"But I must say, Battalion Commander Massar, your field ammunition depot doesn't meet the standards!"
Having said what he needed to say, Xia Yu was about to leave, but before turning around, he couldn't help but say something.
Field operations mean facing danger head-on, so a high level of safety is required, especially for heavy firepower units like rocket artillery battalions.
Each 122mm rocket weighs around 70kg, and this small space stored more than 1,000 rockets, which is 70 tons.
In the event that the ammunition depot is attacked and explodes, half of the rocket artillery battalion will be vaporized, and the rest may be able to salvage some spare parts.
"My mistake. When I was studying at the Frunze Combined Arms Academy, my teacher seemed to have emphasized this point."
"The knowledge points I'd long forgotten suddenly flashed into my mind," Marsal said with lingering fear.
He wasn't sleeping on a pile of money; it was a powder keg!
Don't send yourself down before you even have a chance to send the rebels on their way.
"That's normal. Your ammunition reserves have always been low. You just didn't expect so many to come in suddenly."
Xia Yu comforted Marcel.
Their ammunition depots used to be so empty that rats could run through them; this was the first time they'd ever had so much.
Therefore, one must be flexible and adaptable; the knowledge in books can only serve as a reference, especially in the Afica region.
"I asked Battalion Commander Anka to send a car to help. We should be able to get it done by working overtime tonight."
Xia Yu turned on the radio and called for Xiao Anka's support.
Armored units are not just combat vehicles; support vehicles are equally important.
This can be further divided into three main categories: technology, engineering, and logistical support, which together represent a significant investment.
As the elite force of the Anka Mechanized Infantry Battalion, although they are severely lacking in these support vehicles, they are still much better off than their allies.
All combat vehicles were equipped with trailers, and in order to reduce losses, Old Anka, who could not afford armored engineering vehicles, directly purchased two 25-ton second-hand excavators from Xia Yu.
With the personal training of an excavator master, the two old Sany excavators were still quite efficient at digging.
Without an armored chassis and all-around armor protection, excavators cannot withstand heavy machine gun fire and RPG damage like armored engineering vehicles.
Having arrived earlier, Anka had already dug out seven or eight semi-buried tank bunkers to store T-64B1M tanks and Marder S30 tanks.
Xia Yu simply borrowed an excavator from Xiao Anka to repair the site; otherwise, all the vehicles would have had to be left in the open.
It was only right to help Massar at this time. Two excavators were quickly brought over and, using containers as units, quickly divided the large ammunition depot into seven sections.
Each weighs 10 tons, so even if one of them has an accident, it won't affect the other six.
By the time everything was finished, it was almost 10 p.m., which made Xia Yu give up the idea of perfecting the battle plan that night.
There's still plenty of time; we can do it tomorrow.
While he was slacking off and lying down, some people were still working on it.
The rebels did not reinforce their fortifications tonight, which was unusual, but the camp was bustling with activity as people came and went.
The daytime defeat made Sasu lose face, and when people lose their dignity, they are prone to extremes.
The minefield was laid using a lot of 122mm and 152mm high-explosive shells. The artillerymen who concentrated their fire on the defense were as cunning as vipers, and their repeated counterattacks made their D-20 and D-30 howitzers look like mere decorations.
So why not use them all at once and achieve some morale-boosting results?
So, on a whim, he struck while the iron was hot and launched his attack tonight.
Apart from the mortars, all six D-20 and ten D-30 howitzers of the brigade, along with all the shells, will be transported to the forward positions 10 kilometers from the Bosa Mixed Brigade camp.
Last time, one cannon was in poor aim, but what about firing 16 howitzers simultaneously?
Even at the cost of losing the last of their artillery units, Sasu was determined to tear a piece of flesh from Busa.
There was no wine, but good food and meat were served to the dozen or so artillerymen, some new and some old. Trucks towed the artillery pieces and came to the front line through a specially left passage in the minefield.
After removing the towing ring, the veteran led the flustered new recruits to unfold the folding tripod mount of the howitzer.
"Ding~ Ding~ Ding~~"
The soldiers in the artillery platoon, who were specifically responsible for heavy physical labor, swung sledgehammers to drive the stake-type spade into the soil.
This is more troublesome than the tRF1's spade that uses recoil to secure the artillery, but it's better than those old-fashioned howitzers that still require digging spade pits.
The camp of the Busa Mixed Brigade was a fixed target. This time, under the cover of night and so close, even though the rebel artillery crew was not very skilled, they still managed to set the firing parameters for all the howitzers.
Before the attack, two-thirds of the trucks unloaded the shells and returned to the camp, while the remaining third would abandon and destroy the 16 howitzers after all the shells were used up, taking only the men back with them.
