I am Jiang Weiguo in World War II

Page 396

Chapter 469

Relying on careful and complete plans, firm and precise actions, maximum preparations, tenacious and brave battles, and pre-emptive strikes while taking advantage of its unpreparedness, the Nanjing Army won consecutive victories on the first day after it invaded Central Asia. In one fell swoop, they captured Almaty and Oskmen and Semey in the northeast of Kazakhstan, and greatly grasped the initiative in the Central Asian battlefield. However, the Nanjing Army is far from controlling Central Asia, because the Soviet Army in Central Asia The main force is still there.

Lieutenant General SG Tolo Femenko, the commander of the Central Asian Military Region of the Soviet Army, was a senior general who lacked military talent, command ability, and actual combat experience. He was indecisive and timid. He was flustered and panicked, and hurriedly mobilized Soviet troops from all over Central Asia to launch a counterattack against the Nanjing Army.

The main target of the Soviet counterattack was Almaty. This was because Almaty was attacked by the Nanjing Army before Oskmen and Semey. He just got the news that Oskemen and Semey were also attacked by the Nanjing army and quickly fell. He was terrified. After thinking for a short time, he decided to launch a counterattack regardless of division of troops, otherwise They will be led by the nose by the Nanjing army. Since they have lost sight of the other, they can only make mistakes. Because the importance of Almaty is much higher than that of Oskmen and Semey, the counterattack plan remains unchanged. Concentrate forces and recover Almaty first. Figure, and then recover Oskmen and Semey, and fight steadily to avoid the mistake of being defeated by the Nanjing Army one by one due to multiple divisions, and at the same time ensure that the chances of winning Almaty can be maximized.

Objectively speaking, Tolofemenko's decision is quite remarkable. Indeed, there are two places that the Soviet army wants to recover. Two fists hitting two places at the same time are definitely not as powerful as two fists hitting one place at the same time. place.

When Almaty fell into fierce fighting, Tolofemenko quickly sent a report to Moscow. Moscow was naturally shocked, and at the same time sternly demanded that Tolofemenko "quickly recover the fallen land and drive away the Chinese invading army."

Tolofemenko faltered in his request for reinforcements, and Stalin, who called him himself, asked in a frighteningly harsh tone: "Comrade Tolofemenko, how many Chinese invaders are there in Central Asia? "

Tolo Femenko said in a frightened voice: "I don't know yet..."

"Bastard!" Stalin was furious, "Comrade Tolofemenko, you are the commander of the Central Asian Military Region. The enemy has already attacked, but you don't know how many enemies there are? Even if the war did not break out, you, as the commander of the Central Asian Military Region Shouldn’t the Commander of the Second Army Region try his best to collect intelligence on the enemy? He’s so confused and paralyzed! This is a very serious dereliction of duty!”

Tolofemenko broke out in a cold sweat, and he hurriedly said: "Comrade Stalin, according to the reports of several senior commanders on the Almaty, Oskmen, and Semey front lines, the Nanjing Army that invaded Central Asia should have only Two or three teachers..."

Stalin suddenly burst into fury: "The enemy only has two or three divisions! How many troops do you have? If I remember correctly, the Central Asian Military Region has regular troops from the four armies of the Soviet Red Army, and more than 40 militia divisions have been newly built one after another. , with a total strength of more than 60! Such a huge army was caught off guard by two or three divisions of the enemy! This is already an extreme shame! Comrade Tolofemenko, you actually used more than 60 troops to block Is there any request more absurd than this in the world to live with two or three divisions of the enemy's army and to provide reinforcements? You are so dereliction of duty! I am so disappointed!"

Tolofemenko was almost so frightened that his legs were weak. He was extremely afraid that Stalin's next words would be "come to Moscow immediately" or "report to the Siberian labor camp immediately", so he hurriedly explained: "Comrade Stalin, although our army is indeed more than The enemy army, however, many elite troops and a large number of heavy weapons in the Central Asian Military Region have been transferred to the Eastern European battlefield. The militia divisions are also newly built, with insufficient training and equipment. Central Asia is very large and the troops are scattered. There are only two or three divisions, but they are fully equipped, with a total strength of at least [-] troops, which caught us off guard again, and there will be more troops to follow..."

