great-warnovel Chapter 841: Soviet Forces Completely Suppressed in Smolensk; Taishan Air Combat Weapon Makes its De
Chapter 841: Soviet Forces Completely Suppressed in Smolensk; Taishan Air Combat Weapon Makes its De
In early July 1941, before the smoke of battle had cleared from the Belarusian plains, the German Army Group Central's steel torrent had already advanced eastward, heading straight for Smolensk.
Smolensk is located about 400 kilometers west of Moscow. It is a vital passage to Moscow and an important fortress on the Dnieper River, and is known as the "Western Gateway of Russia".
One hundred years ago, Napoleon's French army attacked Tsarist Russia, and a fierce battle was fought here with the Russian army.
And it remains an extremely important strategic location.
Once this place falls, the German armored groups will have no further obstacles and can advance all the way to the outskirts of Moscow, which will determine the survival of the capital.
The Soviet high command was well aware of the importance of this location and quickly gathered the remnants of the Western Front, urgently mobilized reserve forces in the rear, and built a temporary defensive line relying on the fortifications along the Dnieper and Dvina rivers to hold the Smolensk salient to the death.
However, the hastily assembled defenses were still extremely vulnerable in the face of the German blitzkrieg tactics at their peak.
Marshal Bock commanded from the center, and Guderian and Hoth's two armored groups once again displayed their ultimate infiltration tactics.
German armored divisions, organized by division and regiment, abandoned frontal assaults and advanced relentlessly day and night, precisely penetrating gaps in Soviet defenses to repeatedly divide, encircle, and nibble away at the Soviet troops stationed there.
Infantry troops followed closely behind, steadily clearing the area and tightening the encirclement, completely blocking the Soviet army's retreat and supply routes.
Throughout the battle, the German air-ground coordination advantage was maximized, and air superiority became the core key to crushing the Soviet army.
At this time, the airspace over the Smolensk area was a hunting ground for the German air force.
The German 2nd Air Fleet cooperated with ground armored forces throughout the operation, with hundreds of Bf 109 series fighters firmly controlling the air superiority at medium and high altitudes, responsible for dealing with Soviet aircraft flying in from the east; Ju 87 Stuka dive bombers made ultra-low-altitude incursions in groups, carrying bombs and munitions, and carried out continuous saturation bombing of Soviet positions, armored formations, artillery positions, pontoon bridges crossing rivers, and supply convoys.
The Soviet frontline air force tried desperately to intercept them, but was completely powerless to resist.
After continuous losses since the start of the war, the number of Soviet aircraft available on the front lines has been drastically reduced, with most being older models that are outdated in terms of speed, firepower, and climb performance compared to the newer German aircraft.
Even more fatally, with combat casualties, many of the frontline pilots were hastily replaced by new recruits who lacked combat experience, had simplistic tactics, and only knew how to engage in rigid close-range dogfights. When they encountered experienced German pilots who had been through the baptism of the European theater, they were immediately at a disadvantage.
Often, as soon as Soviet warplanes entered the combat airspace, they were locked onto by German Bf 109 formations on high-altitude patrols, and were shot down one by one after several dive-and-pull maneuvers.
Occasionally, Soviet warplanes would manage to break through the interception and reach German positions, but they would be surrounded and killed by German ground-based anti-aircraft fire and escorting warplanes, making it difficult to form effective ground support.
During the daytime battlefield, German warplanes roared back and forth, bombing and strafing indiscriminately. The Soviet ground troops had no air cover and could only passively take the hits. The armored units dared not assemble in large numbers, and their marching, resupply, and rest were all restricted.
As night fell, German night bombers continued to harass the Soviet troops, keeping them awake day and night, and causing morale on the front lines to continue to decline.
The overall disadvantage in air combat further amplified the trend of defeat on the ground battlefield.
Every time the Soviet armored forces launched a counterattack or engaged in positional warfare, they suffered casualties several times greater due to the lack of air cover, and the defensive lines collapsed at an increasingly rapid pace.
The battle reports from the front were becoming increasingly dire, and all Soviet commanders were well aware of a cruel reality: without effective means of countering air combat, the Smolensk defenses would not hold out for long, and Moscow would be directly exposed to the German onslaught.
This is why the Soviet Air Force leadership's desire for the Taishan airburst bomb, which could improve the local air combat situation, soared to its extreme.
The originally planned technology transfer and production schedule was abruptly halted. The Air Force Command issued an urgent order through the Ministry of Industry, demanding that no cost be spared and production capacity be prioritized to ensure that airburst bombs could be mass-produced, deployed, and put into combat as soon as possible.
As the liaison officer between the two parties and the Air Force, Ivan was directly assigned by the command to the ammunition factory to supervise the progress and coordinate all production resources.
At a military ammunition factory near Moscow, a scene of bustling wartime production unfolds.
Fang Wen led the factory's core technical personnel to complete the emergency transformation of the entire production line by working overtime.
