Songhu: Never Give Up

Chapter 48 "8.14" Air Combat (Seeking follow-up reading)
"Selling newspapers, selling newspapers, a great victory at Baji Bridge, annihilating one thousand enemies!"

"Selling newspapers, selling newspapers, the Nationalist Army has launched an all-out counterattack against the Japanese stationed in Shanghai, the time for an all-out war of resistance has come!"

"Selling newspapers, selling newspapers, the 88nd Battalion of the 527th Regiment of the 4th Division has recaptured the Baji Bridge, destroyed tanks, and annihilated thousands of enemies. Battalion Commander Yue fired the first shot of the counterattack..."

People ran around to tell each other and were excited. They were happy not only because the National Army had returned to Shanghai, but also because the government had finally begun to resist and take the initiative to attack the Japanese army. From then on, once the war started, no matter where in the north or young, everyone could fight the devils!

Yue Qianli, the second battalion commander of the 527th Regiment, became a star of the War of Resistance against Japan overnight. He led a battalion of brave soldiers and annihilated thousands of enemies. In this era that urgently needed heroes, he quickly became a household name as a hero of the War of Resistance against Japan.

Sun Yuanliang, the Lieutenant General and Commander of the 88th Division, also became famous because of this battle. It was his decisive attack and good command that led to the victory of Baji Bridge, and a famous anti-Japanese general emerged.

The next day, the National Government issued a "Statement of Self-Defense and Anti-War", announcing that the sovereignty of Chinese territory had been invaded by Japan. The National Government would never give up any part of its territory. In the event of invasion, it would only exercise its God-given right of self-defense to respond.

Although there was no formal declaration of war, it was an official announcement that the previous policy of non-resistance had been abandoned. Now, not only would there be no punishment for fighting the Japanese, but there would be heavy rewards. This was undoubtedly a sign of entering an all-out war of resistance.

In Jinling, the Military Commission, General He Jingzhi announced the latest resolution:
"The Beijing-Shanghai Garrison Force was reorganized into the 9th Army, with Lieutenant General Zhang Wenhe as the commander-in-chief. It was composed of the 87th, 88th, and 36th Divisions, the Shanghai Police Corps, and the Jiangsu Security Corps, with a total of 5 troops, responsible for the counterattack mission in SH City;
苏浙边区部队改编为第8集团军，总司令为张相华上将，以第61师、55师、57师、62师、独立第45旅、炮兵第2旅负责守卫杭州湾北部以及浦东地区；

Order all units of the Ninth Group to launch an all-out counterattack against the enemy forces stationed in Shanghai immediately, with the goal of annihilating their special marine corps stationed in Shanghai or driving them into the sea;

Order the navy and air force to enter Shanghai to support the Ninth Army in combat..."

Over the sky above Jinling, dozens of planes painted with plaster flags revealed their hideous faces, dropping bombs at the peaceful residents of Jinling, destroying countless houses, setting the city ablaze, and engulfing a large number of people in the explosion...

At the same time, the Japanese naval aviation also carried out inhumane bombings on cities such as Hangzhou and Nanchang in central China. The Chinese nation was bleeding, but this time they would not surrender!
In addition, the Japanese Navy General Staff issued an order requiring its Third Fleet to destroy the Chinese Army and Central China Air Force in front of it.

The Japanese cabinet meeting decided to launch an all-out war against China and quickly establish a wartime system...

Over Hangzhou, 18 bombers of the Kanoya Air Force, which had just completed the bombing, were returning triumphantly to the Taiwan airport to replenish their bombs.
The alarm sounded at the Jianqiao Airport, and planes took off one after another to intercept the enemy aircraft group. The first air battle between the two sides was about to begin.
Captain Gao Zhihang was the first to take off in his "IV-1" plane, followed closely by squadron leader Major Zhou Xin in his "IV-3" plane, heading straight for the enemy's aircraft group.