"I don't want to listen to your sophistry!" Stalin interrupted Tolofemenko angrily, "What I want is victory! Victory! Do you understand? Comrade Tolofemenko, I order you to organize troops and launch a counterattack, Recover the fallen land and drive away the Chinese invaders! Protect the sacred territory of the Soviet Central Asia from being violated! Your troops are more than the Chinese invaders. If you can't complete the task, you don't need to go back to Moscow, go directly to the Siberian labor camp Go report!" After speaking, Stalin angrily hung up the phone.

On the one hand, Stalin felt that there was no need to provide assistance to the Central Asian Military Region. On the other hand, he was also powerless. Eastern Europe was more important than Central Asia, and the war was more urgent. Because the "quality" was far inferior to the German army, he could only hope to win with quantity. The Soviet army had to tear down the Eastern Wall to make up for the Western Wall. Eastern Europe was the "Western Wall" that needed to be repaired, and Central Asia was one of the "Eastern Walls" that were torn down. Where did Stalin have extra troops to repair the Western Wall while repairing the Western Wall? east wall.

According to the analysis of high-level Soviet generals such as Shaposhnikov, as long as the Soviet army blocks the German army on the Kiev battlefield, even if it cannot destroy, defeat, repel, or defeat the German army (at this time, the situation on the Kiev battlefield is obviously not conducive to the Soviet army. The high level of the Soviet army no longer has the hope of destroying the German army), and even if it is a tie, the rainy season and winter will come in more than two months, and Russia’s freezing rain and winter will become a major ally of the Soviet army. At that time, the German army was blocked, and with the onset of the rainy season and winter, it was bound to be unable to move forward, and the Soviet Union could gain a precious respite throughout the winter.

If it continues until the rainy season and winter come, the Soviet Union will have hope of victory.

There is one difference between Stalin and Chiang Kai-shek. After the outbreak of the Sino-Japanese War, China’s war strategy was to “exchange space for time.” After the outbreak of the German-Soviet War, although the Soviet Union also needed time, Stalin was reluctant to part with “space” and territory, so he did not Willing to "exchange space for time", he needs both time and space, thus giving the Soviet army on the front line one order after another to stick to it.

Tolo Femenko on the other end of the phone put down the phone in silence, gritted his teeth and launched a counterattack.

The target of the Soviet counterattack is Almaty, and there are two counterattack fronts. One is to mobilize the Soviet army in Kazakhstan to counterattack Almaty from north to south (Almaty is located in the southeast of Kazakhstan), and the other is to mobilize the Soviet army in southern Kazakhstan. The Soviet troops in the four countries of Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, and Turkmenistan counterattacked Almaty from south to north, forming a two-way group, one north and one south.

The five Central Asian countries of the Soviet Union border China, Afghanistan, and Iran. Obviously, the threat from China is the greatest. Therefore, most of the Soviet troops in Central Asia are concentrated in the eastern part of Central Asia close to China, so Tolofemenko mobilized Troop time is not slow.

At the same time, the Nanjing Army was also dispatching troops.

After the 17th Division captured Almaty, it quickly went north, and handed over Almaty and the railway line north of the local area to the 123rd Division of the friendly army who came later. At the same time, the 111th, 20th, 37th, and 38th divisions also entered Central Asia from the northwest through Xinjiang to participate in the war.

According to the deployment, the 17th, 123rd, and 20th divisions form the 31st Army, which is responsible for fighting in southern Central Asia, with the commander Chen Mingren; the 111th, 37th, 38th, and 39th divisions form the 37th Army, which is responsible for fighting in northern Central Asia. Combat, Commander Feng Zhi'an.

The Nanjing Army does not set up a group army for the time being, because the number of units of the Nanjing Army greatly exceeds that of the regular national army. One division of the Nanjing Army is equivalent to one army of the regular national army, and one army of the Nanjing Army is equivalent to one group army of the regular national army. Therefore, there is no need to establish a group army organization.