The production line, originally designed for the mass production of 82mm mortar shells, has been completely adapted to the production standards of airburst shells after structural adjustments, mold replacements, material conveying system modifications, and the addition of a delayed detonation device.
Inside the workshop, machines roared and sparks flew. Fang Wen, dressed in work clothes, stayed on the production line the whole time, adjusting equipment parameters one by one and checking the processing precision of ammunition casings.
Airburst bombs differ from conventional ammunition. The use of high-intensity luminescent agents, airborne dust dispersion, and delayed detonation structures are all entirely new technologies. Even slight deviations can lead to failure in actual combat, or even the risk of premature detonation or duds.
Fang Wen personally guided Soviet technicians to familiarize themselves with new processes, avoid production errors, and solve various difficult problems in the implementation of the technology.
In addition to the main assembly line, several specialized workshops within the factory are also operating at full speed.
Ammunition casing forging, special agent purification, time-delay fuse assembly, and dustproof sealing are all carried out with clear division of labor and simultaneous progress. The entire mass production system has taken initial shape.
Ivan strode into the production workshop, passing through busy technicians and roaring equipment, and found Fang Wen, who was observing a technician adjusting machine parameters. His expression was anxious and urgent: "Fang, the front line can't hold on any longer. The German air raids are getting more and more intense, and a large number of positions and armored equipment are being destroyed every day. The Air Force Command hopes that airburst bombs can be put into production ahead of schedule, the sooner the better!"
"Let's talk over there, so as not to disrupt their work," Fang Wen said.
As the two walked out of the workshop, Fang Wen asked, "How fast do you need it?"
"Is three days okay?"
"That definitely won't work. It would take at least five days, and that would reduce the yield rate."
"Five days is fine, I'll go back and report right away."
"Wait, I haven't finished speaking yet."
Fang Wen stopped Ivan, who was about to leave, and continued, "The production line debugging is complete, and all the processes are in place. Mass production will definitely be no problem in five days. But you need to understand that airburst bombs are not conventional cannon ammunition. There are specific techniques for the release altitude, timing, formation coordination, and evasive maneuvers. If we give you the ammunition, but the pilots don't know how to use it or use it incorrectly, not only will it not be effective, but it will also waste ammunition and miss opportunities."
After a pause, Fang Wen looked at Ivan and made a clear request: "Therefore, training must be synchronized. You must immediately report to the Air Force leadership and select key pilots from the frontline air force units and the Moscow air defense forces. The pilots must have excellent psychological qualities and experience in actual combat dogfights. I will personally lead the training in ground theory and aerial combat."
Ivan instantly realized what was happening.
Everyone was focused on the ammunition production progress, but almost overlooked the unique operational requirements of this new weapon.
Even the best tactical weapons cannot realize their practical value without skilled users.
“You’re right! We were too hasty and overlooked this!” Ivan nodded immediately, his tone firm. “I’ll go back and report right away, finalize the selection today, and send them over for training as soon as possible!”
After saying that, he didn't dare to delay and quickly turned around to rush back to report and coordinate.
Upon learning of Fang Wen's training plan, the Air Force Command attached great importance to it and immediately issued a transfer order.
On one hand, three core pilots were selected from the Smolensk front-line air force, who had personally experienced the brutality of German air raids and were most aware of the battlefield shortcomings and actual combat needs; on the other hand, two outstanding new pilots with the best psychological qualities and flying skills were selected from the 6th Air Defense Fighter Corps of Moscow.
That evening, all five pilots were assembled and transported by special vehicle to a newly established temporary training center next to Fang Wen's residence.
Training Center.
Fang Wen faced five Soviet pilots.
With a serious expression, he spoke in broken Russian: "You only have four to five days. You must master the use and firing techniques of airburst bombs within these few days. After the intensive training, you will be among the first batch of fighter pilots equipped with this weapon to participate in combat. I hope you will concentrate and give it your all in your studies." "Yes, sir," the five Soviet pilots replied in unison.
Just as Fang Wen was about to begin, there was a knock on the door.
He opened the classroom door, and standing outside was Ivan.
Ivan stood at attention and saluted: "Reporting, instructor, I have applied and am now the sixth trainee."
Fang Wen smiled slightly: "Welcome to the team, please come in."
Fang Wen began after Ivan joined the team.
He explained:
The training is divided into two parts: theory and practice.
The first step is ground-level theoretical teaching.
Fang Wen personally drew up an air combat tactics diagram, breaking down in detail the typical attack tactics, dive angles, and formation encirclement logic of the German Bf 109 and Ju 88, explaining one by one the counter-principles of airburst bombs, the loitering characteristics of the propellant, the effective killing and disruption of the airspace, and the fault tolerance range of delayed detonation.
