver."
"The Kingdom of Algiers has fewer than 4500 troops, while we have only a little over 600 combat troops. The 73rd Infantry Division of Belken still has seven full-strength regiments, including a large number of armored vehicles. This will be a battle with a huge disparity in numbers. Therefore, we must weaken the enemy's strength as much as possible before ground troops make contact. You will be responsible for three main tasks: destroying Belken's armored forces, suppressing enemy infantry, and providing close support to ground troops. The air force's actions will be the key to whether this battle can be won."
“There are three main highways north of Swobella, which we have numbered from west to east as Highway 1, Highway 2, and Highway 3,” Lu Wu said, pointing the laser pointer across the three highways on the map. “We have already dispatched a company, and the Kingdom of Ergiah will also mobilize locals to help us locate the Belken people. I want you to be on standby at all times, ready to launch an air strike against the Belken people as soon as you receive information from the reconnaissance units.”
"In this operation, the 588th Air Regiment will be the main attack force, with the 48th Air Regiment serving as escort, and will also participate in ground attacks if necessary. This will be a long mission, and you all need to be prepared. Does everyone understand?"
"Understood, Commander."
"Very good, dismissed."
Volume 1: Chapter 40, Chapter 39, Part 2: Granite and the San Witch III and Belken Zero |々
Unlike the pilots who could comfortably wait at the airport, the brothers of the 46th Company were carrying all kinds of equipment and running around in the fields.
A four-man reconnaissance team, codenamed "Granite 2," was dropped by a Hind helicopter onto a hill in the northeast to carry out a reconnaissance and surveillance mission. The Hind helicopter was also carrying another reconnaissance team, so after dropping Granite 2 at its designated landing point, it immediately proceeded to the next landing site.
"This is fucking bizarre, how come there are so many mosquitoes in this godforsaken place?"
Inside the makeshift observation post at Granite No. 2, machine gunner Galev was swatting mosquitoes with his hairy hands, his beloved PKM machine gun lying to the side.
"Not only are there a lot of mosquitoes, but the bites are incredibly itchy." Galev's thick body hair did little to ward off the mosquitoes, and perhaps due to his blood type, he seemed to be particularly attractive to them.
“Galev, shut up. You’ve been complaining about the mosquitoes ever since we got here,” Glazykov said, turning to Galev from behind his observation goggles. “And stay away from me, don’t bring those damn mosquitoes with you.”
Hearing Glazykov's words, Galev chuckled twice and leaned even closer. Glazykov wanted nothing more than to grab his SVU and fire a couple of shots, but he just rolled his eyes and continued to peer through the scope at the road below. The observation post they had chosen was in a good position; besides monitoring Highway 2, it even offered a partial view of Highway 3 in the distance. The post was also properly camouflaged, appearing from the road as just an ordinary, inconspicuous boulder. Glazykov had been lying in that position for over two hours, yet hadn't spotted anything.
"By the Holy Mary, please let the Belken people pass through here quickly! I'm going crazy from these damned mosquitoes!" Galev finally gave up on fighting the mosquitoes and lay down.
"Shut up, I think I hear something." Glazkov frowned, closed his eyes, and tried to catch the faint sound in the air.
Galev immediately lay down next to Glazykov, set up the PKM machine gun, cocked it with a click, and asked in a low voice, "Are they Belken?"