After dawn on August 8, the Chinese Air Force also participated in the war with might and majesty.

Waves of shiny silver planes whizzed past the sky in Northwest China. In order to paralyze the Soviet army before the war, the Chinese Air Force did not have a large-scale aviation force stationed in Xinjiang. The planes were scattered at the airports in North China and Northwest China. After the war started, these planes flew from North China, Northwest China and other places to Xinjiang one after another in the form of migratory birds. On the way, they passed through dozens of regular airports or temporarily built field airports for transit, with a total of more than 1300 planes Was thrown into the war in Central Asia.

This figure is not too big for the German and Soviet troops, but it is already two-thirds of the Chinese Air Force's property.

At this time, the Chinese Air Force has a total of more than 2000 aircraft. The number is indeed small, but the quality has been well guaranteed. Among them, more than 1300 aircraft are used in Central Asia, and more than 500 aircraft are used in North China, Mongolia, and Northeast China. Three hundred are in the south. At the same time, China's local military industry can now produce about 130 aircraft per month, half of which are German aircraft and half are Chinese wooden aircraft.

More than 300 aircraft, for the Soviet Union, which had more than 3000 aircraft before the war and was able to produce 300 to [-] aircraft a year at this time (the Soviet Union produced [-] aircraft a year at its peak during World War II), It is definitely not a number that will scare the Soviets, but in the current situation where the Soviets have suffered heavy losses from the Germans, the more than [-] aircraft of the Chinese Air Force is undoubtedly a powerful force that scares the Soviets , and the Chinese Air Force's aircraft are generally superior in quality to Soviet aircraft.

More than 300 Chinese aircraft converged into a mighty, overwhelming metal cloud, and the roar of the engines shook the sky like continuous rolling thunder. Wherever they went, the civilians and soldiers on the ground could clearly see This scene of air striking power penetrating the Changhong and covering the sky and the sun caused cheers and applause on the ground like waves.

"China Heroes Daily" described: "...this scene in the sky makes every Chinese person feel excited and weeps. How much we, who have been bullied by foreign powers for a hundred years, long for our country to have a powerful army. Ah! Now, this wish is becoming reality step by step. The most direct manifestation is the thousands of aircraft of the Chinese Air Force in the sky, forming an extremely spectacular scene.

Amid the earth-shattering whistling sound, the airflow from the propeller blades and wings of the plane swept across the sky like a hurricane vortex!The fleet of planes climbing and taking off from the airport is like silver waterfalls flying against the current, swallowing mountains and rivers!Exciting!Long live the Chinese Air Force!Long live the national army!The national army will win! "

In the sky of Central Asia, Sino-Soviet fighter planes launched a star-studded iron-blooded fight.

Due to the time delay, the national army fleet did not rely on surprise attacks to win like the army. Instead, it launched a majestic air battle with the Soviet aviation unit.

More than [-] aircraft from both sides engaged in a dazzling and breathless fight in more than a dozen combat airspaces. The aircraft of the two sides that started the confrontation were naturally fighter jets, and the swarm-like fighter jets of both sides fiercely entangled each other in the boundless clear space. Fighting, chasing, and strangling, the blue sky and white sun military emblem and the five-pointed star military emblem are like blue petals and red petals sprinkled by two fairies scattered flowers in the sky, dancing densely and intertwinedly.

Although the scale of this Central Asian air battle is indeed small compared to the Eastern European air battle between the German and Soviet armies, it is also breathtaking. The core of the air battle is Almaty, and the Soviet army has more than 600 aircraft participating in the battle. More than 200 bombers were preparing to drop bombs on the heads of the local Nanjing Army. More than 400 aircraft from the Nanjing Army faced off. The fleets of the two sides roared towards Almaty from different directions like two metal dust storms sweeping in. The residents were all stunned, the sound of the engine was deafening, and the fleets of the two sides quickly fought and entangled like two twisted tornadoes, and the sky was full of shining silver spots. The officers and soldiers of the 123rd Division of the Nanjing Army They were so excited that they yelled, clapped and stomped their feet, and waved their military flags and caps desperately to cheer for their own pilots.