He combined his own combat experience to correct the Soviet pilots' inherent tactical misconceptions, break their old mindset of close dogfighting, and teach them a brand-new fighting method of "predicting flight path, taking position in advance, and suppressing from the airspace," so that the five pilots could thoroughly understand the tactical value and usage logic of airburst bombs from a theoretical perspective.
The second step is aerial practical training.
For this purpose, the Air Force sent a Yak-1UTI trainer aircraft, using the smooth roads outside the estate as takeoff and landing sites, to match the Yak-1 fighters used extensively at the front.
Immediately afterwards, Fang Wen began a hands-on training exercise with a pilot.
Fang Wen personally piloted the plane into the air, while the flight trainees sat in the rear cockpit. They first simulated classic tactical scenarios of the German army, such as high-altitude dive, formation pursuit, and low-altitude raid, and then demonstrated the dropping of airburst bombs.
After the five pilots gained a certain understanding of the operation, the next step was proficiency training, which required them to repeatedly practice dropping airburst bombs at different altitudes, speeds, and distances.
From low-altitude close-range interception to mid-to-high-altitude formation counter-encirclement and suppression, and then to single-aircraft breakout counter-pursuit, Fang Wen personally demonstrated, commented on, and corrected mistakes one by one for each battlefield scenario.
All five pilots were elite personnel with solid flying skills. Under Fang Wen's guidance, they made rapid progress and mastered the practical skills of airburst bombs in just three days. They were able to predict enemy aircraft flight paths, block and drop the bombs, and use the airburst bombs to build temporary air disruption barriers.
However, the actual situation still needs to be verified on the battlefield.
Day five of the temporary training.
On this day, the first batch of mass-produced airburst bombs from the arsenal officially rolled off the production line.
The ammunition was immediately loaded onto trucks and transported to the military airfield, from where it was transported by Li-2 (a Soviet copy of the Douglas DC-3) to the front-line airfields.
Three Soviet frontline pilots saluted Fang Wen and prepared to travel to the airport with the truck.
Ivan also came over and saluted Fang Wen: "Fang, I also want to apply to go to the front line to fight."
"You're the commander of the flight squadron, and you're going to the front lines like this?" Fang Wen asked in surprise.
“I’m worried that if they don’t perform well, it will affect the frontline pilots’ understanding and judgment of airburst bombs,” Ivan replied.
Fang Wen nodded: "In that case, I'll go with you, old friend. Do you want to fight together again?"
“Okay!” Ivan immediately agreed with a delighted expression. He had fought alongside Fang Wen in Nomonhan and had a very clear understanding of Fang Wen’s strength.
If Fang Wen had gone along, the operation would have been very successful and would have set a good example for the frontline air force pilots.
He then ordered the convoy to hold off on its departure and used the military factory's phone to report the situation to his superiors.
After a while, he ran out and said, "Fang, the higher-ups have approved it. Get in the car with us."
Three military vehicles arrived at the airport.
The pilots got off the truck, and it drove to the warehouse to unload the bombs.
Ivan explained, "This is Vnukovo Airport, where the 34th Fighter Aviation Regiment is stationed. They are one of the units participating in this operation. Your three cadets are also from this regiment. We are temporarily participating in their operation as transferred pilots."
At this moment, three flight cadets arrived with an aviation officer.
The officer introduced himself: "Cikalovich, commander of the 32nd Air Regiment, are you Fang Wen from China?"
“Yes, that’s me,” Fang Wen replied.
The two shook hands.
Let's get down to business.
"Given the urgency of the situation, we are likely to launch an attack tomorrow. Can we guarantee the quality of this batch of airburst bombs?"
"As you said, the situation was urgent, and this batch of airburst bombs was not fully inspected; only one percent of them were sampled. In actual combat, there may be duds."
"A dud! Isn't this playing with the lives of our soldiers?" Chkalovich said, displeased.
"No, this weapon is deployed in large quantities for combat, with 5-10 rounds fired at a time. Even if a small number of duds occur, it won't have a significant impact. The main thing is the effectiveness of the deployment tactics. Furthermore, I will also participate in the operation and provide bombing guidance."
After hearing Fang Wen's words, Regiment Commander Chekalovich said nothing more, but led Fang Wen toward the hangar.
He introduced Fang Wen to the Yak-1 fighter jet that would be used the next day.
Fang Wen boarded the plane directly and used his supernatural abilities to investigate.
As his superpowers merged with the aircraft, he discovered some problems.
The aircraft's engine is malfunctioning.
The problem was mainly caused by internal carbon buildup, but because the impact of the carbon buildup was not significant, it was not detected or repaired.
Tomorrow's battle will face a very complex air combat situation. Fang Wen did not want this problem to affect the operation, but offered to carry out the aircraft maintenance himself.
Chkalovich agreed: "I've heard that you're not only an excellent pilot, but also a very capable mechanic. You can inspect the aircraft for tomorrow's operations."
After he finished speaking, he walked out of the hangar and waved outside: "Boris, come here and help Comrade Fang inspect his fighter jet." (End of this chapter)