If we can't take them with us, we'll destroy them all. It's impossible to give them to the enemy, since Busa's artillery is also equipped with these two types of howitzers.
The artillery battalion commander leading the team glanced at the time; it was just past midnight.
At this time, nightlife is just beginning in many countries, but in the border rainforest of Ógo, most people have been asleep for several hours, and it is also the time when they sleep the most soundly.
"All gun positions, load one round!"
The shell was pushed into the breech, the propellant charge was stuffed into the chamber, and the breech was closed, awaiting the next instruction from the commander.
"emission!"
"Thump~ thump~ thump~~"
Two caliber Soviet-made howitzers roared in unison, launching 16 high-explosive shells into the sky, which then flew in parabolic arcs toward their targets.
"Boom~ Boom~ Rumble~~"
A series of explosions woke Xia Yu up. In his daze, he rolled over onto his cot and landed smoothly in a foxhole dug in the corner of the tent.
Where to fire?
"Sir, the landing point is a bit far from us, it's southeast of the camp."
Domi, who was sleeping in the outer tent, also woke up. While picking up his short gun, he replied to Xia Yu.
"What's the use of carrying a gun? The enemy is more than ten kilometers away. You should hurry up and meet up with 01 and the others."
Xia Yu had already climbed out of the foxhole. While complaining about Domi, he didn't forget to put on his clothes.
"Sir, won't they storm the camp?"
Domi started to walk out, but he wanted to wait for his boss.
"If they break in, guns will be useless; we'll have to use artillery, but the chances are slim. I'm going to the helicopter. If you see any gliders or meerkats, tell them to come find me!"
"yes!"
"Boom~ Boom~ Rumble~~"
Just as Domi responded, another round of shells fell, this time veering off from the southeast corner toward the center, and the sound was much louder.
Xia Yu didn't panic. While taking a deep breath, she glanced at the time.
With nearly 30 seconds between the two rounds of shelling, the rebel artillery crew's skill level was indeed terrible.
Whether it's the D-20 or the D-30, the Slavic Superman can fire 8 to 9 rounds per minute.
With such a high density of fire, Xia Yu would have obediently stayed in the crater and waited for the shelling to end. But given the Black Guy's terrible speed, he decided to risk taking off and destroy their artillery positions.
Their tanks and infantry fighting vehicles are parked in bunkers, so as long as they're not too unlucky, there shouldn't be any major problems.
But Anka and his men are in trouble; they're bound to suffer heavy casualties, plus the rockets from Massar's side.
Luckily, he spoke up today; otherwise, if something had happened, he would have been too embarrassed to ask the widow for the remaining 3 million yuan.
As soon as the cannon fire stopped, Xia Yu and Domi rushed out of the tent and ran in different directions.
The unscathed old doe, full of oil and ammunition, is ready to launch an attack on the enemy at any time.
Just as Xia Yu started the engine and the propeller began to spin...
"Boom!"
As the third round of shelling landed, a relatively weak 122mm high-explosive shell landed in an open area a few dozen meters from their camp. The shockwave and fragments overturned the nearest tent.
The good news is that it's not a dwelling; the bad news is that it's their toilet.
Xia Yu already had a picture in her mind, but she couldn't bear to look at it.
After this round of shelling ended, the Mi-24V was fully operational, and a dark figure broke into the gunner's compartment.
"Boss, I, the meerkat, am here!"
With the gunners in position, Xia Yu no longer waited for Andrei. He steered the Helicopter into the air, and the attack helicopter flew straight towards the direction from which the shells were coming.
In this critical moment where time was of the essence, he spared no effort in squeezing the power out of the Mi-24V engine, and the helicopter's speed quickly climbed to a top speed of 335 km/h, or 93 meters per second.
"Boom~ Boom~~"
Hearing the explosions of the fourth round of artillery fire behind them, the two continued flying for more than 20 seconds before finally seeing the muzzle flashes, which were so bright against the night sky.
"Beep~~"
The airborne night vision device also locked onto the artillery group. It looked a bit blurry on the screen, but there were more than a dozen guns in a row.
"With so many howitzers, the rebels have mobilized their entire artillery force."
As Hans spoke, he activated the HOT-3 on the pylon.
At this distance, unguided rockets are inaccurate, while anti-tank missiles can just reach them.
"emission!"
Xia Yu reduced the helicopter's speed to its maximum attack speed of 150 km/h and issued the attack order.
"Whoosh~~"
The first HOT-3 missile detached from its mounting rack, its target aimed directly at the howitzer group 4 kilometers away.
What was that sound?
During a break in the firing, a rebel recruit felt an itch in his ear. After removing his earplugs, he heard a whooshing sound.
But while he was searching for the source of the sound…
"Boom!"