I saw the long space of thunder rolling in the sky, and more than a thousand planes covered the sky of Almaty like fish scales. The mixture was dizzying, but "orderly in chaos", because although the overall air fleet was very chaotic, but The aircraft of the small unit strictly maintains the formation order during the battle. The aircraft of the Chinese Air Force are all in formation of four aircraft. One guards the top and the other covers the rear. The division of labor is clear and each performs its own duties. The Soviet army is far inferior to the national army in this regard, and it can be said that it is fighting in a mess.

Amidst the roar of engines and the sound of wings piercing through the air, there was one after another, the sound of firing aviation machine guns and machine guns as dense as rain, and the sky was full of roaring bullets and countless sparks. The former golden snake danced wildly, and the latter Those are like ripples on the surface of a pond in the rain, straight, curved, tangential... All kinds of arc-shaped flames bloom in the sky, sandwiching one after another sparks of sparks, making the whole sky boil and burn like liquid gold water, The trails of the planes and the trails of the bombs and fires cut out intricate smoke trails in the sky, one after another, one after another, one after another. Avoiding bullets and fire, the fuselage constantly flips and twists, climbs and dives, ducks left and right, swings forward and back, and converges into a complex and magnificent air combat scene.

Huge balls of fire constantly bloomed in countless sparks and sparks. Airplanes continued to be eliminated in this battle. Their bodies were smashed into countless burning fragments, and they fell to the ground one after another. Some were seriously injured, and after losing control, they fell to the ground like a meteorite. The pilot who was too late to parachute crashed into the ground with the plane, blasting a column of flames and smoke that rose from the ground, leaving ashes and smoke, and no bones left.

Clouds and wind danced in the sky of Almaty, and there was a spectacular and tragic cherry blossom meteor shower under the light of thousands of fires.

The biggest disadvantage of the bf-109 is its "short legs". The bf-109 flying from Shihezi Airport in western Xinjiang had to land at the local airport in Almaty first, fill up the fuel and then take off and enter the air battle.

The airport in Almaty was in full swing, and the anti-aircraft gun positions beside the airport were bursting with flames. When landing, some came from Xinjiang, some came from the sky, the pilots were all sweating profusely, and some had blood on their faces.

Long-term flight or high-intensity combat is extremely exhausting. Pilots fly from Xinjiang or take part in a round of aerial combat. After flying, they all get off the plane and rest, and hand over the plane to the second batch of pilots who are ready to go at the airport.

When the ground crew inspected the aircraft and replenished fuel and ammunition, the exhausted pilot climbed out of the cockpit, and the replacement pilot was ready to fly into the sky full of energy and ambition.

"How many were killed?"

"Two shot down! Two more damaged!"

"Good job, senior!"

"Student, I'll leave the rest to you, but don't be brave, and come back alive!"

"Senior, don't worry! I will be careful!"

The two pilots taking over gave each other high fives.

Huang Guangrui, the deputy commander-in-chief of the Air Force who came to Almaty in person, listened to the conversations of the pilots, with a knowing smile on his face, because he could tell that the battle was going well, the troops earned more and lost less, and the proportion of battle results and losses was huge.

The Far East War made the top Soviet army realize that there were many major drawbacks in the Soviet aviation force. For example, there was no unified command, so the Soviet Air Force General Command was established. In addition, the Soviet aviation force was relatively backward in organization and tactics. Not only that , The Soviet aircraft are also very backward, not as good as the German aircraft.

It can be said that the war in the Far East sounded the alarm for the high-level Soviet army. For this reason, the high-level Soviet army carried out a series of measures to make up for it. However, because the time was too tight, although there was a certain effect, it was not particularly obvious. Not too many high-quality aircraft newly manufactured by the army were also sent to Eastern Europe for emergency treatment, so that the Soviet army was completely suppressed by the Chinese Air Force in the sky of Central Asia.