After Gao Zhihang and his men took off, they searched for traces of the Japanese aircraft in the clouds and fog, and soon they found several black spots;
Captain Gao was pleasantly surprised to find that the arrogant Japanese had never expected to encounter Chinese planes, and the bomber formation had no fighter escort. This was simply a delivery of food to the door!

The Chinese fleet pounced on the devils like wolves seeing sheep. The Hawk fighter piloted by Zhou Xin was obviously superior to the devil's bombers in performance, and he soon targeted one;
Major Jiro Tsuchihashi, who was targeted by Zhou Xin, was not panicked at all. He was flying Japan's latest Type 96 medium bomber and had rich combat experience. He did not take the "rookie" Zhou Xin seriously at all.

The Type 96 land attack aircraft was Japan's first twin-engine, retractable landing gear aircraft, with a slender fuselage and an elegant all-metal monocoque structure;
Its appearance marked that Japan's aircraft manufacturing technology reached or even surpassed the world's advanced level in the mid-30s.

Weight: 4770kg
Maximum weight: 7642kg
Maximum speed: 350km/h
Endurance distance: 4000kg
Ascent limit: 7500m
It carries 7 crew members, is equipped with 7.7 3mm rotary machine guns, and can carry 1 aerial torpedo or 800kg aerial bombs. No wonder Major Dobashi was not panicking. Although he was only driving a bomber, his armament was not afraid of the Chinese Hawk-3 fighter. The Hawk-3 fighter is a modified version of the naval fighter produced by the American Curtiss Company, originally named FⅡC-3/BF2C-1;

This type of fighter has distinctive features such as unique double wings, large engine hood and landing gear that can be retracted on both sides of the fuselage.

The export version of the Hawk-3 fighter is code-named "Hawk" III and is the main fighter of the Chinese Air Force.

霍克-3装备了1挺12.7毫米口径机枪，1挺7.62毫米口径机枪，最大平飞速度360公里每小时，最大速度386公里每小时，优于96轰炸机。

The Type 96 bomber's weaknesses are its large fuselage, slow turning speed, and weak protection. Its main feature is its thin skin and large filling, making it far less flexible than the Hawk-3.

After the two sides fought for a while, the bulky disadvantage of the bomber became apparent. If it weren't for Major Dohashi's clever evasion, he would have been locked on by Zhou Xin long ago.

Zhou Xin gradually figured out the enemy's characteristics, and relied on the flexibility of the Hawk-3 to approach Jiro Tsuchiya's plane many times, forcing the Japanese machine guns to continuously fire at him, but he easily avoided it.

"Bakayalu, this is an insult to the Imperial Army! Kill the chicken!"

It was obvious that Jiro Tsuchihashi had been irritated by Zhou Xin's cat-playing-with-a-mouse style of play, and he kept ordering the three machine guns on the plane to fire at Zhou Xin;
Zhou Xin used a beautiful tactical roll to avoid the enemy's rain of bullets again, and successfully seized the best attack position. The sight on the nose of the plane gradually locked onto Jiro Tsuchihashi's plane.

Tsuchihashi Jiro seemed to have sensed the approach of death, sweat oozed from his forehead, and he no longer had the composure he had before;
A bomber is always a bomber, and it cannot beat a fighter in air combat. He no longer hopes to defeat the opponent's fighter, but only wants to escape a fatal disaster.

"May Aunt Amaterasu bless you!"

Unfortunately, this is China's sky, the Chinese gods have the final say, Amaterasu is nothing...

Zhou Xin opened fire decisively, and a long string of 12.7mm large-caliber machine gun bullets headed straight for Jiro Tsuchihashi's plane;

Jiro Tsuchihashi tried his best to evade, but was still hit by three bullets, one of which hit the fuel tank squarely.

"boom!"

The plane exploded in mid-air, and Jiro Tsuchihashi and several other Japanese devils were blown to pieces. Aunt Amaterasu, who had been invisible, deftly collected their souls, filling a whole sack.

(End of this chapter)