Chapter 236 Exercise
On July 21, 1942, there was less than half a month before the expected date of landing operations.
Several B-17 bombers flew overhead. This was when the US military had begun to continuously dispatch air power to suppress possible Japanese beachhead defenders. At the same time, in the Pacific, the Enterprise, Hornet and Savoy The three aircraft carriers Latoga have also begun to sail to designated seas. Move across the territory and confront the four aircraft carriers of the Japanese Combined Fleet: Shokaku, Feiying, Hayabusa, and Ryujo (Zuikaku, who originally participated in the war, has been sunk at Midway Island in this instance's timeline)
Pacific On the small island of Fiji, landing craft are rushing towards the beachhead against the waves.
Bang! The hatch of the landing craft was opened. This is the most dangerous time for the landing soldiers, because at this time the soldiers gather together and are unable to move quickly in the sea water, making them an excellent target for the beach defense forces.
Therefore, under normal circumstances, according to the amphibious operations manual, after the hatch is opened, all soldiers should enter the water as quickly as possible, and then sprint towards the shore as hard as they can, but at this time, something ridiculous happened on the landing craft.
The soldiers in the landing craft started vomiting as soon as the hatches were opened. The exits of many landing craft were blocked. From a distance, only half of the soldiers successfully entered the water.
These are the rookies of the 1st Marine Division who have just arrived by boat from Australia and are about to conduct the last exercise before the landing operation.
In an observation post not far away, Major General Alexander Vandegrift, commander of the First Division, was holding a telescope and shaking his head. The personal ability of this expert in amphibious warfare was beyond doubt. But now he is in a state where it is difficult for a clever woman to make a meal without straw.
Seventy percent of the soldiers lack training, and more than half of them are rookies who have just joined the army within three months. No matter how capable the commander is, he cannot perform normally.
Damn it, those guys in Washington clearly promised me that they could train me for more than half a year, but in the end, I got such an exercise like a puppet show, the major general cursed secretly in his heart.
Thinking of this, the major general looked at his old friend Colonel Carlson, "Evans, your oriental magic boy seems to be nothing more than that. He didn't launch an attack when he had such a good opportunity? I remember you wanted to Get him to come over and use up all the favors from the British Pacific Headquarters at once."
"Just watch, his performance will definitely surprise you. The favors I used up are definitely worth every penny. ." Colonel Carlson's face was full of confidence.
Because the two sides had a very pleasant exchange when they visited China a few years ago, the major general did not want to embarrass his old friend, so although he did not like the young He very much, he did not want to Falling in Carlson's face.
"Go!!! go!!! go!!!! Land quickly! Seize the beach!" The sergeant named Rick kicked the hesitant recruits one by one with his boots. into the sea, and then personally led the charge to the beach.
There were about two companies and more than 200 American soldiers participating in the exercise, but the first wave of people who arrived at the beach was only sixty or seventy people. Looking around, several soldiers were empty-handed. They threw their weapons into the sea.
"Damn it! If the leader finds out, he will definitely go crazy." The sergeant muttered silently, and then ordered the only half of the people who followed him to occupy the reef and establish a defensive position.
"Why haven't those dwarfs who are buying and selling condoms made any move yet...haven't they already run away..." The sergeant hadn't seen the enemy at this time and couldn't help but start to mutter in his heart.
"Ah!!! wtf!!! What the hell is this!!!!" A series of screams rang out from behind. Sergeant Rick suddenly turned around and found that the soldiers behind him were covering their arms. Feet and calves.
There are many palm-sized things buried in the soft sand. They look like two ridged iron sheets welded together to form an asymmetrical "X" shape.
Because it is buried under the sand, no one can notice it before stepping on it. As long as you step on one of its edges, this unbalanced structure will instantly flip over in the sand, causing your feet to sink in while simultaneously to your calves or ankles.
The leading troops of the US military screamed, and at this time, several small black dots flew across the woods. boom! boom! boom!
The explosion of the greatly reduced mortar bombs caused splashes of water, and each explosion represented the scrapping of a landing craft at sea. The remaining personnel and materials on board were judged as killed or lost.
The sound of Taisho machine guns rang out in the forest. Those soldiers who had no cover and could not free their feet were quickly judged to be dead.
"Take care! Move! Move!" The sergeant major behind shouted loudly to the soldiers to move and quickly find cover. However, after two rounds of attacks, about a quarter of the soldiers were still considered out.
"They are outnumbered! Let's rush up and drive them out!" the sergeant major shouted.
Dong dong dong! ! !
Under the cover of rifle grenades, nearly a hundred U.S. troops rushed toward the woods on the beach with shouts, but the enemy suddenly seemed to disappear. After the gunfire stopped, the U.S. vanguard easily occupied the Japanese forest. trenches.
According to the rules of the exercise, as long as more than one-third of the US troops completely occupy the position, they will determine the victory of the exercise.
"Huh~" Rick let out a long breath. Although they were a little embarrassed in the early stage, at least they were about to win.
Boom! ! boom! ! boom! ! !
Suddenly, one after another explosions were heard, and the entrance to the woods was filled with smoke. The pre-arranged drill explosives were activated by the detonator and divided the charging team into two sections. Some of the subsequent US troops were judged dead. , while the other part was separated due to explosion barrier.
About 40 American troops were trapped in the occupied positions.
"For Japan's tomorrow!!! Kill them!!!! Side attack!!! Side attack!!!" A standard Japanese command, the unclear number of Japanese soldiers in the forest picked up their bayonets and began to attack the trenches. Charge, and while running you can hear the sound of repelling bullets.
Due to the cover of the jungle, the distance between the two sides was actually very short when the raid was launched, and the opponent had already rushed in front of them in a short period of time.
These charging Japanese soldiers had fierce eyes, yelling, their steps were accelerating, and the bayonets in their hands shone coldly.
On the contrary, the new recruits of the US military have become frightened after the successive incidents. Many of them even forgot that this was just an exercise, and subconsciously turned around and ran away in the face of the shining bayonets.
As the leading officer, before Rick could stop shouting, several bayonets were already pointed at his chest.
Ten minutes later, Major General Alexander Vandegrift was informed that the beachhead seizing force of the Army's 1st Division had been judged to have lost the exercise because more than half of its personnel had suffered casualties.
The most annoying thing is that the Japanese surrender soldiers who were regarded as hawkers in the military camp actually captured more than 20 of their previous "financiers".
(End of this chapter)