The planes of the two sides participating in the war are almost the same, even the Soviet army has less aircraft than the Chinese army, and the quality of the Chinese army's aircraft is superior to the Soviet army's aircraft, and the Chinese Air Force is taking the "fighter first" route (previously it was "fighter only" Route), so that the proportion of fighter jets in the total number of aircraft is very large. Therefore, in this air battle in Central Asia, the quality of Chinese Air Force aircraft is much higher than that of the Soviet Army, and the total number of Chinese Air Force aircraft is slightly more than that of the Soviet Army. As for the number of fighter jets on both sides, China The air force is twice as large as the Soviet army.

Undoubtedly, from this current situation, it is not difficult to see that the outcome of the air battle in Central Asia is no longer in doubt.

On August 200st, the first day, the Chinese Air Force destroyed more than 800 Soviet aircraft at the cost of self-damage of more than [-] aircraft (more than half can be repaired) , basically mastered the air supremacy in Central Asia.

With air supremacy, battles are naturally easier to fight.

After destroying the Soviet fighter jets in a storm, the fighter jets of the Chinese Air Force rushed towards the Soviet bomber fleet like hungry eagles. The bombers followed in the footsteps of the Soviet fighter jets, and they were all turned into salutes, fireworks and meteorites blooming in the sky. The Chinese Air Force participated in the war and achieved brilliant results.

After the news of the victory in the air battle came, both Wuhan and Peiping burst into cheers again, and Zhou Zhirou, commander-in-chief of the Air Force, was even more grinning from ear to ear.

Needless to say, in the early days of the war, the Chinese army (referring to the army and air force, because there is no such thing as the navy) fought very well. Zhirou and other high-level allied countries sent congratulatory telegrams. As for the United States, Britain, France and other countries watching the battle, the reactions were mixed. China Daily published a cartoon on August 8 to describe the unfolding "Three Kingdoms War between Germany, the Soviet Union and China". The hideous and wretched hyena bit the bear's testicles abruptly from the back of the bear, and the bear showed a painful and angry expression.

The title of the cartoon is: Victory of the Chinese.

The ironic meaning of this cartoon can be said to be naked, and it also reflects a certain "mentality that cannot be described in detail" of the British.

Regardless of whether the United States, Britain, and France were shocked, ridiculed, or vigilant, the victory of the Chinese army on the Soviet battlefield was definite.

After gaining air supremacy, the Nanjing Army's offensive became more and more fierce. Groups of Chinese Air Force bombers ran rampant in the sky as if they were in no one's land, launching violent bombing.

However, because the Chinese Air Force is taking the "fighter first" route, there are not many bombers, and the bombing intensity is naturally not indiscriminate bombing. In addition, the combat area is too vast, so it can only carry out focused bombing.

According to the requirements of Chen Mingren and Feng Zhi'an, the bombers of the national army focused on bombing the Soviet army's transportation lines and logistics bases in Central Asia. The speed of the build-up, and more importantly, the slowing down of the reinforcement speed of the Soviet army outside Central Asia.

On August 8, the Central Asian Soviet Army officially launched a full-scale counterattack, and two battles broke out with the Nanjing Army. One was on the Gobi Lake in the east of Lake Balkhash, more than 5 kilometers north of Almaty, and the other was in Almaty. , the former was the counterattack of the Soviet army against Almaty in Kazakhstan, which met the Nanjing army on a narrow road, and the latter was also the counterattack of the Soviet army against Almaty in the other four countries in Central Asia, and launched a large-scale urban offensive and defensive battle with the Nanjing army.

Since the Nanjing Army controlled the air, most of the terrain in Central Asia was the Gobi desert. The large-scale movement of the Soviet Army was clearly grasped by the Nanjing Army. After learning about it, Chen Mingren and Feng Zhi'an contacted by telegram to start a discussion. The two generals had different opinions.

Feng Zhi'an: "Ziliang (name of Chen Mingren), the Soviet army attacked Almaty from the north and the south, be careful of being dumped!"