A D-30 howitzer was instantly hit by a streak of fire from afar; the missile's 6.5-kilogram tandem warhead pierced through the howitzer, which had just been loaded.
By a twist of fate, the 122mm high-explosive shell in the cannon barrel was fired in a flick shot, but the rising flash and smoke made it impossible to see whether its trajectory was turning.
"Whoosh~~"
Hans fired his second HOT-3.
The boss's order was to clear the weapons from the racks, including the four rocket pods and the twin HOT-3 rocket launchers on both sides.
He fired a powerful anti-tank missile on his first try, and those rounds of shelling earlier weren't for nothing.
"Boom!"
As the HOT-3, which had fallen into the D-20 gun group, hit a 152mm gun, the splattered gun parts indiscriminately attacked the gun positions on both sides, which were more than ten meters apart.
Luckily, one missile took out three artillery crews.
Even if the impact was not widespread, these artillerymen, terrified by the mere mention of it, lost their will to fight.
Yes, it's that devilish Mi-24!
How could they not be devils? They've only fired a few volleys, Busa shouldn't have reacted so quickly!
The quickest to react was the concentrated fire defense. At this moment, the Busa Mixed Brigade was indeed still in a daze. Their skills were so poor that they could hardly take cover immediately after the shelling, let alone organize a defensive counterattack.
That's why Xia Yu works so hard.
He couldn't let the rebels wipe out the opposing force; not only would it be a loss of face, but it would also cause problems later on due to the loss of friendly forces' cooperation.
"Whoosh~ Whoosh~~"
Hans fired his last two HOT-3s, this time shifting his target from the artillery group to two reversing trucks.
Hmph, trying to escape!
"Boom~ Boom~~"
Disturbing my peaceful sleep, you attacked my client! You'd better leave everything behind!
Flying to an airspace only 1 kilometer away from the artillery group, Xia Yu steered the Mi-24 aircraft slightly downwards.
"Whoosh~ Whoosh~ Whoosh~~"
One after another, S-5 and S-8 air-to-ground rockets were fired in a fan shape at the artillery group, engulfing all the surviving artillery pieces in flames.
"Buzz~~"
After clearing the rocket pod, Hans continued to use a 12.7mm Gatling gun to sweep away the humanoid heat sources on the ground.
Perhaps it was because the caliber was large enough, the accuracy was much better than when shooting from 7.62mm. Even if the people on the monitor only missed one shot, they would fall asleep immediately, which can be described as very peaceful.
Xia Yu just felt a strange palpitation.
"Puff~ Puff~ Puff~ Puff~~"
Seeing a flash of light in the dark lower left corner, Xia Yu released an infrared jamming grenade without hesitation.
"Boom!"
The proximity fuse was detonated, and countless fragments struck the thick belly of the Mi-28, making a crackling sound.
I didn't expect Sasu to be so cunning. Did he calculate that all the artillery wouldn't be able to return, so he ambushed the anti-aircraft gunners here to wait for them?
No, after all, there were nearly a hundred people. Sasu's plan was to evacuate everyone and then take advantage of any opportunity to ambush the defense helicopters when they came to investigate. Who knew that neither the people nor the artillery could return?
That's how it is on the battlefield; the unexpected always comes before tomorrow.
The Mi-24V, having gained altitude, turned around to return to base. Xia Yu was unsure if there were any other anti-aircraft gunners, and besides, they had run out of ammunition; it was time to go back.
"Calling honey badger, calling 01, I, this is weasel, please respond!"
In the chaos, he only put on a bulletproof vest and helmet, and didn't even wear the chest suspender with the handheld radio attached. Xia Yu used the airborne radio to contact his men.
"Click~~ Honey Badger received. The situation here is a bit bad. A high-explosive grenade from the rebels landed outside Battalion Commander Anka's tent. He has at least five shrapnel wounds. 01 and the others gave him emergency treatment, but he urgently needs surgery!"
Domi replied over the radio.
No employees of Jihuo Defense were injured, and Andrei only twisted his ankle, but Xia Yu's partner, Xiao Anka, was injured.
“We’ve already destroyed the rebel artillery. Go to my tent and get the portable refrigerator across from my bed. Then have 01 and the others carry Battalion Commander Anka out on a stretcher.”
"It's more important to stay calm at times like this," Xia Yu said methodically.
The portable refrigerator contained some of his blood bags, including all blood types except for rare Rh-negative blood, which he had never seen before.
Whole blood can be stored at 4±2°C for at least 35 days, so this is prepared for situations where one or two employees are injured and need blood transfusions.
If more people are injured, he can release the survival vehicle from Garage 3.
"yes!"
After ending the communication, Domi immediately followed Xia Yu's instructions to prepare, and the camp after the shelling came into view of the Mi-24.
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