Chen Mingren: "Yangzhi (Feng Zhi'an's written word), stop talking sarcastic words, the old man is coming aggressively, we can't be careless, have you checked the enemy's situation clearly? You and I can check it out!"

Feng Zhi'an: "According to intelligence and aircraft reconnaissance results, including the militia, there are more than 25 Soviet troops on the north route, and no fewer than 20 Soviet troops on the south route.

Ziliang, we have poked a hornet's nest!"

Chen Mingren: "Yeah, it's a hornet's nest.

The 17th Division was able to take Almaty by surprise, and the 111th Division was able to take Oskmen and Semey by surprise.

Right now, the old Maozi is attacking us with the main force!"

Feng Zhi'an: "Ziliang, these 50 million old men are all heading for Almaty. Your 31st Army is caught in the middle. You only have three divisions, the 17th, 123rd, and 20th divisions. One hundred thousand troops, I'm afraid... I think I can't help you if I don't help you. I plan to send Geng Chen (Pang Bingxun's name) to lead the 39th Division to the south to help you.

Our troops are not as powerful as Lao Maozi, it is impossible to encircle the front and back, but we can attack from the front and back!"

After thinking for a long time, Chen Mingren replied: "Yangzhi, I appreciate your kindness, but your 37th Army has a more important task, so don't divide your troops lightly, don't cause extra problems, otherwise, it will affect the battle of your department, then It’s not worth the candle!”

Feng Zhi'an: "Ziliang, why is this an accident? Your department is really dangerous! Our follow-up main force is still in North China, and we won't be able to come for a while. The Central Asian battlefield is currently only you and my brother!"

Chen Mingren: "Dangerous is dangerous, but it is not certain death.

Our army is 50, and the enemy's army is [-] million. Let's see who is afraid of whom!Don't forget, our army has many advantages, such as excellent equipment, high morale among officers and soldiers, and air supremacy in our hands. At worst, we will return to Almaty to fight a pure city defense battle. Isn't city defense war what we are best at? of it?In addition, our department helped your department contain the main force of the Soviet army in Central Asia. Wouldn't your department be able to better complete your mission?We all need to think big picture.

If you believe me, don't do wrong things with good intentions, don't send a single soldier to reinforce me, I will concentrate on fighting mine, and you concentrate on fighting yours!"

Feng Zhi'an replied very emotionally: "Take care!"

Chen Mingren: "You, too, are fighting for the country. After completing the task, let's have a good drink!"

Feng Zhi'an: "Okay, it's a deal, after completing the task, let's have a drink!"

Chapter 470

On the Central Asian battlefield, Feng Zhian's 37th Army carried out the scheduled missions of the headquarters in the northeast of Kazakhstan, while Chen Mingren's 31st Army ushered in two major battles in the southeast of Kazakhstan.

After spreading out the map, Chen Mingren clearly understood the situation: the 31rd Division of the 123st Army is currently defending in Almaty, the 17th Division is heading north from Almaty, and the 20th Division has just left Xinjiang and is about to arrive in Almaty wooden figure.

The purpose of the 17th Division going north was to contain the Soviet Army in the northeast of Kazakhstan and support Feng Zhi'an's 37th Army. However, due to the indecision of the commander of the Soviet Army's Central Asia Military Region, Tolo Femenko, this task was easily completed, and the 17th Division had arrived in Ala. More than 250 kilometers north of Mutu is the Gobi Lake at the eastern end of Lake Balkhash.

In the north of the 31st Army, more than 25 Soviet troops are sweeping in, and in the south of the 31st Army, no less than 20 Soviet troops are approaching.

How to fight this battle?Chen Mingren was lost in thought, and the generals of the 31st Army expressed their opinions.

Army Chief of Staff Chen Jihuan suggested: "In my opinion, both the 17th Division and the 20th Division should be gathered in Almaty, plus the 123rd Division, and the three divisions should be combined into one place. Fight a city defense battle.

This kind of battle is exactly what our Nanjing Army is best at.

Our army is 50, and the enemy's army is [-]. Fighting a city defense war is the most beneficial to our army, and it is also the safest and safest.